Park County, Colorado Building Permit Guide

The Park County Building Department issues building permits for all of the county outside the towns of Fairplay and Alma, which run their own building departments. Applications go in through CloudPermit with stamped structural plans, and a complete re-roof, a mechanical permit or a solar permit costs a flat $200. Electrical and plumbing permits come from the State, and the County’s plan review usually runs about 2 weeks.

What requires a building permit in Park County?

The County’s Development Guide puts it broadly: a permit is needed to erect, construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, improve, remove, convert or demolish any building or structure. Its building FAQs fill in the detail.

Exempt work still has to follow the land use regulations. On residentially zoned land the first structure must be a dwelling, so a shed or garage normally cannot come before the house. The County does not allow mobile homes, and every building used for sleeping must have electricity, plumbing, sanitation and running water, which rules out a bare weekend cabin.

Who issues building permits in Park County?

Three building departments work in the county. The County’s covers every unincorporated community, from Bailey to Hartsel, and the two incorporated towns each have their own.

Both towns tell owners outside their limits to contact the County. The County department reviews plans, inspects construction, licenses contractors and inspects unsafe buildings when authorities ask, and its lobby in Fairplay is open Monday to Thursday.

Park County permit applications and CloudPermit

Planning and zoning, building, licensing and code enforcement applications all run through the County’s CloudPermit portal, which needs a user account. The Building Department publishes a checklist for each of its five applications and rejects incomplete ones.

• General Building Permit Application: homes, additions, remodels, basement finishes, garages, barns, sheds and decks. A deck uses the same application and the same submittals as a house.
• Mechanical Permit: furnaces, wood stoves and similar appliances added after the dwelling is built. Appliances drawn on the plans for a new home need no separate permit.
• Roofing Permit, Solar Permit and Demolition Permit, each with its own checklist.
• Excavation Permit: foundation excavation is normally part of the building permit, but a fast-track excavation permit lets digging start before the building permit is issued.

Who can apply: an owner building for themselves uploads the Homeowner Statement of Responsibility and Owner-Builder Declaration. A general contractor uploads a notarized authorization from the homeowner or the signed construction contract, with the Licensed Contractor Declaration. General, excavation, roofing and mechanical contractors must hold a Park County contractor licence, which expires every December 31.

Park County permit fees

A handful of permits carry flat fees. Everything priced by size is an estimate until the plans are in, the County says, because the fee follows the valuation of the finished building.

Dwellings, additions, remodels, basement finishes, garages, storage buildings and decks are valued from the County’s square foot construction table and then priced from this table.

The County’s handout works one example, a 2,000 sq ft two-story wood-frame house valued at $130.58 per sq ft, or $261,160. It gives two estimates for that house, $2,611.60 using a 0.010 multiplier and $2,154 from the table, and calls both a close estimate; worked strictly, counting each part of $1,000, the table gives $2,161. Unfinished basements are valued at $23.20 per sq ft.

The building permit checklist says the permit fee is due at the time of application, while the County’s 2023 Development Guide asks for at least 50% on plan submittal. Starting construction before the permit is issued doubles the fee.

Electrical, plumbing, mechanical and septic permits in Park County

Park County does not issue electrical or plumbing permits for unincorporated land. Its FAQ says the County contracts all plumbing and electrical work with the State of Colorado (303-894-7800), and the County will not carry out a final building inspection until the State has given final approval to both. Fairplay and Alma are the exceptions: each town says it now has certified inspectors and permits electrical and plumbing work itself, and that State (DORA) permits are no longer needed for work inside the town. Alma adds that permits already open with the State will be inspected by the State.

Mechanical work belongs to the County. Installing a wood stove, furnace, heating unit or air conditioner in an existing building takes the $200 mechanical permit, good for 1 year.

Septic and driveway permits come from the County’s own Environmental Health Department (719-836-4267). Every building permit, whatever its type, needs Environmental Health to confirm that the septic system suits the project, and the septic and driveway permits have to be approved and closed out before the final inspection. Well permits are issued by the Colorado Division of Water Resources.

Documents and plan review

Everything is uploaded before you press submit, because partial submittals are refused. Combine the drawings into one unlocked PDF.

The County requires a Colorado structural engineer’s stamp because of its wind and snow loads, and stamped truss drawings are due by the framing inspection. Plans are reviewed in the order received. The FAQ describes the standard plan review as usually running 2 weeks, and a plan revision goes back through that review with no inspections allowed in the meantime.

