County commissioners put off septic decision until November
Minutes from the September 15 meeting record a 45-day continuance on an unpermitted wastewater system, four contracts approved without discussion, and two land-division approvals.
Montezuma County commissioners gave a property owner another 45 days before deciding on an unpermitted septic system, approved four contracts on a single vote and signed off on two land divisions at their September 15 meeting, according to minutes the county has now posted.
Graphic: Cortez Current. Source: Montezuma County BOCC minutes, September 15, 2026
Commissioner Kent Lindsay, the vice chairman, ran the meeting. Commissioner Gerald Koppenhafer was present and Chairman Jim Candelaria was absent. The meeting adjourned at 9:29 a.m.
Septic case held over
Sitting as the Board of County Health, commissioners heard from the county’s public health director and an environmental health specialist about an on-site wastewater treatment system on Road 29.1 that the county says was installed without a permit. The property owner attended.
Koppenhafer moved to continue the matter for 45 days, Lindsay seconded, and the motion carried. The minutes record that the discussion is to resume November 10. They do not describe what the owner would have to do in the meantime, and no penalty is recorded.
Four contracts on one vote
Commissioners approved the consent agenda without pulling any item. It carried an amendment to the county’s immunization contract, a Rocky Mountain Health Foundation grant, and two agreements with Granicus — one covering short-term rentals and one for the company’s Smartgov software. The minutes do not give dollar amounts for any of the four.
Two land divisions
The planning director brought two documents for the commissioners’ signatures: a five-acre single-lot development and rezoning on a 160-acre parcel north of Road S and west of Highway 491, and an exemption amendment covering two parcels of about 2.75 and 21.54 acres on Road 38.1, south of Highway 145 near Dolores.
Administrator search item pulled
A discussion of proposals for recruiting a permanent county administrator was removed from the agenda. The minutes give no reason and do not say when it will return. The county has been run by an interim administrator since commissioners appointed themselves temporary acting administrators in July.
Reports
The county attorney reported on energy development in Colorado and on working with the planning department on renewable-project submittals, along with tax appeals, two pieces of litigation, work with the GIS department on county roads, and a review of recycling program materials.
Both commissioners present said they had been receiving emails about proposed energy development in the county. Koppenhafer said the county needs to develop a formal process for handling them. A 125-megawatt solar facility proposed east of Cortez is awaiting a public hearing, and commissioners have said they cannot discuss it before then.
The interim administrator reported on a review of the county dress code, proposed revisions to the employee handbook, a tree problem at the administration building, the Highway 184 and Road 25 project, a dispute over a private-property culvert, and work with the City of Cortez on shared services.
The minutes are posted on the county’s news page.