SUPERIOR, Colo. (KDVR) — The town of Superior is considering major changes to landscaping requirements following the Marshall Fire.
At its Monday night meeting, the Superior Board of Trustees discussed at length a plan to create so-called “fire zones” around new homes in an effort to make homes more defensible against fire. Those zones would require a 5-foot buffer between the house and any vegetation, including plants, trees and grass.
“You just want to have your house be the most defensible space to hopefully prevent ignition of other fires, and keeping vegetation limited around the immediate perimeter of homes is one way to do that,” Mayor Clint Folsom said.
The board is also considering a required or recommended ban on certain types of vegetation moving forward, including the highly-flammable juniper bush. Junipers have a high oil content and can easily ignite, according to mitigation experts.
“I will support trustee Henson’s plan to ban juniper bushes in the town of Superior right now,” joked one board member. “I’m totally on board with that.”
Multiple board members expressed concerns Monday about overstepping boundaries and about the difficulty of enforcing the changes. Folsom said the ordinance would likely only apply to new construction and to Marshall Fire rebuilds.
Board members are also discussing limiting the changes in portions of town more at-risk for fire. That ordinance has not been drafted, but it could be revealed before the board meeting on May 23.