Aspen building permits
VerifiedDepartment contacts, adopted codes, permit types, fees, and gotchas for Aspen, Colorado.
Last verified 2026-07-23 · Source · Embed this page’s badge · Version history
Building department
- Address
- 427 Rio Grande Place, Aspen, CO 81611
- Phone
- 970-920-5000
- Office hours
- City of Aspen main line 970-920-5000. Building Support (permit requirement inquiries, pre-submittal questions): buildingsupport@aspen.gov, Monday-Friday 9:00am-5:00pm. Builder of the Day (building code/regulations questions): builderoftheday@aspen.gov, 970-429-2735, Monday-Friday 8:30am-4:30pm. Planner of the Day (zoning, floor area, net leasable, signage, mountain view plane, exterior design): planneroftheday@aspen.gov, 970-429-2764, walk-in hours Monday-Friday 9:00am-12:00pm. Historic Preservation: HP@aspen.gov, 970-429-2758. Construction hours: Monday-Friday 7:30am-5:30pm, Saturday 9:00am-5:00pm, no construction on Sundays.
- Website
- Official site
- Permit portal
- Apply online at Aspen's portal
Inspection guide
See how inspections work in Aspen — sequence, scheduling & re-inspection fees.
Codes adopted
Colorado has no statewide-mandated building code edition. Under the Colorado Constitution's home-rule provisions (art. XX, home rule for municipalities since 1902; home rule for counties since 1970), building codes and zoning are an enumerated home-rule charter power, so cities and counties adopt and amend their own construction codes independently — predominantly the I-Codes, with editions and local amendments varying by jurisdiction. The one statewide floor is for energy: HB22-1362 (2022) created the Energy Code Board (jointly appointed by the Colorado Energy Office and the Department of Local Affairs) and requires that, on or after July 1, 2023 and before July 1, 2026, any municipality or county that adopts or updates a building code must adopt and enforce an energy code achieving performance equivalent to or better than the 2021 IECC together with the board's Model Electric Ready and Solar Ready Code (which includes electric-ready, EV-ready, and solar-ready provisions); from July 1, 2026 onward the floor shifts to the board's Model Low Energy and Carbon Code or an equivalent. Electrical and plumbing permitting defaults to the Colorado State Electrical Board and State Plumbing Board (within DORA's Division of Professions and Occupations) — the state issues permits and inspects statewide except in counties/jurisdictions that operate their own certified Electrical or Plumbing Inspection Program, in which case the local program has authority instead. Always confirm the currently adopted code edition, local amendments, and inspection authority (state board vs. local program) with the specific jurisdiction before submitting plans.
2021 International Building Code (IBC) — adopted by Ordinance #1, 2023 (January 24, 2023), effective for permits submitted March 31, 2023 and later; the IRC has NOT been adopted by the City of Aspen and is not applied —… Show full textShow less
2021 International Building Code (IBC) — adopted by Ordinance #1, 2023 (January 24, 2023), effective for permits submitted March 31, 2023 and later; the IRC has NOT been adopted by the City of Aspen and is not applied — single-family, duplex, and townhouse projects are reviewed under the 2021 IBC as locally amended, per the City's own 'Building Permit Application Checklist for Singlefamily, Duplex, and Townhouse Projects (2021 IBC)'
- 2021 International Existing Building Code (IEBC)
- 2021 International Mechanical Code (IMC)
- 2021 International Fuel Gas Code (IFGC)
- 2021 International Plumbing Code (IPC)
- 2021 International Fire Code (IFC)
- 2021 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code (ISPSC)
- 2021 Aspen Energy Code (local amendment/supplement to the IECC)
- 2023 National Electrical Code (NEC), effective August 1, 2023
- 2024 Colorado Wildfire Resiliency Code with local amendments — adopted by Ordinance 6, 2026 (March 25, 2026), effective April 23, 2026; referenced directly in the current Fence Permit Application Checklist (fences within 8 feet of a structure must be noncombustible/ignition-resistant; hedges within 5 feet must use ignition-resistant vegetation)
- Prior code cycle: 2015-edition IBC/IEBC/IMC/IFGC/IPC/IFC applied to permits submitted between February 2017 and March 2023, with local amendments in Ordinance 40, 2016 (superseded, listed for reference only)
Local amendments to all adopted codes are codified in Title 8 (Building and Building Regulations) of the Aspen Municipal Code. Show full textShow less
Local amendments to all adopted codes are codified in Title 8 (Building and Building Regulations) of the Aspen Municipal Code. The City's own 'Currently Adopted Building & Energy Codes' page (aspen.gov/197) publishes a 'Climate & Geographical Design Criteria' table: Ground snow load 100 psf; Wind Speed/Exposure Category 89 mph / B; Seismic Design Category C; Weathering Severe; Frost line depth 36 inches; Termite None to slight; Decay None to slight; Winter design temp -15°F; Summer design temp 82°F; Ice shield underlayment required Yes; Air Freezing Index 2000; Mean annual temperature 40°F.
