Growth of Pitkin County
From Community Development
History of Growth Management in Pitkin County
1970's:
- First Pitkin County Growth Management Policy Plan
- 1978: Adoption of the Growth Management Quota System (GMQS)
1980's:
- Land-Use Code quiet years
1990's:
- New Land-Use Code
1993: 15,000 square foot house size cap implemented
1994: Creation of the Rural Remote Zone and TDR system
2000/2006:
- Permitted house size without GMQS or TDRs established at 5,750 square feet and TDRs allowed to be used for additional square footage
Unincorporated Pitkin County Structures By Square Footage
The following interactive map shows the locations of residential structures in Unincorporated Pitkin County as of 2019 and colors them based upon their heated square footage.
- Green for buildings 5,750 square feet and less
- Blue for buildings from 5,751 to 10,000 square feet
- Yellow for buildings from 10,001 to 15,000 square feet
Residential buildings over 15,000 square feet and commercial buildings have not been included to give an accurate representation of the current growth management system.
All statistics are for ONLY Unincorporated Pitkin County. All maps can be manipulated by using the zoom keys or clicking and dragging.
Unincorporated Pitkin County Structures by Square Feet
Press the arrow on the right of the following map to see the next slide.
1970
This map shows all residential structures in Unincorporated Pitkin County as of the end of 1970. Height of the bar reflects the total heated square footage of the building.
1975
This map shows all residential structures in Unincorporated Pitkin County as of 1975. Height of the bar reflects the total heated square footage of the building.
1980
This map shows all residential structures in Unincorporated Pitkin County as of 1980. Height of the bar reflects the total heated square footage of the building.
1985
This map shows all residential structures in Unincorporated Pitkin County as of 1985. Height of the bar reflects the total heated square footage of the building.
1990
This map shows all residential structures in Unincorporated Pitkin County as of 1990. Height of the bar reflects the total heated square footage of the building.
1995
This map shows all residential structures in Unincorporated Pitkin County as of 1995. Height of the bar reflects the total heated square footage of the building.
2000
This map shows all residential structures in Unincorporated Pitkin County as of 2000. Height of the bar reflects the total heated square footage of the building.
2005
This map shows all residential structures in Unincorporated Pitkin County as of 2005. Height of the bar reflects the total heated square footage of the building.
2019
This map shows all residential structures in Unincorporated Pitkin County as of 2019. Height of the bar reflects the total heated square footage of the building.
As of 2019, there are:
- The total number of homes in Unincorporated Pitkin County is 7,879
- 6,764 homes are 5,750 square feet or smaller
- 582 homes are between 5,750 and 8,250 square feet
- 249 homes are between 8,250 and 10,750 square feet
- 166 homes are between 10,750 and 13,250 square feet
- 52 homes are between 13,250 and 15,000 square feet
- 66 homes are over 15,000 square feet
Overall Stats:
- A total of 1,115 homes are greater than 5,750 square feet
- 14.15% of all homes in Unincorporated Pitkin County are greater than 5,750 square feet
- 85.84% of all homes in Unincorporated Pitkin County are 5,750 square feet or smaller
- 64.32% of total square footage added in the county over the last decade is from homes greater than 5,750 square feet
Average house size of Unincorporated Pitkin County is 3,342 square feet. 32% of all houses in Unincorporated Pitkin County are the average house size or smaller. Average house size of homes added over the last decade is 5,120 square feet.
The large map to the right is all residential structures in 2019. The two smaller maps below are all residential structures from 1970 and 1990. All 3 maps are fully manipulable by clicking the zoom buttons or clicking and dragging.
1970
1990
Sub-Dividable Parcels
There are 744 parcels in Unincorporated Pitkin County that are 35 acres or greater and still eligible to be subdivided. These parcel exclude those with conservation easements.
This is 11.74% of the 6,336 parcels in Unincorporated Pitkin County
TDR Sending Sites
389 TDR certificates have been issued.
8,879 acres are deed restricted against development as a result of severing TDRs.
TDR Receiver Sites
(Parcels on the map show where TDRs have been extinguished, and approved for future use but not yet extinguished.)
The TDR System from 2009-2019
Footnotes
- Approved only: does not account for whether the approval has been effected by submission of permit
- TDRs can only be used for new development rights in the UGB
- 63,750 sf available annually (23,000 sf UGB; 10,000 sf Crystal, 5,750 sf Frying Pan; 25,000 sf remainder of Rural Area)
- Does not include properties for which special review approval is NOT required to use TDRs for additional floor area (UGB and certain Rural Area subdivisions). On those properties, from 2009-2019 a total of 67 TDRs – 167,500 sf – were used on 44 properties
- 39,000 sf available annually (10,000 sf UGB; 4,000 sf Crystal; 0 sf Frying Pan; 25,000 sf remainder of Rural Area)
If you have any questions you can contact:
Zachary Hendrix, Long-Range and Climate Action Sr. Admin.
Zachary.Hendrix@pitkincounty.com
970-319-2336
