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Change of Occupancy / Change of Use Permit in Cortez, Colorado

Unlike Cañon City (which has no standalone change-of-use application or checkbox at all), the City of Cortez's own standard Building Permit Application includes 'Change of Occupancy' as an explicit Project Type checkbox in Section III, alongside New Commercial, Commercial Remodel, Demolition, and the file's other documented project types — confirmed directly from the form. Governed by the City's adopted 2009 International Existing Building Code (IEBC) Chapter 10, Change of Occupancy, and processed on the same application, with the same Declared Construction Value requirement and valuation-based Building Permit Fee schedule, as any other Cortez building permit.

Verified 2026-08-13 · Source

When you need this permit

  • 'Change of Occupancy' is an explicit checkbox in Section III (Project Type) of the City of Cortez Building Permit Application — confirmed directly from the form, checked alongside New Commercial, Commercial Remodel, Commercial Addition, and Demolition
  • Governed by the City's adopted 2009 International Existing Building Code (IEBC), Chapter 10 (Change of Occupancy), per this file's codesAdopted list
  • The Building Permit Application states 'Some project types may require Planning Department review prior to issuing a Building Permit' — a use/occupancy classification change is among the project types most likely to trigger this, since it implicates zoning as well as building code; the City does not itemize an explicit always/never rule for Change of Occupancy specifically, so confirm directly with Planning & Building (970-565-3402)
  • Declared Construction Value is required on the application for all project types, including a pure change of occupancy with no accompanying construction scope — the form provides no exemption from this field for use-only changes
  • If the new use is not permitted-by-right in the applicable zoning district, Cortez's Conditional Use Permit process ($500.00 fee, 2026 Fee Schedule) — the same process already documented in this file's accessory-dwelling-unit entry — is the City's general mechanism for approving a use not allowed outright by zoning; this file did not independently re-chase the Land Use Code section-by-section for a change-of-use-specific zoning citation beyond this general Conditional Use Permit pathway
  • A real but dated example exists of the City processing a 'Change of Occupancy permit' (for a change of use to allow retail sales and cultivation) with a stated $66.00 fee, per January 27, 2015 City Council meeting minutes — this figure predates the current 2026 Fee Schedule by roughly a decade and should NOT be relied on for a current project; the governing fee today is the standard valuation-based Building Permit Fee table documented in this file's residential-building-permit and commercial-building-permit entries

Required documents

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Fee schedule

Building Permit Fee (same valuation-based schedule as new construction)Since 'Change of Occupancy' is filed via the standard Building Permit Application, no separate change-of-use-specific fee line exists on the 2026 Fee Schedule. What a pure change-of-use application with a $0 declared construction value would be charged is genuinely unresolved — the form requires a declared value field but does not state a floor specific to a non-construction use change; confirm directly with Planning & Building
$75.00 minimum, scaling per the January 2026 Fee Schedule valuation tiers
Conditional Use Permit (if the new use is not permitted-by-right)City of Cortez 2026 Fee Schedule, Planning and Building section; if applying concurrently with a site plan review, the full site-plan-review fee applies plus half the conditional-use-permit fee
$500.00

Review timeline

Plan review
Not published — contact the department

How long did your Change of Occupancy / Change of Use Permit permit actually take in Cortez?

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Inspection process

  1. 1

    Final Inspection

    The Building Permit Application's Department Use Only section includes separate Planning Review, Building Review, and Final Review sign-off lines, implying inspection/sign-off before the permit closes; the form does not describe change-of-occupancy-specific inspection items distinct from a standard commercial or residential final

See the full Cortez inspection guide — scheduling & re-inspection fees →

Tips

  • Cortez is one of the peer Colorado home-rule cities in this corpus that DOES have a standalone Change of Occupancy checkbox on its standard Building Permit Application — don't assume every jurisdiction lacks one just because some peer cities (e.g., Cañon City) route this through a generic commercial-alterations process instead.
  • The Declared Construction Value field is required on every Cortez Building Permit Application, including a pure use change with no construction — budget time to confirm with Planning & Building how a $0-construction-value Change of Occupancy application is actually fee'd, since this isn't spelled out in the published Fee Schedule.
  • Don't rely on the $66.00 Change of Occupancy fee figure found in a 2015 City Council minutes document — it predates the current 2026 Fee Schedule by about a decade; use the standard valuation-based Building Permit Fee table instead.
  • If your new use isn't allowed by right in the zoning district, budget for Cortez's $500.00 Conditional Use Permit process (the same process this file documents for ADUs) as a likely prerequisite before the Change of Occupancy building permit can be issued.

