The Chaffee County Planning Commission will consider a formal definition of a recreational vehicle
and with that consideration, whether, by definition, people can live in a recreational vehicle on a permanent basis. The changes being considered for Chaffee County Land Use Code are scheduled for discussion during a 4:30 p.m. May 29 work session in the Commissioners’ Room at 104 Crestone Ave., Salida.
In a county where workforce housing is in such short supply, the subject of permanent living situations, also called “long-term use,” could be called a hot topic. Recreational vehicles are not regulated by building code. The proposed formal definition of RV being considered by the planning commission reads, “Recreational Vehicles (RV): A vehicle primarily designed as temporary living quarters, not for permanent dwelling, for recreational, camping or travel use.”
The county’s land use code defines campgrounds as a permitted use, and covers the placement of RVs. It does not allow mobile homes to be placed on individual spaces in a recreational camp ground. It also defines what are called “camp cabins,” structures that are constructed on a permanent foundation, not containing a kitchen or meeting the building code requirements. The proposed change would limit the number of days a camp cabin could be rented or occupied by the same party to a period not to exceed 30 days.
Attached to the work session packet is a 2016 joint statement from the Recreational Vehicle Industry Association, The National RV Dealers Association and the National RV Park Association, regarding a proposed U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development rule that exempts RVs from manufactured housing standards, so long as they meet HUD’s definition of an RV. The fourth point of definition says RV’s are “designed primarily not for use as a permanent dwelling but as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, travel or seasonal use.”
Also on the agenda, unspecified changes to Chaffee County Land Use Code Article 3, “Right to Farm and Ranch,” proposed by Planning Commissioner Karin Adams and adjustments to the county’s vacation cabin rental policies in rural zoning districts.
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