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Sign Permit — Telluride, Colorado · Requirements sheet
Verified 2026-08-14 · Source: https://telluride.gov/241/Planning-Preservation-Resources
PermitBase is an independent reference and is not affiliated with any government agency. Requirements change and vary by project — confirm current details with the building department before you submit.
Sign Permit in Telluride, Colorado
Telluride Land Use Code Division 4 (the “Telluride Sign Code,” substantially rewritten by Ordinance 1597 in 2024) requires a sign permit before any sign is displayed, constructed, installed, erected, or altered within Town limits, unless the sign is exempt, partially exempt, or otherwise excepted from the permit requirement. The permit is issued by the Town's Director of Historic Preservation and Planning (Planning Department) rather than the Building Division, and is billed separately from the IBC-valuation-based Building Permit Fee Schedule used for building/electrical/mechanical/plumbing permits.
Verified 2026-08-14 · Source
When you need this permit
- No sign shall be displayed, constructed, installed, erected, or altered within the Town until the Town has issued a sign permit, unless the sign is exempt, partially exempt, or qualifies for an exception to the permit requirement, per LUC Section 3-401.C.2 (Telluride Sign Code, Ord. 1597, 2024)
- Permit issued by the Town's Director of Historic Preservation and Planning (Planning Department), per LUC Section 3-402 definitions
- Total allowable sign area for a building equals one (1) square foot of sign area per three (3) linear feet of building frontage, capped at 20 sq ft of combined sign area; a maximum of two (2) signs are allowed per business per frontage (freestanding, projecting, wall, or window sign combination), per LUC Section 3-405
- Off-site signs, roof signs, internally-lit exterior signs, electronic/digital message signs, flashing or moving signs, and signs affixed to trees or utility poles are prohibited, per LUC Section 3-403
- Historic signs on designated historic buildings up to 10 sq ft, government/wayfinding signs, and other categories listed in LUC Section 3-404 are exempt from the sign permit requirement (exemptions do not exempt the sign from other applicable codes)
- A commercial-message sign must be removed within 30 days after the advertised activity, product, business, or service ceases or vacates the premises (LUC Section 3-413.A); the Town may remove a noncompliant sign after 14 days' notice to the permit holder (LUC Section 3-413.B)
Required documents
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Fee schedule
Sign Permit FeePer the Town of Telluride 2025/2026 HARC & Planning Fee Schedule (effective January 1, 2025), listed under the schedule's HARC Applications table. Value confirmed by rendering the fee-schedule PDF to an image and reading it visually, since pdftotext silently misaligned the two-column table (it extracted a false “$1,450.00” adjacent to the “Sign Permit” row that actually belongs to a neighboring line item).
$60.00
Review timeline
Plan review
Not published — contact the department
Inspection process
See the full Telluride inspection guide — scheduling & re-inspection fees →
Tips
- The $60 Sign Permit fee is listed in the Town's HARC & Planning Fee Schedule, not the Building Permit Fee Schedule — sign permits route through the Planning Department (Director of Historic Preservation and Planning), not the Building Division's IBC-valuation Table 1-A used for building/electrical/mechanical/plumbing permits.
- Watch the two-sign / 20-sq-ft aggregate cap closely — Telluride's 2024 Sign Code (Ord. 1597) sets allowable sign area at 1 sq ft per 3 linear feet of building frontage, capped at 20 sq ft combined, with only 2 signs allowed per business per frontage.
- Off-site signs, internally-lit signs, and any electronic/digital message signage are flatly prohibited (LUC Section 3-403) — there is no waiver path for these categories.
