Aspen Daily News: A 9th Judicial District judge ruled in favor of the Aspen Board of Realtors twice on Thursday, concluding a lawsuit over the legality of the city of Aspen’s Ordinance 27 from 2021, which placed temporary moratoriums on short-term rental activity and residential building. 

The ruling finds that the adoption of Ordinance 27 violated Colorado’s open meetings law and denies the city’s request to dismiss the claims. It also serves as the final say in a case that has been ongoing since December 2021, including a ruling on March 13, 2022 granting preliminary injunction — which declared Ordinance 27 unenforceable. 

Now that the moratoriums have ceased and new legislation has been implemented to regulate short-term rentals and residential building, including a new STR tax, Ordinance 27 feels like a thing of the past. Still, having a conclusive decision is significant, said Chris Bryan, the Garfield & Hecht attorney representing ABOR. 

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