(a) Except as otherwise provided in this Section, no annexation may take place that would have the effect of extending the City's municipal boundary more than three miles in any direction from any point of such municipal boundary in any one year. Within the three-mile area, the contiguity required by C.R.S. §31-12-104(1)(a), may be achieved by annexing a platted street or alley, a public or private right-of-way, a public or private transportation right-of-way or area, or a lake, reservoir, stream, or other natural or artificial waterway. Such three-mile limit may be exceeded if such limit would have the effect of dividing a parcel of property held in identical ownership if at least fifty (50%) percent of the property is within the three-mile limit. In such event, the entire property held in identical ownership may be annexed in any one (1) year without regard to such mileage limitation.
(b) The City of Creede Comprehensive Plan shall serve as and shall constitute the "plan in place" referenced in C.R.S. §31-12-105(1)(e), unless a different plan, supplement, or revision is expressly adopted to serve as a plan in place. The plan in place may also be commonly referred to as the "three-mile plan" and such plan shall be deemed automatically updated annually on January 1 of each year without further action by the City unless a change or modification is necessary and is adopted by resolution or ordinance by the Board of Trustees. The absence of a specific reference in such plan to a particular parcel of land proposed for annexation shall not be interpreted as a statement of intent to not annex such parcel of land; it is the plan and intent of the Board of Trustees to evaluate and to consider for potential annexation all property within three miles of the City's then existing municipal boundaries upon submission of a petition or as otherwise permitted by this Article and the Colorado Municipal Annexation Act of 1965. The absence in the plan of a specific reference to any character or extent of streets, subways, bridges, waterways, waterfronts, parkways, playgrounds, squares, parks, aviation fields, other public ways, grounds, open spaces, public utilities, and terminals for water, light, sanitation, transportation, and power to be provided by the City and the proposed land uses for the area shall not be interpreted as a failure to comply with C.R.S. §31-12-105(1)(e), but shall be interpreted as a plan by the City to determine the appropriate character or extent of land uses and services through the City's applicable processes of annexation, planning, and development approvals on a case by case basis. The plan in place may also be amended or modified to more specifically identify the character or extent of land uses and services at any time or contemporaneously with any annexation.
(Ord. 395 §3, 2016)