City of Golden Zoning Code Update

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General Zoning & Subdivision Code Update - Phase 3


After approving different types of buildings (like homes, shops, and mixed-use spaces) in Chapter 18.29, the City Council wants to review how land is used, parking rules, and the steps you take to get things approved.

Goal of Phase 3:

  • Streamlining Processes: We're putting all the steps you need to follow into one easy-to-find chapter.
  • Improving Approvals: We're changing some of the steps for getting big projects approved, like Planned Unit Developments (PUDs).
  • Making Things Clear: We're turning the rules about how land can be used into a simple table, so it's easier to understand.
  • Listening to You: We're adding or changing rules based on what the community wants and needs.
  • Align the use table with parking standards.

Project Timeline:

Drafting - April 2024: We're working with experts to organize the new rules, and plan to have a first draft ready.

Draft Feedback – April – June 2024: Residents will have a chance to give your thoughts on the first drafts which will be posted here.

Targeted Feedback – Beginning April 2024: We'll talk with different groups and organizations to make sure we're making the right changes. We'll still be listening to you too. This will happen from April 2024 until we finish the public hearing process.

Public Hearing Process – September 2024: Public hearings will be held where Planning Commission will give their suggestions to the City Council for approval.



Phase 2.5 Nonconformities

Planning Commission reviewed the draft regulations at their October 18, 2023 meeting in which video can be viewed here. The draft regulations can be viewed here and a summary table of the changes can be viewed here. Email Konsager@cityofgolden.net with any questions or comments.

The Planning Commission recommendation hearing is scheduled for November 15, 2023. The staff report and draft ordinance can be found on the Meetings and Agendas page. City Council adopted the Ordinance 2228 for the nonconforming section and Ordinance 2229 for revisions to 100% affordable housing projects.



Phase 1 Residential Zoning Code-Approved May 24, 2022

Find all application materials on our Development Application Page. Want to check out projects in action? See the Planning Projects page for form zone site plans in process and approved.

Phase 2 Zoning Code drafts (March 2023)

The focus of this Phase 2 update was adding the Commercial and Mixed Use Form Zones to Chapter 18.29. However, there are also updates to the Residential Form Zones in 18.29 based on staff and Planning Commission’s use of this new zoning code over the past year.

In addition, there were a number of other updates to the code that were needed in other Chapters of the code that are impacted by the changes made to Chapter 18.29. A significant update to Title 17 (Subdivisions) was made to modernize the language and allow for form zone subdivisions. There were also significant updates to Chapters 18.40 and 18.28 to both incorporate the new form zone regulations and to delineate the legacy use zones that were not included in the form zone approach (AG, CO, RE, M1, M2 and PUD). Additional Chapters were updated to align procedures, add or update definitions, and add applicability statements. The Parking and Loading Requirements (Chapter 18.36) were updated to house nearly all of the parking regulations in one place in order to improve usability.

Commercial Form Type Case Studies

Since zoning codes are best described as reference books, and do not offer gripping narratives for cover to cover reading, Planning staff advises readers to first look at the Form Zone Map to determine which area of town you are interested in researching in order to find the corresponding “form zone” that applies to a given property or block. Once the form zone is noted, just click on Chapter 18.29 and go to the form zone table, found near the beginning of the chapter in 18.29.01.004 (page 4). With this table, you can use the form zone column to find all of the different “form types” available to be used there and where they are located within the code. Think of the form zone table as an index for what is found in the rest of this Chapter regarding development options. The form types are the types of buildings that can be constructed, and each form type has it’s own specific zoning restrictions for factors such as height, design requirements and even square footage allowances.

In order to see how zoning works, illustrating how a form zone might play out in a real scenario is often the best way to assess how development or redevelopment might come to life in Golden. Staff has chosen three form types in three form zones to test these outcomes:

Main Street B-Main Street Urban Wide Form Type

See how the code could potentially redevelop the northwestern corner of Ford and 13th Streets:

Main Street A-Main Street Wide Form Type

See how the code could potentially redevelop the southwestern corner of Arapahoe and 12th Streets:

Neighborhood Corridor-Mixed Use Building

See how the code could potentially redevelop the southeastern corner of Ford and 22nd Streets:


Phase 2 Planning Commission Hearing: April 5, 2023 6:30 p.m.

Recommendation of Approval to City Council.

The Planning Commission packet and agenda is posted on the city website.

Watch the Planning Commission meeting

City Council approved Phase 2 (Commercial Zoning) on June 6, 2023
1st Reading, May 9 | 2nd Reading, June 6

May 9th City Council Packet link & Watch the May 9, 2023 Meeting Recording

June 6th City Council Packet link & Watch the June 6, 2023 Meeting Recording





Don't Zone Out, Zone In!

Still can’t find what you need? Contact Karl Onsager at konsager@cityofgolden.net.

General Zoning & Subdivision Code Update - Phase 3


After approving different types of buildings (like homes, shops, and mixed-use spaces) in Chapter 18.29, the City Council wants to review how land is used, parking rules, and the steps you take to get things approved.

Goal of Phase 3:

  • Streamlining Processes: We're putting all the steps you need to follow into one easy-to-find chapter.
  • Improving Approvals: We're changing some of the steps for getting big projects approved, like Planned Unit Developments (PUDs).
  • Making Things Clear: We're turning the rules about how land can be used into a simple table, so it's easier to understand.
  • Listening to You: We're adding or changing rules based on what the community wants and needs.
  • Align the use table with parking standards.

