Firestone, Colorado Building Permit Guide

Work inside Firestone town limits is permitted by the Town of Firestone Building Division at Town Hall, 9950 Park Avenue, and applications and contractor licences are handled in the Town’s online portal. Building permit fees start at $80 and rise with valuation, plan review adds 65% of the permit fee, and use tax is 2.6% of half the valuation.

What requires a building permit in Firestone?

Firestone enforces the 2018 International Residential Code with its own amendments, adopted by Ordinance 1029 in June 2023. Two of those amendments change the usual exemptions: the standard exemption for fences was deleted, and small roofing and siding repairs were added to the exempt list.

Starting work without a permit can bring an investigation fee on top of the permit fee. The code allows it to equal the permit fee, and the fee schedule sets it at $100 per hour with a 2 hour minimum.

Who issues building permits in Firestone?

The Building Division reviews construction plans, issues permits, performs inspections and licenses contractors and trades. Electrical permits are Town permits too: Firestone has adopted the 2023 National Electrical Code and publishes its own electrical fee table.

Three outside agencies sit alongside the Town on most new buildings: the Frederick-Firestone Fire Protection District (303-833-2742), St. Vrain Sanitation District for sewer taps (303-776-9570) and the St. Vrain Valley School District. Property outside the town limits in unincorporated Weld County is permitted by the county, not by Firestone.

Firestone permit types and filing

Permit applications are completed in the online portal, and every general contractor, trade contractor and subcontractor has to be listed on the application and licensed with the Town before the permit is issued.

• Contractor licences: Class A (all work except electrical and plumbing) $150, Class B (trades such as framing, roofing, HVAC, plumbing, decks and solar installation) $100, Class C (fencing, siding, painting, signs, landscaping and similar) $50. Electricians pay no fee but must show a state licence. Licences run by calendar year, staff review can take up to 48 hours, and the certificate of insurance must name the Town as certificate holder and additional insured.
• Homeowners: the Town’s re-roofing sheet lets a homeowner pull a roof permit without a contractor licence when the house is the primary residence and no contractor does the work.
• Permits with plan review: basement finishes and remodels, decks, patio covers and pergolas, new gas lines, pools and spas, radon systems, additions, tankless water heaters with new gas piping, and window or door changes that alter structure.
• Commercial footing and foundation permit: available for commercial projects only, at $2,000 on top of the full submittal fees.

A permit lapses if work does not start within 180 days, or if 180 days pass without a required inspection, and every permit ends 2 years after issuance unless it has been extended. Extensions of up to 180 days each are requested in writing. Refunds are limited to 80% of the permit fee when no work was done, or of the plan review fee when no review was done, and must be requested within 180 days of payment.

Firestone building permit fees

The Town’s 2026 single-family, multi-family and commercial fee sheets all point to the Building Division Fee Schedule revised in January 2025 for the permit fee itself. That fee comes from the total valuation.

Valuing a new house. The Town’s single-family worksheet (August 2025) builds the valuation from floor areas: $167.37 per sq ft for the first and second floors, $64.85 for the garage, $41.84 for finished basement, $31.50 for unfinished basement, $55.23 for a covered deck and $25.11 for a covered porch, uncovered deck or crawl space. These rates produce the valuation, not the fee.

For example, a 2,000 sq ft single-story house with a 400 sq ft garage is valued at $360,680. The building permit fee is $1,075 plus 261 × $6.50, or $2,771.50, and the 65% plan review fee adds $1,801.48. Use tax at 2.6% of half the valuation is $4,688.84.

A new single-family home also pays the Town’s 2026 impact fees of $17,743.34 (transportation $5,810.62, drainage $1,715.07, parks $6,818.70, municipal facilities $925.27 and raw water irrigation $2,473.68), a $25,004 water tap fee for a 5/8 inch tap and $713.77 for the meter. Commercial impact fees are charged per 1,000 sq ft, from $2,103.54 for industrial to $7,994.83 for commercial space.

Electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits in Firestone

Electrical permits are issued by the Building Division and priced separately. Residential electrical fees follow the finished area of the home, and commercial fees follow the electrical valuation, which is why the application asks for it apart from the building valuation.

The electrical figures are indexed to the consumer price index each year, and a 65% plan review fee may be added. Plumbers hold a Class B Town licence and the Town checks their state licences, as it does for electricians. Multi-family and all commercial projects need Frederick-Firestone Fire Protection District approval, with a separate submittal to the district.

Application documents and plan review

Residential applications need plans, a site plan and the Town’s building guide for the project type where one exists. Commercial submittals are reviewed in the order received.

The Building Official can ask for detailed bids when a stated valuation looks inaccurate. The Town publishes fillable guides, most in English and Spanish, for basement finishes, detached garages, enclosed patios, one-story additions, patio covers and carports, pole barns and uncovered decks, plus a gas load form.

