A hearing Tuesday about a special event liquor permit underscored commonly heard frustrations with La Plata County’s land-use and building codes.
The hearing concerned Music in the Mountains’ application for a permit to serve alcohol at one of its annual events, which has been held at LePlatt’s Pond for the past four years. County staff recommended denying the application due to unresolved land-use and building code violations on the venue’s property.
While county commissioners ultimately approved the permit, the discussion highlighted ongoing complaints about what some describe as an opaque, inconsistent and slow-moving permitting process.
LePlatt’s Pond, an event venue located on the L-J Ranch property, has hosted the Music in the Mountains event without serious issue in previous years, although the permit violations did render the restroom facilities unusable at last years gathering. Instead, the organization used portable toilets.
This time, county staff objected to a restroom structure on the property that lacks required building and flood plain permits.
The facility, located within a designated flood plain, poses a safety risk in the event of flooding, county planning staff said. If the structure were to be swept away, it could endanger water quality and people downstream.
If there are violations on a property, the staff position – based on guidance from the county administration, including commissioners – is to deny any new permits on that property, said Lynn Hyde, director of La Plata County Community Development. She added that once staff presents all the information they have, the decision is out of their hands.
Representatives from Music in the Mountains asked commissioners to take a common sense approach, especially given that the event has been held at the venue without issue for several years.
“This is not a moneymaking proposition for Music in the Mountains,” said Executive Director Angie Beach. “This is just about ambience for the 200 people that are going to be there – and our patrons are notoriously calm.”
Beach also noted that the bathroom permitting issue falls under the responsibility of the property owner, not the nonprofit organization using the space. She added that the event would continue without alcohol if the permit were denied – meaning the public safety concerns would remain unresolved.
Paul Black, owner of LePlatt’s Pond, said the delays and confusion surrounding the permit process reflect a regulatory system that is “not business-friendly or resident-friendly.”
In 2024, the county adopted an updated FEMA flood plain map, which reclassified parts of properties across the county. Black said the new map placed the restroom structure within the flood plain, when it had not been previously.
For more than a year, Black said, he has tried to understand the county’s requirements for bringing the structure into compliance, but has faced delays and inconsistent communication.
A county official said they are not copied on all building permit correspondences, but from the emails they have seen, responses have generally come within a few days.
Hyde acknowledged that evolving regulations can create confusion. She also pointed to a major staff turnover in 2023 that caused delays in planning and permitting.
“We did have a significant delay in addressing planning projects that has colored some people’s experiences with our department – and that’s on us,” Hyde said. “That’s no longer the environment we’re working in, which is great, and I think should be celebrated.”
The commissioners’ granted the liquor license, under the condition that the restroom would be red-taped for the event, and portable toilets would be used instead.
Commissioner Martha Porter-Norton said the property owner had exhibited a “try-faith effort” to address the county’s concerns, and expressed a strong desire to ensure the board acted in a manner that was sensitive to the economic interests of county residents.
However, the approval also included a condition that commissioners discuss permanently prohibiting the use of the bathroom facility until it obtained the required permits at a work session meeting later in the week.
Black expressed his irritation with that decision, adding that he was not informed the hearing was taking place.
“I'm very upset in the fact that I wasn't even notified my business was being talked about at a county meeting today,” Black said. “It kind of it feels like they’re pushing us under the bus, like I'm a bad guy – and I've done everything on a timely manner that I possibly can. I didn't even get a chance to rebut.”
jbowman@durangoherald.com