Frequently asked questions
Telluride requires a sign permit for: No sign shall be displayed, constructed, installed, erected, or altered within the Town until the Town has issued a sign permit, unless the sign is exempt, partially exempt, or qualifies for an exception to the permit requirement, per LUC Section 3-401.C.2 (Telluride Sign Code, Ord. 1597, 2024); Permit issued by the Town's Director of Historic Preservation and Planning (Planning Department), per LUC Section 3-402 definitions; Total allowable sign area for a building equals one (1) square foot of sign area per three (3) linear feet of building frontage, capped at 20 sq ft of combined sign area; a maximum of two (2) signs are allowed per business per frontage (freestanding, projecting, wall, or window sign combination), per LUC Section 3-405; Off-site signs, roof signs, internally-lit exterior signs, electronic/digital message signs, flashing or moving signs, and signs affixed to trees or utility poles are prohibited, per LUC Section 3-403; Historic signs on designated historic buildings up to 10 sq ft, government/wayfinding signs, and other categories listed in LUC Section 3-404 are exempt from the sign permit requirement (exemptions do not exempt the sign from other applicable codes); A commercial-message sign must be removed within 30 days after the advertised activity, product, business, or service ceases or vacates the premises (LUC Section 3-413.A); the Town may remove a noncompliant sign after 14 days' notice to the permit holder (LUC Section 3-413.B). If your project isn't listed, confirm with Town of Telluride Planning & Building Department, Building Division at 970-728-5700 before starting work.
$60.00, per the Town's 2025/2026 HARC & Planning Fee Schedule (effective January 1, 2025).
Telluride does not publish a plan-review timeline for this permit. Contact Town of Telluride Planning & Building Department, Building Division at 970-728-5700 for current turnaround.
You'll need: Sign Permit Application. See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.
Apply through Town of Telluride Planning & Building Department, Building Division at Rebekah Hall, 113 W. Columbia Ave, Telluride, CO 81435 (mailing: PO Box 397, Telluride, CO 81435). Phone: 970-728-5700, email: planningandbuilding@telluride.gov. Office hours: Main Planning & Building Department line 970-728-5700. Building Official Sam Samuelson: 970-728-2143. SmartGov online-portal assistance / Historic Preservation, Planning and Building Coordinator Tammy Brand: 970-728-2175. Building Inspector Bill Spencer: 970-708-2464.. Official information: https://telluride.gov/230/Building-Department.
Telluride, Colorado has adopted: 2024 International Building Code (IBC) — adopted by Ordinance 1620 (Series of 2025), effective September 12, 2025, per the Town Council second-reading staff memorandum (September 9, 2025) and the live Building Codes webpage; 2024 International Residential Code (IRC); 2024 International Existing Building Code (IEBC); 2024 International Mechanical Code (IMC); 2024 International Fuel Gas Code (IFGC); 2024 International Plumbing Code (IPC); 2024 International Fire Code (IFC) — enforced jointly with the Telluride Fire Protection District per Resolution No. 2019-03; 2024 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC); 2024 International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC); 2024 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code (ISPSC); 2024 International Code Council Performance Code for Buildings and Facilities; 2023 National Electrical Code (NEC); 2023 Colorado Model Electric Ready and Solar Ready Code; Prior code cycle (superseded, listed for reference only): 2018-edition IBC/IRC/IEBC/IMC/IFGC/IPC/IPMC adopted by Ordinance 1502, effective February 18, 2020; All codes locally amended via Telluride Municipal Code Chapter 15 (Building Regulations), Articles 1-13; amendment structure verified directly against both the archived 2018-cycle amendment ordinance (Ordinance 1502 full text) and the current 2024-cycle Town Council staff memorandum/ordinance text (Ordinance 1620) for this file — the two were cross-checked against each other since the live telluride.municipal.codes site blocked automated fetches during this research session (see tipsAndGotchas for the chase trail).. Local amendments apply — see the Telluride overview page for the full list.
Yes. Per the Telluride Sign Code (LUC Division 4, Ord. 1597, 2024), no sign may be displayed, constructed, installed, erected, or altered within the Town until a sign permit has been issued, unless the sign is exempt (e.g., small historic signs, government/wayfinding signs, certain temporary signs) under LUC Section 3-404.
Sources & verification
Verified against official sources. Last reviewed 2026-08-14.
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 Telluride building department before you submit. PermitBase is an independent reference and is not affiliated with any government agency.
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