Dear Action Line: Way up on Florida Road (La Plata County Road 240) are the remains of a business that was damaged by fire several years ago. It appears people are now living there in the building and in cars and trailers. There is a lot of refuse on the property. Which county authority might be able to address this problem? – Jesper E. Itt
Dear Jesper: Sorry, this answer isn’t going to make you feel any better.
While the city of Durango might be able to do something, were this within the city, the county says it cannot in this case.
The issue stems from the lack of enforcement capability. In its land use and building code, La Plata County does not have what’s commonly called a “junk ordinance,” which might be used to enforce such a complaint. County officials say that without such an ordinance, which was rejected during the 2020 code rewrite, its hands are pretty much tied.
Western Colorado counties Delta and Mesa, for instance, both have ordinances related to junk. Delta’s prohibits “the accumulation of rubbish (junk) within Delta County,” and was passed in 2022.
Mesa’s, passed in 2023, “prohibits items of junk being in ordinary view.” It more explicitly says, “Whereas, Mesa County is experiencing large numbers of property owners in unincorporated Mesa County who are storing junk and rubbish on their properties to the detriment of the health and safety of their neighbors …” It specifically defines junk as inoperable vehicles, unusable building materials, used appliances and a list of items including manure. Yum.
In La Plata County, code sections 46-56 (Disposal of rubbish) and 46-57 (Unsecured trash, rubbish or refuse containers) are as close as we come to a junk ordinance. Section 46-56 says that county residents must have a method of trash disposal “for rubbish or dead animals generated on their premises.” Section 46-57 is concerned with “unsecured trash” that might attract wildlife species. “Over the past several years,” says the section, passed in 1997, “human-wildlife conflict incidents dealing with these species have dramatically increased.”
So, nothing in these arguably outdated codes refers to “junk” – useless and unsightly clutter such as, say, abandoned vehicles or refrigerators. However, if unsecured trash is causing a “wildlife disturbance,” for instance, the county can issue a summons and complaint to get the matter resolved.
Larry Foukas, La Plata County code enforcement officer, said the county has handled similar complaints, and has to explain that, “One man’s treasure is another man’s junk.” And as far as the people living there, in this specific instance, the building has not been condemned, despite catching fire several years ago, and can still be used.
“We have reached out to the owner … and they have no issues with people living there,” Foukas said.
Local resident and mountain climber Turner Wyatt recently saw Action Line’s column about why there are numbered peaks in the Weminuche Wilderness. Peaks One through Sixteen can be found on official maps, although you won’t find Peak Twelve. Twenty-three peaks in the Needles area were originally given numbers almost a century ago by the San Juan Mountaineers.
(Link to Aug. 14, 2023, story: https://tinyurl.com/mwwk55nv.)
Using the source listsofjohn.com, another reader last year found Peak Twelve, nestled in its logical place between Eleven and Thirteen.
Wyatt, however, took the question one step further. While writing and researching a fictional short story, he used other sites, including peakbagger.com, to find more Weminuche numbered summits. For good measure, Action Line filled in a few others that Wyatt didn’t yet have:
- Peak Seventeen, he noted, is commonly referred to as Little Finger, 13,212 feet. It’s right next to Peak Sixteen in the rugged Turret Needles.
- Peak Eighteen is a 13,473-foot mountain almost due west of Windom Peak. It’s one of the peaks, including the three Needles Fourteeners – Windom, Eolus and Sunlight – that surround the upper reaches of Needle Creek.
- Peak Twenty became Organ Mountain (13,040 feet), which is just north of Amherst Mountain.
- Peak Twenty One is the western summit of Emerson Mountain, just south of Amherst. Wyatt said the peak, at 13,083 feet, is commonly called Emerson Mountain West.
- Peak Twenty Two is commonly called Point 13105, Wyatt said. It lies between Emerson and Sheep mountains.
- Peak Twenty Three became Sheep Mountain, 13,070 feet. Action Line’s unofficial and quick sweep of the map revealed it to be the southernmost Thirteener in that line of summits beginning in the Needles.
But oh no! Did you notice? Now Peak Nineteen is missing. Help!
Email questions and suggestions to actionline@durangoherald.com or mail them to Action Line, The Durango Herald, 1275 Main Ave., Durango, CO 81301. One rumor is that Peak Nineteen was seen on a bus heading for Mexico, but Action Line is dubious. Wouldn’t such a high peak be more acclimated for Canada?