Frequently asked questions

Cortez requires a change of occupancy / change of use permit for: 'Change of Occupancy' is an explicit checkbox in Section III (Project Type) of the City of Cortez Building Permit Application — confirmed directly from the form, checked alongside New Commercial, Commercial Remodel, Commercial Addition, and Demolition; Governed by the City's adopted 2009 International Existing Building Code (IEBC), Chapter 10 (Change of Occupancy), per this file's codesAdopted list; The Building Permit Application states 'Some project types may require Planning Department review prior to issuing a Building Permit' — a use/occupancy classification change is among the project types most likely to trigger this, since it implicates zoning as well as building code; the City does not itemize an explicit always/never rule for Change of Occupancy specifically, so confirm directly with Planning & Building (970-565-3402); Declared Construction Value is required on the application for all project types, including a pure change of occupancy with no accompanying construction scope — the form provides no exemption from this field for use-only changes; If the new use is not permitted-by-right in the applicable zoning district, Cortez's Conditional Use Permit process ($500.00 fee, 2026 Fee Schedule) — the same process already documented in this file's accessory-dwelling-unit entry — is the City's general mechanism for approving a use not allowed outright by zoning; this file did not independently re-chase the Land Use Code section-by-section for a change-of-use-specific zoning citation beyond this general Conditional Use Permit pathway; A real but dated example exists of the City processing a 'Change of Occupancy permit' (for a change of use to allow retail sales and cultivation) with a stated $66.00 fee, per January 27, 2015 City Council meeting minutes — this figure predates the current 2026 Fee Schedule by roughly a decade and should NOT be relied on for a current project; the governing fee today is the standard valuation-based Building Permit Fee table documented in this file's residential-building-permit and commercial-building-permit entries. If your project isn't listed, confirm with City of Cortez Community & Economic Development Department, Division of Planning & Building at 970-565-3402 before starting work.

It is billed on the same valuation-based Building Permit Fee table used for all other Cortez building permits, starting at $75.00 minimum. There is no separate published fee line specific to Change of Occupancy, and how a pure use-change application with no declared construction value is charged is not confirmed by any City document. If the new use requires zoning approval, a separate $500.00 Conditional Use Permit fee may also apply.

Cortez does not publish a plan-review timeline for this permit. Contact City of Cortez Community & Economic Development Department, Division of Planning & Building at 970-565-3402 for current turnaround.

You'll need: City of Cortez Building Permit Application. Depending on your project, Cortez may also ask for: Site Plan and/or Floor Plans; Conditional Use Permit Application. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

Cortez requires 1 inspection(s) for a change of occupancy / change of use permit, in order: Final Inspection. Schedule each through City of Cortez Community & Economic Development Department, Division of Planning & Building (970-565-3402).

Apply through City of Cortez Community & Economic Development Department, Division of Planning & Building at 123 Roger Smith Avenue, Cortez, CO 81321. Phone: 970-565-3402, email: clindquist@cortezco.gov. Office hours: Monday-Thursday 7:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m.; Friday 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Permit Tech/Deputy City Clerk (Cheryl Lindquist): 970-564-4016. Fire Inspector/Building Inspector (Sean Canada): 970-564-4009. 24-hour inspection scheduling line: 970-564-4071 (checked daily at 8:00 a.m.; inspections performed 9:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday, excluding holidays). Fax: 970-565-8172.. Official information: https://www.cortezco.gov/186/Building-Permits-Applications.

Cortez, Colorado has adopted: 2015 International Building Code (IBC) — City of Cortez Adopted Codes page; 2015 International Residential Code (IRC), EXCEPT Section R313 (Residential Fire Sprinkler Systems), which was not adopted — City of Cortez Adopted Codes page; 2009 International Mechanical Code (IMC); 2009 International Plumbing Code (IPC); 2009 International Fuel Gas Code (IFGC); 2009 International Existing Building Code (IEBC); 2009 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) — cited as '2009 International Energy Efficiency Code' on the Adopted Codes page; the City's separate Building Codes & Design Standards page states the 2009 IECC is in effect; 2015 International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC); 2009 International Fire Code (IFC); 2017 National Electrical Code (NEC) — per City of Cortez Building Codes & Design Standards page; NOTE — electrical permits themselves are NOT issued by the City (see localAmendments); this is the code edition the state electrical inspection references for Cortez; ANSI A117.1-2003 Edition, Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities; NFPA 211-2000 Edition, Standard for Chimneys, Fireplaces, Vents, and Solid Fuel-Burning Appliances; Colorado Manufactured Housing Installations, State Resolution #37; Local Ordinance #851, Series 1997 — Construction Standards for Straw Bale Homes; Full text of IBC/IRC/IFC/IPC/IPMC local amendments is hosted as separate ordinance-amendment documents linked from the City's Building Codes & Design Standards page (https://www.cortezco.gov/184/Building-Codes-and-Design-Standards). Local amendments apply — see the Cortez overview page for the full list.

Yes. 'Change of Occupancy' is an explicit checkbox in Section III (Project Type) of the City's standard Building Permit Application, governed by the City's adopted 2009 IEBC Chapter 10. This is a more concrete process than in some peer Colorado home-rule cities in this corpus that have no standalone change-of-use application or checkbox at all.

Sources & verification

Verified against official sources. Last reviewed 2026-08-13.

Fees, timelines, and adopted codes are researched from each jurisdiction's published records — see how we verify. Requirements change and vary by project, so always confirm the current details with the Cortez building department before you submit. PermitBase is an independent reference and is not affiliated with any government agency.

Other permits in Cortez

Residential Building Permit (New Construction)Residential Addition / Remodel PermitPlumbing PermitMechanical / HVAC PermitRoofing Permit (Re-Roof)Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) PermitDemolition PermitFence PermitElectric Vehicle Charging Station Permit (State-Issued Electrical Permit)Solar PV Permit (Split City/State Jurisdiction)Commercial Building Permit (New Construction, Remodel, Addition & Tenant Improvement)Sign PermitFire Sprinkler / Fire Alarm System Permit

Change of Occupancy / Change of Use Permit in other cities

Akron, ColoradoAlamosa, ColoradoArvada, ColoradoAspen, ColoradoAult, ColoradoAurora, ColoradoAvon, ColoradoBasalt, Colorado

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