Permit types & fees
Residential Building Permit (New Construction, Single-Family/Duplex/Townhouse)
Required for new construction of single-family, duplex, and townhouse structures in the City of Aspen. Reviewed under the 2021 IBC as locally amended (the IRC has not been adopted in Aspen) per the City's 'Building Permit Application Checklist for Singlefamily, Duplex, and Townhouse Projects (2021 IBC)'. Classified as a 'New Major Permit' under the City's queue-designator system since new construction changes floor area, height, net livable, or net leasable area.
From$1valuation-basedResidential Addition / Alteration-Remodel Permit
Required for additions and interior/exterior alterations to existing single-family, duplex, and townhouse structures in Aspen. Classified as either a 'New Minor Permit' (alterations not falling into Mini or Major categories) or 'New Major Permit' (if the addition changes floor area, height, net livable, or net leasable area) per the City's queue-designator system.
From$1valuation-basedElectrical Permit
Required for installation, alteration, or repair of electrical systems in Aspen. Governed by the 2023 National Electrical Code (NEC) as adopted, effective August 1, 2023. Typically submitted as an MEP sub-permit under a master building permit number, or as its own standalone permit for standalone electrical work (e.g. solar PV, panel upgrades).
See fee scheduleEV Charger / EVSE Permit
Required for installation of a residential electric vehicle charging circuit/charger in Aspen. Filed as a standalone MEP electrical permit under the 2023 NEC. No EV-charger-specific fee line item is published — the fee is computed via the City's Building Permit Fee Estimator (Excel) referencing the current Municipal Code Fee Ordinance (Title 2), the same valuation-based mechanism used for all other electrical work.
See fee schedulePlumbing Permit
Required for installation, alteration, or repair of plumbing systems in Aspen. Governed by the 2021 International Plumbing Code (IPC) as adopted. Typically submitted as an MEP sub-permit under a master building permit number for larger projects, or as a standalone trade permit.
See fee scheduleMechanical / HVAC Permit
Required for heating, cooling, ventilation, and gas appliance installation or replacement in Aspen. Governed by the 2021 International Mechanical Code (IMC) and 2021 International Fuel Gas Code (IFGC) as adopted.
See fee scheduleRoofing Permit (Re-Roof)
Required for all re-roofing projects in Aspen (patching less than one square, 10'x10', does not require a permit). Governed by the Roof Assembly sections of the currently adopted codes; roof work involving changes to height, slope, footprint, structural framing, or insulation requires a full building permit instead of a roofing permit. Ground snow load design criterion is 100 psf.
See fee scheduleSolar Photovoltaic (PV) System Permit
Required for installation of photovoltaic solar systems in Aspen. Governed by the 2023 NEC as adopted, plus the City's own Photovoltaic Solar System Installation Guidelines covering installer qualifications, submittal content, and inspection sequence.
