COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — A group of lawmakers in Colorado is hoping to help remove what they believe is red tape when it comes to faith organizations or schools building residential housing on property they own.
HB 25-1169, Housing Developments on Faith and Educational Land, is nicknamed "Yes in God's Backyard." The legislation is similar to a law recently passed in California and a bill on the federal level that makes the process for residential housing to be constructed much easier, as long as certain qualifications are met. It would allow the group to build residential housing without permission from a local government when it comes to zoning requests.
According to the bill's text, in Denver, Jefferson, Arapahoe and Douglas Counties alone, faith-based organizations own more than 5,000 acres of undeveloped land, with some of that land sitting vacant for more than 70 years.
"In many cases, faith-based organizations are mowing or maintaining these lots at significant cost with no real benefit to the community," the bill reads.
One of the sponsors behind the Bill is Sen. Tony Exum who represents El Paso County.
"The housing problem in Colorado and across the country is, is tremendous," Sen. Exum explained. "We're trying to create more access and attainability for, you know, first-time buyers for affordable housing. And this is kind of an innovative solution to ensure Coloradans have safe and stable housing."
Sen. Exum is part of a church that took the steps to tackle an affordable housing project.
Solid Rock Church is behind the Village at Solid Rock. The 77-unit apartment complex was built on church-owned property off S. Circle Drive just south of Fountain Boulevard in Colorado Springs and hosted its grand opening back in September of 2024. With help from state funding and putting the non-profit Greccio Housing in charge of managing the property, people who earn between 30% and 80% of the area's median income now have a place to call home. The church partnered with Solid Rock Community Development Center (CDC) and Greccio Housing to secure funding from the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority. Pastor Ben Anderson explaining the whole church community was behind the project. Sen. Exum said the process to bring the project to life was long when it came to getting the zoning rights to build.
"It took a while to get things off the ground," Sen. Exum explained about the Village at Solid Rock project. "We're trying to not only partner with local government but empower local government to help solve the affordable housing problem."
Republic Representative Scott Bottoms, who is a pastor and also represents El Paso County, is behind the bill for the most part.
"The nickname is interesting to me," Rep. Bottoms said of Yes In God's Backyard. "I always enjoy it when people throw God's name in there. But yeah... I think it works."
Rep. Bottoms said he only has concerns about a potential impact on a faith-based organization working on a project with guidelines and support set in place by the state.
"Wherever the state sends money, the state controls, even if they say they don't, eventually they're going to control... and so as long as they're not controlling these churches, as long as they're not saying this is what ideology or theology or worldview that you're going to have, I could actually see this as something I would jump on," Rep. Bottoms said.
The bill was introduced last week and is scheduled to be heard in committee on Feb. 19.
The bill requires a subject jurisdiction, on or after December 31, 2026, to allow a residential development to be constructed on a qualifying property that does not contain an exempt parcel, subject to an administrative approval process. The bill specifies that a subject jurisdiction shall not:
-Disallow construction of a residential development on the basis of height if the tallest structure in the residential development is no more than 3 stories or 45 feet tall;
-Disallow construction of a residential development on the basis of height if the tallest structure in the residential development complies with the height-related standards for the zoning district in which the residential development will be built or any zoning district that is contiguous to the qualifying property on which the residential development will be built;
-Disallow construction of a residential development based on the number of dwelling units that the residential development will contain, except in accordance with standards listed in the bill; or
-Apply standards to a residential development on a qualifying property that are more restrictive than the standards the subject jurisdiction applies to similar housing constructed within the subject jurisdiction, including standards related to structure setbacks from property lines; lot coverage or open space; on-site parking requirements; numbers of bedrooms in a multifamily residential development; or on-site landscaping, screening, and buffering requirements.
A subject jurisdiction shall allow the following uses in a residential development on a qualifying property:
-Childcare; and
-The provision of recreational, social, or educational services provided by community organizations for use by the residents of the residential development and the surrounding community.
"A subject jurisdiction may condition additional uses in a residential development on the uses being allowed only on the ground floor of the residential development and the uses occupying no more than 15% of the ground floor area of the residential development," the bill's summary adds. "The bill requires a faith-based organization, school district, or state college or university to notify the county assessor that a subject jurisdiction has allowed the construction of a residential development on a qualifying property within the county."
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