Two deed rules catch owners out: a parcel under 35 acres that is not in a subdivision needs a warranty deed with a metes and bounds description recorded before August 8, 1967, and agricultural land under 35 acres needs a deed from before June 1, 1972. Without one, more planning steps apply.

How to apply: 6 steps in Park County

Park County inspections

Schedule through CloudPermit or leave a message on the inspection line, 719-836-4257, with the permit number, project address, subdivision, owner’s last name, type of inspection and a return number. Requests are taken until 5 p.m. on the business day before the inspection. If you are not ready, cancel; an inspection that is not cancelled costs the $75 re-inspection fee.

The building inspection card issued with the permit lists the inspections for that job, and the County’s residential checklist walks through them in order, starting with footings, interior structural pads and foundation walls before any concrete is poured. The inspector keeps the card after the final.

The final inspection waits for the State’s final electrical and plumbing approvals and for the septic and driveway permits to be closed. A Certificate of Occupancy follows, and moving in before it is a code violation.

Permits last 1 year from issue. Work has to start within 180 days and show progress every 180 days, and a permit that will run out can be renewed for another year for $100. The County asks owners to call 2 weeks before expiry.

Local Park County details that matter

Snow and wind loads: plans submitted since January 1, 2024 must use the ground snow load and wind speed for the exact site from the ASCE Hazard Tool, currently ASCE/SEI 7-22, with homes and solar projects in Risk Category II. The County also keeps a snow load map searchable by schedule number.

Frost and foundations: the County says frost can reach as deep as 10 ft, and the prescriptive minimum footer depth is 24 inches below finished grade on undisturbed soil. A shed of up to 200 sq ft can sit on caissons at least 8 inches across and 24 inches deep; anything larger needs a permanent foundation.

Fire districts: the Platte Canyon Fire Department (303-838-5853) issues a mitigation permit, Jefferson-Como (719-836-2082) charges a fire mitigation survey or impact fee, Hartsel (719-836-3500) charges an impact fee, and Southern Park County (719-689-9479) signs the inspection card before the final. Sites outside those four districts have nothing to file.

Owner-builders: an owner may build their own home, but it cannot be offered for sale until the Certificate of Occupancy is issued, and an owner-builder may build one dwelling every 4 years.

Camping and trailers: camping on your land for more than 2 weeks a year needs a permit from the Planning Department, and questions about living in a trailer during construction go to Planning & Zoning.

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 Park County resources

• Park County Building Department and CloudPermit
• Park County permit applications, checklists and fees
• Park County building valuation data and fee table (PDF)
• Park County checklist for building permit submittals (PDF)
• Park County building FAQs
• Park County inspection information and scheduling
• Park County Development Guide (PDF)
• Park County design loads for structures
• Park County contractor licensing
• Park County Environmental Health: septic and driveway permits
• Town of Fairplay Building Department
• Town of Alma Building Department

Park County permit FAQs

Who issues building permits in Park County?

The Park County Building Department at 856 Castello Avenue in Fairplay, 719-836-4255, for everything outside the towns of Fairplay and Alma. Those two towns have their own building departments.

How much is a building permit in Park County?

Re-roof, mechanical and solar permits are a flat $200, demolition and excavation $100. Houses are priced by valuation: the County’s own example for a 2,000 sq ft home comes to roughly $2,150 to $2,600, and the exact fee is set from the plans.

Do I need a permit for a shed, fence or deck in Park County?

A one-story detached storage shed of 200 sq ft or less and a fence up to 6 ft are exempt from a building permit. Every deck needs one, on the standard building application.

Do my plans have to be engineered?

Yes. The County requires the stamp of a Colorado registered structural engineer, and it will not accept plans without full stamped structural drawings.

How do I get an electrical or plumbing permit in Park County?

From the State of Colorado for unincorporated land. Inside Fairplay or Alma, the town issues it.

Can I build my own home in Park County?

Yes. You file the Homeowner Statement of Responsibility and Owner-Builder Declaration, you cannot sell the home before the Certificate of Occupancy, and you may build one dwelling as owner-builder every 4 years.

How long is a Park County building permit good for?

1 year from issue. If work is progressing, it can be extended for another year for a $100 renewal fee.

How do I schedule a Park County inspection?

Through CloudPermit or the inspection line, 719-836-4257, no later than 5 p.m. on the business day before.

Simplify Park County 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 Park County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.