HomeMy WebLinkAbout20001961.tiff WELD COUNTY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
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PHONE: (970) 356-4000, EXT. 4391
PHONE (970) 336-7235
FAX: (970) 352-0242
915 TENTH STREET
P.O. BOX 1948
CGREELEY, COLORADO 80632
COLORADO
August 10, 2000
Brent Coan, Esq.
1812 56th Avenue
Greeley, CO 80634
RE: Marty Mathews Letter Dated July 19, 2000
Regarding 20 Year Old Illegal Land
Subdivisions
Dear Brent:
Marty Mathews' letter to Barbara Kirkmeyer has been referred to me for a response. As we
discussed on the phone, I was not aware that Mr. Mathews was not proceeding to cure the illegal
subdivisions. I also indicated to you that I was not clear what Mr. Mathews was requesting of
the Commissioner and whether this letter was intended to be a request for waiver of fees. In any
event, Mr. Mathews has greatly over estimated costs of fees directly payable to the County.
The other portion of the letter that I find troubling is the assertion Mr. Mathews has no resources
to cure the violations. The County cooperated in clarifying the road ownership issues including
the interpretation that there were legal lots that created by the road right-of-way. It was my
understanding that the proceeds from these lots would be used to finance the costs of creating the
additional lots. While the County and myself personally will try to facilitate the resolution of
this matter, as we did in the case of the road issues, the responsibility to cure the violation still
rests with the land owner(s).
With respect to your clients question about "grandfathering," lots created prior to the subdivision
law going into effect in 1972, are considered legal lots even though they are less than 35 acres in
size. Lots created after that date which did not go through a subdivision process and were not
legal lots are not made legal simply by the passage of time. "Grandfathering" only operates to
protect a use or subdivision which was legal at the time a new rule goes into effect making the
use or subdivision++ no longer valid. Here, the subdivision of land has never been valid.
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Brent Coan, Letter
August 10, 2000
Page 2.
Thank you for speaking with me on this issue. Please continue to stay in touch with me on this
matter.
Yours truly,
/12
Lee D.‘Idorrison
Assistant Weld County Attorney
LDM/db:Let/Mathews
pc: Planning Department
Clerk to the Board
Marty Mathews
15075 Higgins Avenue
Fort Lupton, CO 80621 -4059
(303 )857-4251
July 19, 2000
Weld County Board Of County Commissioners
Barbara Kirkmeyer
RE: 20 Year Old Illegal Land Sub-Divisions
Hello Commissioner Kirkmeyer;
I would like to start this third letter in this matter with
a Thank You, for your concern with my 2 previous letters.
I am in my 3rd year now trying to legalize property that people
sold to me illegally??? This Buyer Beware is unfair. And I
never got a response from my inquiry about GrandFathered-In?
Due to lifelong injuries my income is limited to Disability
Wages of $435.00 a month. I had to get help from Weld County
Legal Services last year and the lawyer Weld County supplied
to me for free is G. Brent Coan. He has been helping me still
after the volunteer work that he performed for me has completed.
He has informed me that to rectify my illegally sub-divided
property it will cost me up to $15, 000.00 dollars.
That is $3, 000.00 Retainer Fee = Lawyer
$5,000 .00 - $10,000.00 = Weld County Fees etc.
$2, 000.00 = Survey and Land Platt
This amount is beyond my means and always has been.
I have written Weld County Planning Office and requested
extradition in my case- (cases, I own 2 seperate illegally
sub-divided properties) .
I ask of you the same. If there is any way to resolve my 3
year long headache, just a little faster than normal?
Please help me.
If there are shortcuts or financial allowances that may help
me - which by the way also helps Aristocrat Ranchettes and Weld
County for making everything LEGAL, Please let me or my lawyer
know. Brent Coan is at (970)330-6700 or (303 )659-7576
I Thank You, once again, and look forward to resolution.
Sincerely,
Marty Mathews
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