See fee scheduleDemolition Permit
Required for demolition of any structure not being replaced with another structure, and separately gates any project meeting the City's residential demolition threshold (40% or more of existing exterior wall/roof surface area removed) before a building permit for redevelopment can be issued. Aspen caps qualifying residential demolition allotments at 6 per calendar year, first-come first-served, plus 2 additional allotments per year reserved for 35-year Aspen homeowners.
See fee scheduleFence Permit
Required for construction of a fence, constructed barrier, or berm in Aspen. Governed by Aspen Municipal Code Sec. 26.575.050 (allowed materials) and Sec. 26.575.e.5.q (height limits), plus the 2024 Colorado Wildfire Resiliency Code's noncombustible/ignition-resistant material requirements near structures.
See fee scheduleCommercial Building Permit (New Construction / Addition / Major Alteration)
Required for new commercial construction, commercial additions, and major commercial alterations in the City of Aspen, reviewed under the 2021 IBC as locally amended per the City's Building Permit Application Checklist for Commercial and Multifamily Projects (2021 IBC). Classified as a 'New Major Permit' under the City's queue-designator system when the project is new construction or changes floor area, height, net livable, or net leasable area, or triggers a major engineering review. Aspen deliberately publishes NO Round-1 review SLA for Major Commercial permits — its Building Permit Timelines page directs Major Commercial applicants to 'check in with their permit coordinator' instead, unlike every other queue category on that page.
See fee scheduleCommercial Tenant Improvement / Tenant Finish Permit
Required for tenant finishes and interior alterations of commercial spaces in Aspen — a genuinely distinct, heavily documented track given downtown retail/restaurant turnover. The City maintains a dedicated Tenant Finish Cheatsheet (Building, Updated 4/14/2026) and a dedicated Tenant Finish Guide for Planning & Historic Preservation (Updated 5/1/2026). There is no separately named 'TI permit' — tenant finishes are building permits classified as New Mini or New Minor permits by scope, and qualifying commercial-zone interior/minor-exterior alterations can run through the EPIC (Expedited Permits in Commercial Zones) program with its own published 4-5 week Round-1 SLA.
See fee scheduleSign Permit
Required for one or more stationary signs of any size for a business in Aspen, unless the sign is exempt under Aspen Municipal Code Sec. 26.510.040. Governed by Chapter 26.510 (Signs) of the Land Use Code and reviewed against a business's net-leasable-area-based signage allotment (Sec. 26.510.100). Signs may never be folded into a tenant-finish or other building permit — they always require their own separate Sign Permit, which the City's own Building Permit Timelines page publishes a distinct Round-1 review SLA for: 'Sign: 3-4 weeks.'
See fee scheduleFire Sprinkler and Fire Alarm System Permit
Required for installation or alteration of fire sprinkler and/or fire alarm systems within Aspen city limits. This is a genuinely dual-agency permit: the application is submitted through the City of Aspen's Building Division (or Pitkin County, depending on the property's address) per Aspen Fire Protection District's (AFPD) own guidance, but AFPD's Fire Marshal's Office — not the City's Building Division — performs the actual plan review and all inspections, under the 2021 International Fire Code as adopted by the City and further amended by AFPD's own code amendments. AFPD publishes a real, distinct Round-1 plan-review SLA of approximately 4 to 6 weeks, separate from and not listed on the City's own Building Permit Timelines page.
See fee scheduleChange of Use / Land Use Review (Development Order)
Aspen has no standalone 'change of use permit' by that name. A change in use — for example, between commercial, residential, and lodging categories, or between IBC/zoning use groups such as Mercantile, Business, Assembly, Residential, or Storage — is instead addressed through the City's general Land Use Review / Development Application process under Title 26 (Land Use Regulations) of the Aspen Municipal Code, administered by the Planning & Zoning group of Community Development, and is genuinely distinct from the Title 10 building-code Certificate of Occupancy already documented in the residential- and commercial-building-permit entries. Depending on the specific use and zone district, it can require Growth Management Review (Chapter 26.470, GMQS), Conditional Use Review, or both, per a Planning determination made during a required Pre-Application Conference — not a fixed checklist box, since the Land Use Application's own 'Type of Application' form has no dedicated 'Change of Use' option.
