Silverthorne building permits
VerifiedDepartment contacts, adopted codes, permit types, fees, and gotchas for Silverthorne, Colorado.
Last verified 2026-07-13 · Source · Embed this page’s badge · Version history
Building department
- Address
- 601 Center Circle, P.O. Box 1309, Silverthorne, CO 80498
- Phone
- 970-262-7360
- Office hours
- Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; building permit submittal appointments required (per Community Development FAQ). Town Hall main line (970) 262-7300; Community Development/Building direct line (970) 262-7360. Electrical permits are handled separately by the Summit County Building Department, 0037 Peak One Drive / 37 S.C.R. 1005, Frisco, CO, (970) 668-3170.
- Website
- Official site
- Permit portal
- Apply online at Silverthorne's portal
Inspection guide
See how inspections work in Silverthorne — 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.
- 2018 International Building Code (IBC), with Town of Silverthorne local amendments — Town of Silverthorne Building Codes & Amendments page, https://www.silverthorne.org/town-government/community-development/building-copy/building-codes-construction-resources
- 2018 International Fire Code (IFC), with Town of Silverthorne local amendments — same source
- 2023 NFPA 70 National Electrical Code (NEC), adopted by Town Ordinance 2023-10 — the Town's own Building Codes & Amendments page attributes this specific adoption to the Summit County Building Department ('Ordinance 2023-10 2023 NFPA70 National Electrical Code Adoption - from the Summit County Building Department'), consistent with Summit County issuing and governing all electrical permits Town-wide
- Underlying building-code plan review and inspection for all permit types is performed by the Summit County Building Department 'based on the Building Code most recently adopted by the Town' — Town of Silverthorne Plan Review page, https://www.silverthorne.org/town-government/community-development/building-copy/resubmittals-and-revisions
- IRC Section 321.1 as locally amended (temporary/permanent address numbering requirements) and IBC Sections 105.4, 105.6, 109.1, 109.5, 109.7, 104.10, 104.11, and 3402.1 as locally amended (administrative provisions: permit suspension/revocation, inspection access, reinspection fees, code-modification authority, alternate materials/methods, and additions/alterations conforming to new-construction code) — Town of Silverthorne Building Codes & Construction Resources page, General Requirements / Administrative Requirements sections
Permit types & fees
New Residential Construction Building Permit (SFR Attached and Detached)
Required for new single-family residential construction (attached and detached) in Silverthorne. The Town's Planning, Engineering, and Water/Sewer Departments review for Town Code compliance while the Summit County Building Department conducts the Building Code plan review and performs inspections. Reviewed under the 2018 IBC/IRC package as locally amended.
Residential Addition / Remodel Building Permit
Covers additions and interior/structural remodels to existing single-family residences in Silverthorne. Additions follow largely the same submittal package as new construction (minus excise tax); remodels have a lighter submittal package. Both route through Town Code review plus Summit County Building Code plan review.
Electrical Permit
Required for electrical installation, alteration, or repair on any project in Silverthorne. Unlike every other trade permit in this jurisdiction, electrical permits are issued ENTIRELY by the Summit County Building Department, not the Town — the Town does not intake, fee, or issue electrical permits at all. Governed by the 2023 NFPA 70 National Electrical Code as adopted.
Residential Plumbing Permit
Required for plumbing installation, alteration, or repair on residential projects in Silverthorne. Issued by the Town of Silverthorne Building Division (not Summit County) for single-family residential work; commercial plumbing requires a separate process with Summit County plan review.
Residential Mechanical / HVAC Permit
Required for heating, cooling, and ventilation equipment installation or replacement on residential projects in Silverthorne. Issued by the Town of Silverthorne (bundled with plumbing under a single 'Plumbing and Mechanical' permit process for residential work); commercial mechanical work requires Summit County plan review.
Accessory Dwelling Unit / Single Apartment Building Permit
Required for construction of an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) / single apartment in Silverthorne, whether as an attached addition, a detached structure, or a remodel of an existing home. Each ADU sub-type has its own dedicated submittal path on the Town's Permit Process page, all routed through Town Code review plus Summit County Building Code plan review.
Demolition Permit
Required for demolition of a structure in Silverthorne. Submittal is lighter than most other permit types on the Town's Permit Process page, requiring to-scale demo plans and landowner authorization.
Retaining Wall (Standalone) Permit
Required for standalone retaining walls (commercial or residential) in Silverthorne. The Town's Permit Process page publishes a dedicated Retaining Walls (Standalone) permit type; it does not publish a separate stand-alone fence permit type distinct from general building-permit review.
Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Permit
Required for installing a rooftop or ground-mount photovoltaic system in Silverthorne. Applications are submitted through the Town of Silverthorne (Community Development Technician intake, with Town Planning, Engineering, and Water & Sewer departments reviewing per Town Code), but the substantive building/electrical code plan review, PV-specific fee, permit issuance, and inspections for the photovoltaic system are performed by the Summit County Building Department — the same county department that handles ALL electrical permits for Silverthorne, since the Town does not intake, fee, or issue electrical/PV permits itself.
