Any County citizen may make a complaint alleging one or more code violations. A citizen's complaint can be made on a Code Compliance Complaint Form [pdf], or you may submit a complaint via the internet Submit a Complaint Online. The complainant may complete the complaint form, or it may be completed by Code Compliance staff based upon a telephone call, letter or other contact from the complainant. If a complaint is received in letter form, the letter will be attached to the complaint form completed by Code Compliance staff. Land use code complaints must be in written form unless the violation involves a life-safety issue; one that Code Compliance staff determines has a significant impact on the public, nearby properties and/or neighborhood; or illegal commercial activity such as an illegal business or sign.
The complaint will be followed up with an inspection of the property and/or contact with the property owner. If a violation is found to exist, the property owner will be notified and resolution of the issue will be pursued by staff. However, if resolution cannot be reached within a reasonable amount of time, the matter may be referred to the Board of County Commissioners for a public hearing and/or a court action will be commenced to enforce County regulations.
If you wish to leave a message for Code Compliance staff, call the Code Compliance 24-hour message line at (970) 498-7662, or call Code Compliance staff directly.
Anonymous Complaints: It is the County's policy not to accept anonymous complaints for Land Use Code violations, however, the County recognizes there may be cases justifying an exception to this policy. These are cases where the nature of an anonymous complaint reliably suggests the existence of code violations presenting an imminent threat to public health and safety or to the environment, or involves an illegal commercial activity which can easily be verified by Code Compliance staff. In such cases, as determined by staff, an anonymous complaint will be accepted and investigated.
Confidentiality: The County recognizes some complainants do not want their names disclosed to the alleged violator for fear of retaliation. The County believes it is important to maintain confidentiality to assure effective investigation and prosecution of code violations. Staff will only release the name of a complainant in response to a lawful court order, advice from the County Attorney's office, or with the permission of the complainant.