Residential Building Permit (New Construction) in Conejos County (Unincorporated), Colorado

Conejos County (Unincorporated) requires a residential building permit (new construction) for: Must comply with Table R301.2(1) Climatic and Geographic Design Criteria: 115 MPH wind design speed, Seismic Design Category B, 36-inch minimum frost line depth, Ice Barrier Underlayment required, 40 PSF minimum ground snow load (higher in Platoro/La Manga/Cumbres); Insulation per Table 401.1.2: Foundation R-10 to 4 ft depth + R-5 under heated slab, Frame Walls R-20+R-5 or R-13+R-10, Ceiling R-49, Floor R-19 minimum; One set of complete construction drawings (digital PDF plans acceptable, minimum 11x17 legible and to scale); stamped plans from a Colorado-licensed design professional required for timber frame, structural steel, alternative construction, and sidewalls over 11'7" in height; Foundation Plan, Floor Plan, Floor Framing Plan, Wall Framing Plan, Roof Framing Plan (trusses must be engineered with stamped plans on-site at framing inspection), Elevations, and detail/table drawings (footing/foundation section, anchor bolt sizing, wall stud sizing, insulation, thermal envelope, water/air/vapor barriers, flashing per IRC R703.4); Window & Door Schedule with U-factors; Energy Code Compliance checklist for IECC (ResCheck or equivalent); Site Plan showing orientation, roads/driveway, parcel number, structure location/dimensions and distances to property lines, existing structures, utility service locations (call 811), wells, and septic systems; Proof of Adequate Water Supply: Well Permit number from Colorado DWR, OR a municipal/town water-supply approval letter; Proof of Sanitary Sewer: existing OWTS (additions require an evaluation inspection and possible upgrade), new/repair OWTS permit number, or connection to a municipality/town system; HOA Letter of Approval if the property is under an active HOA; County Use Tax Deposit of 2% on building/construction materials, calculated and paid by one of three methods (Itemized Cost Breakdown, County Building Valuation Data, or Affidavit of Materials Purchased in Conejos County) at time of permit issuance; Access Permit (CCLUC Article 14, $100) and Physical Address Assignment (Article 14, $50, includes E911 reflective sign) are separate prerequisite permits/steps if not already in place; Electrical and Plumbing permits are obtained SEPARATELY and directly from the State of Colorado DORA Division of Professions and Occupations (dpo.colorado.gov/EandP/Permits) -- Conejos County does not locally administer or inspect these trades; Permit valid for 1 year from issuance; deemed lapsed after 12 continuous months without construction; renewal requires Land Use Administrator approval at 25% of the original permit fee. If your project isn't listed, confirm with Conejos County Building Department (operates out of the Conejos County Land Use Office) at 719-376-2014 (Land Use Office general line); Matt Beckner, Building Department Director/Building Official, direct line 719-376-6765 (available for inspections Monday-Thursday 8am-3pm & Friday 8am-10am); Aleesha Goodman, Permit Technician/Use Tax, 719-376-6762; Pres Romero, Septic Inspector, 719-376-6761 before starting work.

In Conejos County (Unincorporated), the published Building Permit Fee -- valuation $1 to $500 is: $24. Additional published fees: Building Permit Fee -- valuation $501 to $2,000 — $24 for the first $500, plus $3 for each additional $100 or fraction thereof, up to and including $2,000; Building Permit Fee -- valuation $2,001 to $40,000 — $69 for the first $2,000, plus $11 for each additional $1,000 or fraction thereof, up to and including $40,000; Building Permit Fee -- valuation $40,001 to $100,000 — $487 for the first $40,000, plus $9 for each additional $1,000 or fraction thereof, up to and including $100,000; Building Permit Fee -- valuation $100,001 to $500,000 — $1,027 for the first $100,000, plus $7 for each additional $1,000 or fraction thereof, up to and including $500,000; Building Permit Fee -- valuation $500,001 to $1,000,000 — $3,827 for the first $500,000, plus $5 for each additional $1,000 or fraction thereof, up to and including $1,000,000; Building Permit Fee -- valuation $1,000,001 and up — $18,327 for the first $5,000,000, plus $1 for each additional $1,000 or fraction thereof; Conejos County Use Tax Deposit — 2% of building/construction materials valuation; Building Permit Extension — 25% of original permit fee; General Inspection/Re-Inspection — $75; Additional Plan Review (required by changes/revisions to approved plans) — $75 per hour, 1 hour minimum; Occupancy Without Certificate of Occupancy — Original permit fee x 200%; Building/Roofing Without a Permit — Permit fee x 200%. These are the jurisdiction's own published figures — see the fee schedule table and source citations on this page.

