Battle over road access heads back to court

Signage and a gate mark the spot where the upper level of County Road 5 is closed for the reason. San Juan Hut Systems has asked the Colorado Court of Appeals to reverse a 2020 settlement between Ouray County and a group of property owners along County Road 5 that, in part, that allowed those property owners to have access past the gate year-round. Erin McIntyre â Ouray County Plaindealer

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By Carolina Brown, on February 16, 2022

The fight over who has winter access to driving up County Road 5 is apparently not over.

A local guide service has filed an appeal to a settlement agreement reached by property owners and Ouray County in fall 2020, reopening the debate over who can travel down the road to access public lands, past a gate locked by the county.

San Juan Hut Systems, based in Ridgway, filed an opening brief with the Colorado Court of Appeals last month, asking the court to reverse the settlement and declare the count...

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Mary Ann Jordan

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