Commercial Building Permit (New Construction / CNEW) in Commerce City, Colorado

Commerce City requires a commercial building permit (new construction / cnew) for: Commercial New Construction (CNEW) permit type in eTRAKiT covers new apartment buildings, condominiums, foundation-only construction, mixed-use buildings, core and shell buildings and other new commercial structures; apartments/condos are always commercial projects; Plans reviewed against the 2021 IBC as adopted/amended by the C3BC (including Appendix Chapters C, E, F, G, H, I, J, K and N) and the Local Design Criteria: 35 psf ground snow load, 115 mph Vult wind speed, Seismic Design Category B, 36-inch frost line depth; All submissions must be electronic via the eTRAKiT portal (ePlans); an incomplete submission package delays acceptance of the application; Building plans must be electronically signed and sealed as required; A Development Plan approval letter from the Planning Division is a minimum submission document — the land-development entitlement track (Development Plans/PUD Development Permits: 4-6 months administrative, 6-12 months public hearing) is upstream of and separate from the building permit; Fire plan review is handled directly by the South Adams County Fire Department (303-288-0835) as a separate submittal; Contractors must apply using the eTRAKiT account tied to their current Commerce City contractor license (Unlimited General Class A $120); a lapsed license delays issuance at the Pre-Issuance Review step; Deferred submittals (e.g., trusses) must be submitted to the Building Division after permit issuance but prior to erection/installation, and must be approved before a Certificate of Occupancy; Elevator installations require a separate submission to the Colorado Division of Oil and Public Safety; a Certificate of Operation from that division is a CO prerequisite. If your project isn't listed, confirm with Commerce City Building Safety Division (Community Development Department) at 303-289-3790 before starting work.

Fees are valuation-based under Table 1-A of the Directory of City Fees. For example, a $1,000,000 project pays a $7,257.12 building permit fee plus $4.72 per additional $1,000 above $1,000,000, plus a plan review fee of 65% of the permit fee. A $5M warehouse would therefore run roughly $26,137 permit + $16,989 plan review. Use tax and impact/development fees are separate.

The city publishes a firm SLA: all initial commercial reviews are completed within 21 days of the construction-document completeness review (completeness review is usually done the same day as submittal). If corrections are needed, the first follow-up review takes up to 14 days and any further follow-up reviews 7 days, measured from when you submit your comment responses. Outside agencies such as the South Adams County Fire Department review on their own timelines via separate submittals.

You'll need: Building Plans (signed and sealed); Geotechnical Report; Statement of Special Inspections / Special Inspections and Testing Agreement (SITA); Site-Related Plan; Development Plan Approval Letter; Construction Cost Breakdown. Depending on your project, Commerce City may also ask for: Evaluation Report for Unique Materials or Products. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

Commerce City requires 5 inspection(s) for a commercial building permit (new construction / cnew), in order: Special Inspections (per SITA), Building Safety Stage Inspections, Planning Inspection, Outside-Agency Inspections, Final Inspection and Certificate of Occupancy. Schedule each through Commerce City Building Safety Division (Community Development Department) (303-289-3790).

Apply through Commerce City Building Safety Division (Community Development Department) at South Platte Crossing Building, 7190 Colorado Blvd. Ste 600 (6th Floor), Commerce City, CO 80022. Phone: 303-289-3790, email: cdpermits@c3gov.com. Office hours: Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.. Official information: https://www.c3gov.com/Business-Development/Building-Permits-Inspections.

No separate industrial track is published. Industrial projects use the standard commercial permit types — CNEW for new buildings, CALT for alterations — while tanks, high-pile storage, fire sprinklers, sales trailers and similar work use the Commercial Miscellaneous (CMISC) type. Fire-protection review goes directly through the South Adams County Fire Department.

Yes. Foundation-only construction is explicitly listed under the Commercial New Construction (CNEW) permit type, and the fee schedule lists foundation-only permits as fee'd based on valuation. Note that a core-and-shell building receives a Certificate of Completion rather than a Certificate of Occupancy.