EV Charger / EVSE Permit
Silverthorne has no distinct electric-vehicle-charging-station permit type or fee line-item. As with all other electrical work in Town, an EV charger (EVSE) circuit is permitted and inspected entirely by the Summit County Building Department, not the Town of Silverthorne — the Town does not intake, fee, or issue electrical permits at all. Summit County's published Building Permit Fee Schedule has no separate EV/EVSE line-item; EV charger installs are billed under the same square-footage/dwelling-unit-based Electrical Permit Fee tiers used for any other electrical circuit addition (same fee mechanism documented in this file's Electrical Permit entry). Summit County's population (~30,000) exceeds the 20,000-population threshold in Colorado HB24-1173, meaning the County was required to adopt, by 12/31/2025, an ordinance either adopting the Colorado Energy Office's EV Charger Permitting Model Code, establishing its own objective EV-charger permitting standards, or affirming continued use of its existing review process — no County ordinance or public confirmation of which of the three compliance paths Summit County chose was located as of this review.
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 (2026-05)
- No data reported
- Trailing 12 months
- No data reported
- Year to date
- No data reported
- Latest full year
- No data reported
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey (BPS), 2026-05 vintage. Census survey data — separate from the permit-requirements verification above. All Colorado building activity
Tips & gotchas
- Silverthorne runs its own Community Development / Building Division (601 Center Circle), but is NOT a jurisdiction where the Town alone reviews and inspects building-code compliance: the Summit County Building Department performs the actual IBC/IRC plan review and ALL building inspections for the Town, per the Town's own Plan Review page ('Summit County Building Department reviews plans and performs inspections for the Town of Silverthorne based on the Building Code most recently adopted by the Town'). Budget contact time with both agencies, not just the Town.
- Electrical is the one trade permit NOT issued by the Town at all — it is submitted directly to, reviewed by, and paid to the Summit County Building Department (0037 Peak One Drive / 37 S.C.R. 1005, Frisco, (970) 668-3170), with fees based on building square footage plus dwelling-unit count. Plumbing and mechanical, by contrast, ARE issued by the Town for residential work (commercial plumbing/mechanical additionally needs Summit County plan review).
- Summit County's own unincorporated-area Building Inspection Department Matrix (subdivision-by-subdivision snow load/frost depth/wind speed table) does NOT list Silverthorne as one of its subdivision rows — it is a directory of unincorporated county subdivisions plus a contacts list; Silverthorne appears only as a contact/agency entry. Do not apply a specific unincorporated-subdivision snow-load figure from that matrix to a Silverthorne property; no town-specific snow-load/wind-load/frost-depth design table was found published by either the Town or County for incorporated Silverthorne itself.
- Neither the Town of Silverthorne nor the Summit County Building Department publishes a numeric plan-review turnaround for ANY permit type. Both explicitly frame review timing as workload- and completeness-dependent (first-in-first-reviewed) rather than a fixed SLA — a stronger and more explicit disclaimer than a mere 'goal, not guarantee' framing seen in some other home-rule Colorado cities in this corpus.
- New residential construction carries a distinctive $2.00/sq ft Excise Tax (living + unfinished + garage space) on top of the standard valuation-based Building Permit Fee and 65% Plan Review Fee — factor this in early, since it is due at submittal, before the permit fee itself. Note: the Town revised its Building Permit Fee schedule upward between 2026-07-06 and 2026-07-13 (e.g., the $1-$500 tier rose from $23.50 to $65.00) — always confirm the current tier amounts on the live Permit Fees page rather than relying on a cached figure.
- A $0.55/sq ft (of impermeable surface) Stormwater System Development Charge applies to new building permits (Appendix A, Public Works Sec. 3-9-5), confirmed on the live Permit Fees page as of 2026-07-13 — this corrects a $0.53/sq ft figure recorded in this corpus on 2026-07-06 that could not be reproduced on re-check; always confirm the current rate with the Building Division rather than relying on a cached figure.
- The Plumbing/Mechanical Fee formula differs by context: a standalone plumbing or mechanical permit is 0.0075 x that trade's valuation (minimum $65.00) plus a 65% plan review fee when required, while plumbing/mechanical work bundled into a building permit instead uses 0.10 x total building valuation — confirmed on the live Permit Fees page as of 2026-07-13, correcting a garbled '10% x 0.75 multiplier' formula previously recorded. The Town still recommends calling (970) 262-7360 rather than self-calculating.
- HOA approval is a hard gate in Silverthorne: the Building Department will not accept applications or plans requiring HOA sign-off until that approval is provided, per the Outside Agency Permits page.
- Two separate advance-notice windows apply to inspections: SmartGov-portal building inspection requests need to be made by 5 p.m. the prior business day, but Town-specific final inspections (Engineering, Water/Sewer, Planning) must be emailed to buildinginfo@silverthorne.org at least 48 hours (two business days) in advance — a stricter, separate lead time from the general inspection-request channel.
- Certificates of Occupancy issued between November and April require 150% security for any incomplete exterior/landscaping improvements — a seasonal gotcha specific to this high-altitude resort-town construction calendar.
- Adopted codes are older-vintage than several peer Front Range cities in this corpus: 2018 IBC and 2018 IFC (with local amendments), not a 2021 or 2024 cycle — confirm current edition directly with the Building Division before finalizing design assumptions, since editions can change between site reviews.