Fort Collins, CO

This is a tale of two jurisdictions. Fort Collins is a city with strong regulations and a strong acquisition program. Larimer County has more moderate regulations, a conservation development process that requires 50 to 80 percent open area, and a Rural Land Use Process that has a more voluntary slant. The county also has an acquisitions program. Both programs, while largely separate, offer an instructive contrast between different approaches that are both effective in their own way. These two jurisdictions also demonstrate that voluntary, cooperative regional approaches have some significant shortcomings.

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