P&Z to have third meeting on rezoning request due to invalid vote

A third meeting will be held regarding the rezoning of Wheeler and Elliot Street to allow for townhouses, due to an ineligible vote cast in the prior meeting. The new meeting will be held Thursday, Dec. 13.

After two tumultuous meetings for the city of Breckenridge’s Planning and Zoning Commission, where several from the public and the city showed up to argue for or against a townhouse development project, the commission will hold its third one before it goes to the city in January.

City Manager Andy McCuistion said that Mike Hinyard, a planning and zoning commissioner, should not have had his vote counted due to him no longer living permanently within city limits.

Though, it wasn’t the vote that is causing this to occur. It was the fact that Hinyard had made the motion to approve the item. Had this not occurred, the city could have discounted his vote and sent off the recommendation to the city with a 2-2 tie.

“If it’s a tie it just doesn’t come forward [to the city] with a recommendation,” Mc-Cuistion said. “The ultimate decision-maker is the council, so whether it comes with a recommendation [from the P&Z] for or against makes no difference.”

McCuistion said neither he nor the the city knew Hinyard had changed his voting address. But even without him present or his vote they still could have established a quorum, which in this case constitutes as a majority of board members being present.

At the city commissioners’ meeting on Tuesday, the city considered and approved an agenda item that would replace Hinyard with Coby Walker on the P&Z board. He will be on the board to vote at the next P&Z meeting.

McCuistion added this third meeting for the P&Z will not contain a public hearing, as the previous two meetings have had one. The main goal of it will be to get a vote, but residents will still be permitted time to leave comments if they want.