Wolf Ranch, LLC v. City of Colorado Springs

Summary

The Colorado Supreme Court held that a drainage fee imposed by the City of Colorado Springs on development in the Cottonwood Creek Basin fell within the Regulatory Impairment of Property Rights Act's exception for legislatively formulated fees imposed on a broad class of property owners. The court affirmed the court of appeals' judgment on different grounds and remanded for further proceedings. Two justices dissented, concluding that the fee exemption process was individualized and discretionary under the applicable annexation agreement.

Holdings

1. The drainage fee assessed to Wolf Ranch falls within RIPRA's exception for a legislatively formulated assessment, fee, or charge imposed on a broad class of property owners. Consequently, the fee is outside RIPRA's ambit and is not subject to RIPRA's Nollan/Dolan essential-nexus and rough-proportionality requirements.
2. The court did not need to decide the merits of the court of appeals' interpretation of the individual-and-discretionary requirement because the drainage fee independently fell within RIPRA's legislatively formulated-fee exception.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the drainage fee imposed on Wolf Ranch was a legislatively formulated fee imposed on a broad class of property owners and therefore fell within RIPRA's statutory exception.
2. Whether the Colorado Court of Appeals' judgment should be affirmed on grounds different from those relied on by that court.

Disposition

affirmed