From$325.00
Aspen's permit history isn't searchable here yet
This page covers what the permit requires. What we don't have for Aspen yet is the record of permits actually issued — the history you'd search by street address. That is a gap in our coverage, not a statement about any particular property.
Your email, and the place — never an address. We only use it to tell you when Aspen lands. Privacy.
New residential construction activity
New privately-owned residential construction onlyHousing units authorized by building permits for new privately-owned residential construction — this is not total permit volume (no commercial permits or remodels).
- Latest month (2026-07)
- No data reported
- Trailing 12 months
- 7units
11 of 12 months reported · #60 in Colorado coverage by units
- Year to date (2026 YTD through 2026-07)
- 5units
5 buildings · $51.1M valuation
6 month(s) reported to Census
- Full year 2025
- 8units
8 buildings · $88.5M valuation
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey (BPS), 2026-07 vintage. Census survey data — separate from the permit-requirements verification above. All Colorado building activity
Tips & gotchas
- Aspen is a home-rule city with its OWN Community Development Department, Building Division (427 Rio Grande Place) — Pitkin County's own Community Development Department covers unincorporated Pitkin County plus the portion of the Town of Basalt within Pitkin County, and does not cover Aspen itself. Confirm this directly rather than assuming county-wide coverage.
- Aspen has NOT adopted the IRC — even single-family, duplex, and townhouse projects are reviewed under the 2021 IBC as locally amended. This is a genuinely unusual local amendment versus most Colorado jurisdictions and is stated explicitly on the City's own Single Family/Duplex/Townhouse Building Permit Application Checklist.
- Aspen runs a genuinely published, granular review-timeline SLA system (Building Permit Timelines page) unlike many Colorado home-rule peers: New Mini Permits 3-4 weeks, New Minor Permits 8-10 weeks, New Major Residential 16-18 weeks, MEP/Fence/Re-Roof/IFFR/Tent 1-2 weeks, Like-for-Like Fenestration Affidavits 1 week, EPIC 4-5 weeks — all explicitly starting only once an application is deemed complete and fees paid, and explicitly 'subject to change based on queue volume.' Every reviewTimelineDays in this record that is non-null is a genuine departmental SLA, not an estimate.
- The City does not publish its building-permit fee schedule as plain web text on its Building Department pages — the interactive 'Building Permit Fee Estimator' Excel spreadsheet is how staff and applicants compute a quote — but the figures the estimator references are codified and public at Municipal Code Sec. 2.12.100, effective for applications submitted on or after January 1, 2026. Sec. 2.12.100 opens: 'This Section of the Code sets forth building permit fees for the City Community Development Department, and shall be applied to applications submitted on or after January 1, 2026.' BUILDING PERMIT FEES by total valuation: $1.00-$5,000.00 = $25.00; $5,001.00-$50,000.00 = 50% of the sum of $25.00 + 5.0% of permit valuation over $5,000.00; $50,001.00-$100,000.00 = 75% of the sum of $2,275.00 + 3.5% of permit valuation over $50,000.00; $100,001.00-$250,000.00 = $4,025.00 + 2.5% of valuation over $100,000.00; $250,001.00-$500,000.00 = $7,775.00 + 2.0% over $250,000.00; $500,001.00-$1,000,000.00 = $12,775.00 + 1.75% over $500,000.00; $1,000,001.00-$2,500,000.00 = $21,525.00 + 1.5% over $1,000,000.00; $2,500,001.00-$5,000,000.00 = $44,025.00 + 1.25% over $2,500,000.00; above $5,000,000.00 = $75,275.00 + 0.75% of valuation over $5,000,000.00 + 0.5% of valuation over $10,000,000.00. Building Permit Review Fee: $325.00 per hour. FEES DUE UPON PERMIT SUBMITTAL: Plan Check Fee 65% of the total building permit fee; Energy Code Fee 15% of the total building permit fee. FEES DUE UPON PERMIT ISSUANCE: Building Permit Fee 100% of the total building permit fee; GIS Fee $500.00 (applicable only if changing building footprint); Renewable Energy Mitigation Payment; Use Tax Deposit City of Aspen 2.1% of value of materials for projects over $100,000.00; Use Tax Deposit Pitkin County 0.1% of value of materials. NOTE the unusual structure of the two low bands: the $5,001-$50,000 and $50,001-$100,000 rows apply a 50% and 75% multiplier respectively to an otherwise conventional base-plus-percentage formula. That is how the section reads and it is reproduced rather than simplified. City of Aspen Municipal Code Sec. 2.12.100 ('Building and Planning'), Title 2 Chapter 2.12 (Miscellaneous Fee Schedules) (nodeId TIT2AD_CH2.12MIFESC_S2.12.100BUPL).