Conejos County (Unincorporated) does not publish a plan-review timeline for this permit. Contact Conejos County Building Department (operates out of the Conejos County Land Use Office) at 719-376-2014 (Land Use Office general line); Matt Beckner, Building Department Director/Building Official, direct line 719-376-6765 (available for inspections Monday-Thursday 8am-3pm & Friday 8am-10am); Aleesha Goodman, Permit Technician/Use Tax, 719-376-6762; Pres Romero, Septic Inspector, 719-376-6761 for current turnaround.

You'll need: Building Permit Application (iWorQ online portal); Construction Drawings (Foundation, Floor, Framing, Roof Framing, Elevations, Details); Site/Plot Plan; Energy Code Compliance documentation (IECC checklist / ResCheck); Engineered Truss Drawings. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

Apply through Conejos County Building Department (operates out of the Conejos County Land Use Office) at PO Box 157 (mailing) / PO Box 197 (Land Use Office general mail), 6683 County Road 13, Conejos, CO 81129. Phone: 719-376-2014 (Land Use Office general line); Matt Beckner, Building Department Director/Building Official, direct line 719-376-6765 (available for inspections Monday-Thursday 8am-3pm & Friday 8am-10am); Aleesha Goodman, Permit Technician/Use Tax, 719-376-6762; Pres Romero, Septic Inspector, 719-376-6761, email: landuse@co.conejos.co.us (general); mbeckner@co.conejos.co.us (Building Official); agoodman@co.conejos.co.us (Permit Technician); promero@co.conejos.co.us (Septic Inspector). Office hours: Monday-Friday 8:00 am-4:30 pm, except holidays (the Courthouse closes at 4pm). The Building Department works out of the Land Use Office at the same address. Matt Beckner is the current Building Department Director and Building Official, per the County's own /building-department page. Note that the Colorado DFPC's Prequalified Building Departments list, a statewide roster, still shows 'Chris DeHerrera' as the county's certified contact with an expiration date of 7/24/2023 printed on the same page — that listing is out of date; the County's own site is the authority. Read the DFPC roster from the page as published, since its two-column table does not copy and paste cleanly.. Official information: https://conejoscounty.colorado.gov/building-department.

2018 International Building Code (IBC), 2018 International Residential Code (IRC), and 2018 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC), effective July 1, 2023, per the County's own Building Department page.

No. Conejos County is not on the Colorado DORA Division of Professions and Occupations' list of locally-certified counties for either Electrical or Plumbing inspection -- those permits and inspections are issued directly by the State (dpo.colorado.gov/EandP/Permits), confirmed independently by the County's own Building Department page ('Plumbing & Electrical inspections are done through the state').

Legally, the County's own jurisdiction covers only unincorporated land, and the towns are separate municipalities. In practice, none of the five towns operates an active, separately staffed building department: La Jara's building/zoning page has been offline since sometime between January 2023 and June 2024; Antonito has no official town government website; Manassa's and Sanford's official sites list full department menus with no building function; Romeo has no locatable functioning website. The Colorado DFPC's statewide prequalified-department roster also lists only 'Conejos County,' not any of the five towns.