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City Councilor Megan Burns asked why people have stucco on their homes and why it wasn’t approved before.

Ashley McFarland from the planning department said a resident came to the city to ask if stucco can be allowed. Svoboda said it wasn’t approved prior because during high periods of development in the 60s, 70s, 90s and 2000s, mostly wood materials were used.

“As people were looking to do additions and make modifications to their homes, it was more or less trying to be more accommodating to residents,” he said.

Burns also asked if someone has a dying tree in their backyard if they have to replace it. McFarland said that if at least half of the material in the front yard is living, the home would be in code.

McFarland said the requirements are mostly looking at if someone dug up their grass, and then would have to have the tree and shrub requirements.

City Councilor Shannon Lukeman-Hiromasa said that two trees seem like a lot and could be a significant financial lift for someone. Svoboda said that those with 2,000 square foot lawns are the lots where the two trees would be required.

City Councilor Tim Long asked if the updates address fire pits. Svoboda said that as long as a fire pit is three feet in diameter, it’s okay. Greater than that, the city and the fire department can respond.

ability to bring costs down by catering to the demand for more multifamily units.

e Westminster City Council approved their revised Comprehensive Plan on second reading on a 5-1 vote at the March 27 city council meeting, with many residents coming to testify both for and against the move.

City Councilor Obi Ezeadi voted no and City Councilor Sarah Nurmela was absent, but she voted no on the rst reading.

“Your vote will increase housing costs, making it more di cult for families to live here. Making it more di cult for young people to start a family or a life of their own,” Hott said.

e plan will decrease residential density while increasing commercial zoning for vacant developable land. With Westminster close to being built out, vacant developable land is less than 3% of the city.

e total area for residential and mixed-use zoning for that land will decrease from 36% to 23%, and the total area for non-residential uses will rise 13 points, from 64% to 77%.

Bryan Head, a founding board member of Westminster’s Chamber of Commerce, had a di erent take. Head spoke in favor of the new comprehensive plan.

“ is plan allows for responsible growth with some added density, but also considers the limited water resources we have to balance with,” he said.

He said the plan helps current businesses plan for the future and helps businesses looking to relocate to the city “know what to expect.”

“It’s interesting to me that some of the voices now calling for more density or increased a ordable housing have opposed recent votes on developments that would provide just that,” he said. Mayor Pro Tem David DeMott said something similar at the March 13 meeting.

“To hear it was irresponsible from someone (Ezeadi) who voted against that, the housing crisis I guess only counts when there aren’t people who are going to get mad at a vote from this chamber,” DeMott said, referring to the Uplands development.

Mr. Ezeadi

While Ezeadi is calling for more density and a ordable housing, he voted no on the Uplands, as Head, DeMott and others pointed out.

At the Dec. 21, 2021 City Council meeting where the council approved the development, Ezeadi said “I walked a lot of doors in this area during the campaign, not one person ever told me `hey we really want Uplands.”

However, Ezeadi did call for more a ordable housing from the Uplands development during the hearings.

“To solve the housing crisis, at’s why I can’t support this,” he said on Dec. 20, 2021.

I think we have a lack of affordable housing, real a ordable housing. We call housing a ordable often that’s not a ordable for most people.

Ezeadi also defended his decision at the March 27 meeting.

“I vote and make decisions based on the situation,” he said, adding that the Comprehensive Plan takes away choice from residents due to a lack of diverse housing stock. Ezeadi apologized for comments he made at the March 13 meeting, saying the city council’s resistance to apartments and multifamily is “... irresponsible and entitled. I don’t like using those words, but someone had to say it.” e apology came after City Councilor Bruce Baker called Nurmela and Ezeadi out, addressing their comments as “civil hate.”

“I wonder if I would be given any place to exist at all in (Nurmela’s) worldview,” he said.

DeMott said his decision to support the revised Comprehensive Plan comes from balance.

“ is isn’t about not wanting renting, not wanting townhomes, this is about the balance of all those things with the amount of property we have left, with the amount of water we know we have today,” DeMott said.