- Aspen caps qualifying residential demolitions (40%+ of exterior wall/roof surface area removed) at just 6 allotments per calendar year, plus 2 more for 35-year Aspen homeowners — a scarcity gate that can bottleneck a teardown-rebuild project well before or independent of building-permit plan review itself. Allotments are awarded by LOTTERY, not first-come-first-served — Council directed the switch to a lottery system at the end of 2023 (reported by the Aspen Daily News; the City's own Demolition and Redevelopment Standards PDF does not spell out the award mechanism).
- Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) review is a genuinely distinct process from Building Division review, triggered by inclusion on the City's Inventory of Historic Sites and Structures or location within a historic district — confirmed via multiple documents (Roof/Re-Roof Checklist's HPC-trigger question, EPIC Permit Policy's historic-district carve-outs). HPC procedural/timeline details are not covered here, and HPC review timelines are NOT folded into any permitType's reviewTimelineDays in this record.
- Short-Term Rental (STR) licensing and Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) are NOT modeled as permitTypes in this record: STR licensing is processed as its own distinct license category in the City's Salesforce portal, and ADUs are built under the standard Mini/Minor/Major building-permit track with a Planning-administered zoning floor-area bonus (50% of net livable area excluded from Floor Area calculations if deed-restricted to Mandatory Occupancy) rather than their own permit type.
- EPIC (Expedited Permits in Commercial Zones) and IFFR (Interior Finish and Fixture Removal) are real, distinct expedited/limited-scope permit tracks in Aspen with their own qualification criteria and published policy memos, but are commercial-zone- and demolition-adjacent tools respectively rather than standard residential permit types — not modeled as their own top-level permitType entries in this record beyond being referenced in localAmendments and the roofing/fence entries where relevant.
- Aspen's Building Department web pages sit behind bot-mitigation that can block or time out sustained bursts of automated requests. A temporary block is not evidence that the content is unavailable; anyone fetching pages programmatically should space out requests.
- Review-timeline figures shown here in days are exact day-conversions of SLAs the City publishes in weeks — for example, the 112-126 day New Major Residential figure converts the published '16-18 weeks' SLA on aspen.gov/244 (see that permitType's reviewTimelineNote). Demolition allotments are awarded by LOTTERY (a Council-directed change at the end of 2023), not first-come-first-served — per Aspen Daily News reporting, since the City's own PDFs don't spell out the award mechanism. Among the Queue Designator priority tiers, Red Tag Clearance (not Major Change Orders after the first) is the true lowest-priority tier.
- Aspen publishes a consolidated 'Climate & Geographical Design Criteria' table on aspen.gov/197 (Currently Adopted Building & Energy Codes): Ground snow load 100 psf (matching the Roof/Re-Roof Checklist figure used elsewhere in this record); Wind Speed/Exposure Category 89 mph/B; Seismic Design Category C; Weathering Severe; Frost line depth 36 inches; Termite None to slight; Decay None to slight; Winter design temp -15°F; Summer design temp 82°F; Ice shield underlayment required Yes; Air Freezing Index 2000; Mean annual temperature 40°F.