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
Check off what you have — your progress is saved on this device.
Not ready yet — 0 of 1 required documents checked.
This checker covers one permit. A full project usually triggers several — our checklist will assemble all of them, free →
Fee schedule
Per the Town of Telluride 2025/2026 HARC & Planning Fee Schedule (effective January 1, 2025), listed under the schedule's HARC Applications table. Show full citationHide
Per the Town of Telluride 2025/2026 HARC & Planning Fee Schedule (effective January 1, 2025), listed under the schedule's HARC Applications table. This two-column table does not copy and paste cleanly — a copy-paste returns a figure from a neighbouring line item next to the 'Sign Permit' row — so read the fee from the page as published.Review timeline
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
Sources & verification
Verified against official sources. Last reviewed 2026-08-14.
Fee schedules
Codes & ordinances
Department & other records
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.
Telluride's permit history isn't searchable here yet
This page covers what the permit requires. What we don't have for Telluride 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 Telluride lands. Privacy.
Other permits in Telluride
Sign Permit in other cities
Compare sign permit fees across Colorado →
Look up this fee in a different city →
Now live
Build your Telluride project checklist
Describe your project once and get every permit, document, and fee it triggers in Telluride — in one checklist. Free, for any city and any number of projects.
Get started →