Weld County, CO Home Business: Home Daycare (2026)
Key Facts
- Family Child Care Home
- defined but not zoned as special-review use
- Child Care Center permit
- Special Review Permit required, all districts
- Special Review filing fee
- $3,000 (Appendix 5-J)
- Zoned districts requiring it
- A, R-1, R-2, R-3, R-4, R-5
- Criminal penalty
- up to $100 fine, 10 days jail per day
- Civil penalty
- $25-$1,000 plus $100/day continuing
Summary
Weld County's zoning code defines a Family Child Care Home in Sec. 23-1-90 but never lists it in any zone district's use table, so a small in-home daycare is not treated as a Special Review use. A licensed Child Care Center is different: it needs a $3,000 Special Review Permit in the Agricultural zone and in every R-1 through R-5 residential district.
FAMILY CHILD CARE HOME: A facility for child care in a place of residence of a family or person for the purpose of providing less than twenty-four-hour care for children under the age of eighteen (18) years who are not related to the head of such home, as further defined in C.R.S. Section 26-6-102(13). [Sec. 23-1-90]
"The following BUILDINGS, STRUCTURES and USES may be constructed, occupied, operated and maintained on LOTS outside of SUBDIVISIONS and HISTORIC TOWNSITES in the A (Agricultural) Zone District upon approval of a Special Review Permit...D.CEMETERIES.E.CHILD CARE CENTERS.F.CHURCHES." [Sec. 23-3-40]
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Charter and County Code: Supplement 95).
Full Breakdown
The county's definitions section, Sec. S. Section 26-6-102(13). That definition exists in the code, but it never appears in the Uses Allowed by Right, Site Plan Review, Home Business, or Special Review lists for any zone district, so operating one is not itself a listed, regulated land use requiring a distinct county permit. A CHILD CARE CENTER is treated very differently. It appears as item E in Sec. 23-3-40 (Uses by Special Review outside of subdivisions and historic townsites in the A Agricultural Zone District) and as item 5 in Sec.
F for the R-1 Zone District, with the identical listing repeated in the R-2 through R-5 residential districts. A Special Review Permit requires a Planning Commission public hearing under Sec. 23-2-220 followed by a Board of County Commissioners public hearing and resolution under Sec. 23-2-230, plus a filing fee of $3,000 for "all other USR permits" under Appendix 5-J. The applicant must show the use is compatible with surrounding land uses and, if in the Agricultural zone, that a diligent effort was made to conserve prime farmland.
Anyone who wants to run a small, informal home daycare rather than a licensed center should confirm with the Department of Planning Services whether their operation is being classified as a Family Child Care Home or a Child Care Center, since only the latter triggers the Special Review process.
Violations & Fines
Operating a Child Care Center without an approved Special Review Permit is an unlawful use of land under Sec. 23-10-20: a misdemeanor punishable by up to a $100 fine, up to 10 days in the County jail, or both, with each day of continued operation a separate offense. The County Attorney can also pursue a civil penalty of $25 to $1,000 under Sec. 23-10-40, plus a continuing penalty of up to $100 for each day the violation persists after a County Court order, which can become a lien against the property.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a county permit to babysit a few neighborhood kids in my Weld County home?
What triggers the Special Review Permit for child care in Weld County?
How much does a Child Care Center Special Review Permit cost in Weld County?
What happens if I operate a Child Care Center without the Special Review Permit?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Weld County
Compare Weld County to another location·View the Colorado home business overview
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