Project Timeline:

Drafting - April 2024: We're working with experts to organize the new rules, and plan to have a first draft ready.

Draft Feedback – April – June 2024: Residents will have a chance to give your thoughts on the first drafts which will be posted here.

Targeted Feedback – Beginning April 2024: We'll talk with different groups and organizations to make sure we're making the right changes. We'll still be listening to you too. This will happen from April 2024 until we finish the public hearing process.

Public Hearing Process – September 2024: Public hearings will be held where Planning Commission will give their suggestions to the City Council for approval.



Phase 2.5 Nonconformities

Planning Commission reviewed the draft regulations at their October 18, 2023 meeting in which video can be viewed here. The draft regulations can be viewed here and a summary table of the changes can be viewed here. Email Konsager@cityofgolden.net with any questions or comments.

The Planning Commission recommendation hearing is scheduled for November 15, 2023. The staff report and draft ordinance can be found on the Meetings and Agendas page. City Council adopted the Ordinance 2228 for the nonconforming section and Ordinance 2229 for revisions to 100% affordable housing projects.



Phase 1 Residential Zoning Code-Approved May 24, 2022

Find all application materials on our Development Application Page. Want to check out projects in action? See the Planning Projects page for form zone site plans in process and approved.

Phase 2 Zoning Code drafts (March 2023)

The focus of this Phase 2 update was adding the Commercial and Mixed Use Form Zones to Chapter 18.29. However, there are also updates to the Residential Form Zones in 18.29 based on staff and Planning Commission’s use of this new zoning code over the past year.

In addition, there were a number of other updates to the code that were needed in other Chapters of the code that are impacted by the changes made to Chapter 18.29. A significant update to Title 17 (Subdivisions) was made to modernize the language and allow for form zone subdivisions. There were also significant updates to Chapters 18.40 and 18.28 to both incorporate the new form zone regulations and to delineate the legacy use zones that were not included in the form zone approach (AG, CO, RE, M1, M2 and PUD). Additional Chapters were updated to align procedures, add or update definitions, and add applicability statements. The Parking and Loading Requirements (Chapter 18.36) were updated to house nearly all of the parking regulations in one place in order to improve usability.

Commercial Form Type Case Studies

Since zoning codes are best described as reference books, and do not offer gripping narratives for cover to cover reading, Planning staff advises readers to first look at the Form Zone Map to determine which area of town you are interested in researching in order to find the corresponding “form zone” that applies to a given property or block. Once the form zone is noted, just click on Chapter 18.29 and go to the form zone table, found near the beginning of the chapter in 18.29.01.004 (page 4). With this table, you can use the form zone column to find all of the different “form types” available to be used there and where they are located within the code. Think of the form zone table as an index for what is found in the rest of this Chapter regarding development options. The form types are the types of buildings that can be constructed, and each form type has it’s own specific zoning restrictions for factors such as height, design requirements and even square footage allowances.

In order to see how zoning works, illustrating how a form zone might play out in a real scenario is often the best way to assess how development or redevelopment might come to life in Golden. Staff has chosen three form types in three form zones to test these outcomes:

Main Street B-Main Street Urban Wide Form Type

See how the code could potentially redevelop the northwestern corner of Ford and 13th Streets:

Main Street A-Main Street Wide Form Type

See how the code could potentially redevelop the southwestern corner of Arapahoe and 12th Streets:

Neighborhood Corridor-Mixed Use Building

See how the code could potentially redevelop the southeastern corner of Ford and 22nd Streets:


Phase 2 Planning Commission Hearing: April 5, 2023 6:30 p.m.

Recommendation of Approval to City Council.

The Planning Commission packet and agenda is posted on the city website.

Watch the Planning Commission meeting

City Council approved Phase 2 (Commercial Zoning) on June 6, 2023
1st Reading, May 9 | 2nd Reading, June 6

May 9th City Council Packet link & Watch the May 9, 2023 Meeting Recording

June 6th City Council Packet link & Watch the June 6, 2023 Meeting Recording





Don't Zone Out, Zone In!

Still can’t find what you need? Contact Karl Onsager at konsager@cityofgolden.net.

  • Take Survey
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  • CLOSED: This survey has concluded.

    This presentation provides an update of Golden’s Zoning Code Audit Diagnostic phase. This work was presented to the Zoning Rewrite Task Force in April of 2020. The following presentation summarizes the historical development of context types in Golden. It provides a short history of the evolution of zoning codes and how each code update has impacted development.

    This video segment provides background information that is helpful to answer the questions of the survey. 


    Take Survey
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  • CLOSED: This survey has concluded.

    This presentation provides an update of Golden’s Zoning Code Audit Diagnostic phase. This work was presented to the Zoning Rewrite Task Force in April of 2020.

    The following presentation identifies a mismatch between the commercial parking regulations of the code and Golden’s desire to support smaller, local businesses as expressed in the Golden Vision 2030.

    This video segment provides background information that is helpful to answer Questions 5 and 6 of the survey.


    Take Survey
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Page last updated: 08 Mar 2024, 09:28 AM