El Paso County is trying to crack down on illegal camping with a slight change to the definition of camping when it comes to motor or recreational vehicles.
The Board of El Paso County Commissioners unanimously voted at Tuesday’s regular meeting to amend a 2010 Resolution prohibiting camping on County-owned property. The revised Resolution includes the occupation of motor or recreational vehicles in the definition of camping and stipulates that such vehicles cannot be occupied for more than 48 hours in County right of way.
The change was prompted by an increasing number complaints to the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office from residents reporting camping in vehicles throughout the County.
“It is most definitely a source of frustration for our residents,” said District 3 Commissioner Stan VanderWerf. “I have received several phone calls from residents on the west side who are dealing with people using camper-style vehicles and parking along curbs in the County jurisdiction.”
Sheriff’s Office Commander Jeff Kramer acknowledged that some campers may try to defeat the new rules by simply moving to another location after Deputies have informed them of the 48-hour rule. Kramer said Deputies will follow up on such cases and hand out camping citations if those campers have not moved “to a significantly different location.”
The Sheriff’s Office “works in partnership with the Colorado Springs Police Department to address some of these issues,” Kramer told Commissioners.
Jim Reid, El Paso County’s Executive Director of Public Works, told the Commissioners that the County could adapt an “encroachment permit” to accommodate short term visitors of residents who come to town in large recreational vehicles that may not fit in driveways and need to park along roads and rights-of-way for longer than 48 hours.
The El Paso County Public Information Office has posted a video of the full discussion on the new campingrestrictions on the County You Tube channel at: https://youtu.be/NZ0wxjISdH4