Curry County, New Mexico Building Permit Guide

Distance from Clovis decides where a Curry County building permit is filed. The county’s 2024 comprehensive plan records that the City of Clovis has a 5-mile radius for permitting, and the City’s Department of Building Safety confirms jurisdiction over Clovis, its 5-mile extraterritorial area and Texico. Beyond that, with no county building official, the state Construction Industries Division (CID) issues the permit. The county itself, based at 417 Gidding Street in Clovis, regulates subdivisions, floodplain development and work on county roads.

Permits and approvals in Curry County

The county publishes no building or development permit application; its construction-related controls sit in ordinances and in the Road Department’s forms.

Who issues building permits, place by place

• Clovis (population 37,127): the City’s Department of Building Safety, 1221 Mitchell Street, 575-769-7829, permits and inspects all building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical work.
• County land within 5 miles of Clovis: also Clovis Building Safety. The comprehensive plan gives the City a 1-mile radius for planning and platting and a 5-mile radius for permitting.
• Texico (population 918): named by Clovis Building Safety as part of its jurisdiction. City Hall is at 219 Griffin Street, 575-482-3314, open Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., closed for lunch from noon to 1:00 p.m.
• Melrose (population 603): the Village enforces its own subdivision ordinance and mobile and manufactured home specifications, and has a code enforcement officer, but publishes no building permit of its own; without a local building official the state permit comes from CID. Village Hall, 105 E. Avenue B, 575-253-4274.
• Grady (population 79): the Village has no zoning code and posts no permit process, so with no building official of its own the state permit is CID’s. Village office, 575-357-2005.
• Unincorporated county beyond the 5-mile line: CID.
• Cannon Air Force Base: a federal installation; the county’s plan covers the land around it through a Joint Land Use Study.

Where each application goes

Clovis Building Safety takes applications through the City’s online permitting portal or by email with the drawings attached. Contractors need a New Mexico licence and a City of Clovis Business License; an owner-occupier can apply for a permit on their own single-family home.

CID takes building plan review and permit applications, and the electrical, mechanical and plumbing permits, through its online portal.

Curry County Road Department publishes the Property Entrance, Cross-cut and Cattle Guard applications alongside the Curry County Road Policy.

Fees

There is no county building permit fee because there is no county building permit. What you pay depends on which office issues the permit.

The Clovis figures come from the City’s Permit Fees Calculation sheet, which goes on to bands above $500,000 and gives each band as a base amount with a rate per $1,000 of valuation. The city code applies those fees throughout its planning and platting jurisdiction as well as inside the city.

Electrical, plumbing and mechanical work

The trades follow the building permit. Inside the Clovis permitting radius, Building Safety issues the electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits and only licensed contractors may take them out. Outside it, they are CID permits, and CID inspects them.

The City of Clovis has adopted the 2021 International Codes and the 2020 National Electrical Code for its jurisdiction.

Documents

For land being divided, the county Subdivision Ordinance sets design requirements and the assessments needed first, and the County Commission reviews the plat. A subdivision that is not on a municipal water system has its water supply plan reviewed by the Office of the State Engineer.

Steps for a rural Curry County project

Inspections

For Clovis permits, the company doing the work requests each inspection through Building Safety administration on 575-769-7829, with 24 hours’ notice, or in the portal. Work under a state permit is inspected by CID, which takes requests on its online inspection request page.

The county’s Floodplain Administrator reviews floodplain permit applications and checks that the other federal, state and local permits a development needs have been obtained.

Local Curry County points

Cannon Air Force Base: the 2011 Joint Land Use Study for the base and the Melrose Air Force Range gives compatibility guidelines for land near the accident potential zone. The county treats it as guidance rather than a policy document.

Drainage: the county has no county-wide drainage plan and relies on the Subdivision Ordinance to regulate stormwater infrastructure on newly subdivided land. Its plan identifies Clovis as the community most exposed to flooding.

Manufactured homes in Melrose: the Village’s specifications allow 1 mobile home per 7,000 sq ft and require proper installation and connection to municipal utilities.

Texico: land use ordinances that reach into its extraterritorial area are joint agreements with the county.

Septic systems: most rural homes and businesses use septic tanks with leach fields. Liquid waste permits come from the New Mexico Environment Department, whose Clovis field office is at 100 E Manana, Unit 3 (575-762-3728).

County roads: the Road Department maintains 1,355 miles of road from barns in Clovis, Broadview and Melrose.

New Mexico building code

New Mexico adopts its building codes statewide; a city or county with its own certified building official issues its own permits, and elsewhere the state Construction Industries Division does. New Mexico rules

Official resources for Curry County

These are the primary sources behind this guide. Codes, fee schedules and procedures change — confirm the position for your filing date.

• Curry County
• Curry County permits and applications
• Curry County Road Department (entrance, cross-cut and cattle guard applications)
• Curry County ordinances (flood damage prevention, manufactured homes)
• Curry County plans, including the 2024 Comprehensive Plan
• City of Clovis Permitting & Inspections
• City of Clovis online permitting portal
• New Mexico CID: apply for a permit
• New Mexico CID permit fees
• New Mexico CID inspection requests
• New Mexico Environment Department liquid waste field offices
• 14.6.5.9 NMAC: the state rule on building officials and local jurisdictions

Frequently asked questions — Curry County

Does Curry County issue building permits?

No. The county has no building department. Clovis Building Safety permits work in the city and within 5 miles of it, and the state Construction Industries Division permits the rest of the county.

My land is 3 miles outside Clovis. Where do I apply?

To the City of Clovis Department of Building Safety, 1221 Mitchell Street, 575-769-7829. The City’s permitting radius is 5 miles.

Who permits construction in Texico, Melrose and Grady?

Texico is listed by Clovis Building Safety as part of its jurisdiction. Melrose and Grady publish no building permit of their own, so the state permit comes from CID.

What does the county require?

A Floodplain Development Permit in a flood hazard area, subdivision approval when land is divided, and a Road Department application for a new entrance or a cut across a county road.

Where is the county office?

417 Gidding Street, Suite 100, Clovis; phone 575-763-6016.

Who issues septic permits?

The New Mexico Environment Department, through its Clovis field office on 575-762-3728.

Simplify Curry County permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in New Mexico. 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 Curry County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.