How to apply: 6 steps in Firestone

Firestone inspections

The Town’s EV charger and energy storage handout sets out the ground rules its inspectors work to: Firestone inspectors perform the inspections unless the Chief Building Official has approved a third party in advance, and no inspection is made without the stamped plans printed from the portal, the construction documents and the permit card on site. For roof work the contractor or homeowner sets and secures a ladder, and telescoping ladders are not accepted.

• Foundation Lot Certificate: on a new house, a surveyor-sealed certificate showing setbacks reaches the Building Division at least 3 working days before the first rough inspection is requested, and it cannot be more than 45 days old.
• Insulation inspection: added by local amendment, before wall coverings go on.
• Mid-roof inspection: required on every shingle re-roof and new roof. All elevations must be dried in with ice and water shield, drip edge and underlayment, and no more than 25% of the roof may be finished.
• Final: an Improvement Location Certificate and grading certificate, also no older than 45 days, are due 3 working days before the final building inspection is requested.
• Solar on a re-roof: since January 1, 2024, a detach and reset has 3 inspections of its own: demo and safe-off before the roof permit is issued, a rough or mid-roof check of mounts and flashing, and a final electric inspection.

A failed or unready inspection can bring the $75 progressive reinspection fee and a 24-hour delay.

Local Firestone details that matter

Roofing rules: ice barrier is required and must extend at least 24 inches inside the exterior wall line. Shingles must be rated for 115 mph, drip edge is required on all edges including rakes, sidewalls must be step flashed, and a roof with 2 or more existing layers has to be stripped.

Design criteria: the Town’s amended table sets a 30 psf ground snow load, 115 mph wind speed and a 30 inch frost line.

Fences: besides needing a permit, fences may not be built of railroad ties, barbed wire, electric wire, tin, chain link or sheet metal, with limited exceptions in industrial and commercial districts. Between the street and the front setback line, only a picket, ornamental iron or split rail fence is allowed, no higher than 42 inches and at least 50% open.

EV chargers and batteries: a 2023 local amendment requires a heat detector wired to the home’s smoke detector system when an EV charger is installed in an attached garage. The plan review package is a panel load calculation, equipment specifications, a floor plan and a wiring diagram.

Right-of-way, floodplain and stormwater: the Engineering Division issues these separately. A Right of Way Permit costs $200 plus any added fees and surety.

Colorado building code

Colorado has no statewide building code for private buildings: each city and county decides whether a code applies and which edition, while the state sets electrical and plumbing rules, a minimum energy code on any update, and a wildfire code for the mapped wildland-urban interface. Building codes in Colorado

Official Firestone permitting resources

• Town of Firestone Planning & Development (Building Division)
• Firestone Building Permits & Fees
• Firestone Building Division Fee Schedule (rev. 01.2025)
• Firestone 2026 single-family fee sheet
• Firestone 2026 commercial fee sheet
• Firestone single-family valuation worksheet
• Firestone Building Submittal Requirements
• Firestone Commercial Permit Submittal Checklist
• Firestone Building Guides
• Firestone Reroof Requirements
• Firestone Contractor Licenses
• Firestone Municipal Code, Title 15
• Firestone Right of Way Permits

Firestone building permit FAQs

Who issues building permits in Firestone, Colorado?

The Town of Firestone Building Division, part of Planning & Development at 9950 Park Avenue. Call 303-833-3291 or email building@firestoneco.gov.

How much is a building permit in Firestone?

The minimum is $80 for work valued up to $2,000. A house valued at $360,680 pays a $2,771.50 permit fee plus $1,801.48 plan review, before use tax, impact fees and tap fees. Re-roofs, re-siding and fences under 6 ft are $132.

Do I need a permit for a fence in Firestone?

Yes. The municipal code requires a fence plan approved by the Building Department and a permit for any fence, and it bans chain link, barbed wire and several other materials in most districts.

Do I need a permit to repair my roof in Firestone?

Not for a shingle repair of 1 square (100 sq ft) or less per building. Larger re-roofs need a $132 permit with mid-roof and final inspections.

Do contractors need a licence in Firestone?

Yes. Every contractor on the permit needs a Town licence: Class A $150, Class B $100 or Class C $50 per calendar year. Electricians are licensed at no fee with proof of a state licence.

How long is a Firestone building permit valid?

It expires if work has not started in 180 days or if 180 days pass between required inspections, and in any case 2 years after issuance unless extended.

What is the Foundation Lot Certificate?

A surveyor-sealed certificate of the foundation setbacks, filed at least 3 working days before the first rough inspection on a new house.

Simplify Firestone permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Colorado. We prepare your paperwork, file it correctly and coordinate with the permitting authority through issuance. We are not a contractor and we do not perform licensed plan review or inspections; that work stays with your licensed team and the jurisdiction.

This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Firestone permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.