Best practices book - Flipbook - Page 378
Building Confidence, Building Community.
APPENDIX B4 (DENVER)
PROPOSED DENVER ZONING CODE AMENDMENT
UNLISTED PRIMARY USE DETERMINATION:
FHA GROUP HOMES
REQUEST FOR UNLISTED PRIMARY USE DETERMINATION
At the direction of the City Attorney’s Office and the Executive Director of Community Planning Development (“CPD”),
the Zoning Administrator initiated this “unlisted use determination” to consider whether to permit an unlisted type of
primary residential use, where a dwelling unit is occupied by a larger number of unrelated adults than allowed under the
Denver Zoning Code’s current definition of “household”, but where the dwelling unit’s residents are protected under the
Federal Fair Housing Act
(“FHA”) as a “handicapped” population.1 The proposed use shall be referred to in this document as a “FHA Group
Home.”
This unlisted use determination would allow FHA Group Homes in all neighborhood contexts and Denver Zoning Code
zone districts that allow establishment of any new Household Living use other than a Live/Work Dwelling use.2 The
underlying reason for the determination is because the proposed “FHA Group Home” does not clearly fit any defined
specific use type under the more general classification of permitted Residential Primary Uses.
DESCRIPTION OF PROPOSED FHA GROUP HOME USE
The proposed unlisted primary FHA Group Home use is described as follows (all capitalized land uses, words, terms,
and phrases have the meanings stated in the Denver Zoning Code):
“Residential Occupancy of a Dwelling Unit where:
1. All adult residents (18 years and older) are ‘handicapped’ as defined by the Federal Fair Housing Act (see footnote 1),
Under the Federal Fair Housing Act, “handicap” means, with respect to a person: (1) a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or
more of such person’s major life activities, (2) a record of having such an impairment, or (3) being regarded as having such an impairment, but such
term does not include current, illegal use of or addiction to a controlled substance. 42 U.S.C. § 3602(h). U.S. Courts have uniformly held that persons
who have recovered from drug or alcohol addiction are “handicapped” persons protected by the FHA. See Corporation of Episcopal Church in Utah v.
West Valley City, 19 F.Supp.2d 1215, 1219 (D. Utah 2000).
1
All zone districts in all neighborhood contexts currently allow establishment of at least one specific type of new “Household Living” primary use
(other than a Live/Work Dwelling), except for the I-A, I-B, DIA, O-1, and OS zone districts. The modifier “new” is an important distinction because
certain Household Living uses may continue in the I-A and I-B zones if they existed before July 1, 2004; however, new Household Living use in those
zone districts (not including Live/Work Dwellings) are prohibited. References to “Household Living” uses in this document shall mean all specific
Household Living use types defined in the DZC (e.g., Single-Unit or Two-Unit Dwelling), but not including Live/Work Dwelling.
2
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