Castle Rock grants skyline/ridgeline variance to Meadows
By Elizabeth Wood West
The Town of Castle Rock lies within an area of Douglas County that is surrounded by distinct mesas and ridgelines. To protect these unique geographic areas from being obscured and visually blighted from development, the Town of Castle Rock adopted its “Skyline/Ridgeline Protection Regulations” in 1999.
The Town’s Planning Commission recently approved a skyline/ridgeline variance request, submitted by Castle Rock Development Company for The Meadows Filing 18, for about 248 single family lots.
The project is located just north of Red Hawk and west of Prairie Hawk Drive in The Meadows in Castle Rock. The variance will allow 35′ high houses to be constructed within a moderate skyline/ridgeline area.
The regulations categorize skyline/ridgeline areas into major, moderate, and minor. No primary or accessory structures may be constructed within major skyline/ridgeline areas. Primary or accessory structures may be constructed at a maximum height of 25’within a moderate skyline/ridgeline area, and construction of primary or accessory structures may be constructed at a maximum height of 35′ within a minor skyline/ridgeline area.
According to Town Development Services Project Manager Jason Reynolds, the Town has never granted a variance to a major skyline/ridgeline area, with the exception of the Diamond Ridge development, which was grandfathered in. Only a handful of variances have been granted within moderate and minor skyline/ridgeline areas.
Reynolds said, “We don’t have any plans to modify the skyline/ridgeline regulations. However, if a developer or homeowner felt they qualified for a variance, they could submit an application.
For further information about the Town’s “Skyline/Ridgeline Protection Regulations,” contact Jason Reynolds by e-mail or call 720-733-3537.
