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Change of Use Permit in Unincorporated Washington County, Colorado

Unincorporated Washington County has no distinct 'Change of Use Permit' application, procedure, or fee — confirmed directly against the current Planning & Zoning department webpage and Planning and Zoning Forms page, neither of which lists any change-of-use-specific document among the County's full published set of land-use forms (Building Permit, Foundation Permit, Mobile/Manufactured Home Permit, USBR and its Amend/Extinguish forms, Subdivision Exemption, Temporary Use, Road Access, Road Cut, Petition for Vacation, Request for Address). A change of use is instead handled through one of two existing mechanisms already documented elsewhere in this file, depending on what is actually changing: (1) a change to a commercial, mixed-use, or industrial USE of land (as distinct from the building itself) requires a 'Use by Special Review' (USBR) application — a public-hearing zoning-approval process under Resolution 2004-68 with its own $500.00 Administrative Review Fee, $150.00 Sign Posting Fee, and recording fees; or (2) a physical remodel/change tied to an existing building routes through the County's general Building Permit Application (Rev. 06-14), whose 'Class of work' options include 'Remodel' as one of only four checkboxes. Neither mechanism is labeled or fee-structured as a dedicated 'change of use permit' the way, for example, Northglenn's UDO Sec. 11-6-5(d) is.

Verified 2026-08-14 · Source

When you need this permit

  • No standalone Change of Use Permit application exists — confirmed directly against the County's current Planning & Zoning webpage and Forms page
  • A change to a commercial, mixed-use, or industrial USE of unincorporated county land requires a Use by Special Review (USBR) application instead — a site-plan/public-hearing process through the Planning Commission then Board of County Commissioners (appeal to District Court), per Resolution 2004-68 and its amendments
  • USBR's 'Principal Permitted Uses' categories (Community Business, Mixed Use Development, Industrial Uses) define what triggers this path — see the USBR-related documentation under residential-building-permit elsewhere in this file for the full enumerated list
  • A physical remodel or interior change tied to an existing building (without a change in the land-use category itself) is filed as 'Remodel,' one of the four Class of Work options on the general Building Permit Application (Rev. 06-14) — the same form used for new construction and additions
  • For any change requiring a building permit, County practice (per the general Building Permit Application) does not describe a separate change-of-use sign-off distinct from the building permit approval itself

Required documents

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Fee schedule

Change of Use Permit FeeNo distinct change-of-use permit or fee exists. If the change involves commercial/mixed-use/industrial use of the land, USBR's own published fees apply instead: $500.00 Administrative Review/Application Fee, Recording Fees ($13 first page + $5 each additional page), and a $150.00 Sign Posting Fee, all stated directly on the USBR application form. If the change is a physical remodel of an existing building, the general Building Permit Fee applies instead ($100.00, or $150.00 for a Use-by-Special-Review/commercial building, per the Building Permit Application's own fee grid — see residential-building-permit elsewhere in this file).
Not published — contact the department

Review timeline

Plan review
Not published — contact the department

How long did your Change of Use Permit permit actually take in Unincorporated Washington County?

Anonymous — one question, no email. Answers are combined and only shown once at least 5 people have reported.

Inspection process

    See the full Unincorporated Washington County inspection guide — scheduling & re-inspection fees →

    Tips

    • Don't look for a 'Change of Use Permit' by that name in unincorporated Washington County — it doesn't exist. If you're changing a property's use to something commercial, mixed-use, or industrial, you need a Use by Special Review (USBR) application instead, with its own public hearing and $500+ fee set.
    • If your project is really just a remodel or interior change to an existing building without a change in the underlying land use, the ordinary Building Permit Application (checked as 'Remodel') is the only step — no separate change-of-use paperwork is layered on top.

    Frequently asked questions

    Unincorporated Washington County requires a change of use permit for: No standalone Change of Use Permit application exists — confirmed directly against the County's current Planning & Zoning webpage and Forms page; A change to a commercial, mixed-use, or industrial USE of unincorporated county land requires a Use by Special Review (USBR) application instead — a site-plan/public-hearing process through the Planning Commission then Board of County Commissioners (appeal to District Court), per Resolution 2004-68 and its amendments; USBR's 'Principal Permitted Uses' categories (Community Business, Mixed Use Development, Industrial Uses) define what triggers this path — see the USBR-related documentation under residential-building-permit elsewhere in this file for the full enumerated list; A physical remodel or interior change tied to an existing building (without a change in the land-use category itself) is filed as 'Remodel,' one of the four Class of Work options on the general Building Permit Application (Rev. 06-14) — the same form used for new construction and additions; For any change requiring a building permit, County practice (per the general Building Permit Application) does not describe a separate change-of-use sign-off distinct from the building permit approval itself. If your project isn't listed, confirm with Washington County Land Use Office (Planning & Zoning Department) at (970) 345-2701 ext. 234 (fax (970) 514-7710, per the department's live webpage — resolved as current: a 2020 Wayback capture of the same page shows fax 345-2702 with then-Zoning-Official Denise Chavez named, while the live page today shows no named official ('temporary') and the new fax, indicating the webpage was updated since 2020 and the number changed; the Building Permit Application form (Rev. 06-14, unrevised since 2014) still carries the older 345-2702 and is treated as stale on this one field) before starting work.

    Unincorporated Washington County does not publish a plan-review timeline for this permit. Contact Washington County Land Use Office (Planning & Zoning Department) at (970) 345-2701 ext. 234 (fax (970) 514-7710, per the department's live webpage — resolved as current: a 2020 Wayback capture of the same page shows fax 345-2702 with then-Zoning-Official Denise Chavez named, while the live page today shows no named official ('temporary') and the new fax, indicating the webpage was updated since 2020 and the number changed; the Building Permit Application form (Rev. 06-14, unrevised since 2014) still carries the older 345-2702 and is treated as stale on this one field) for current turnaround.

    Depending on your project, Unincorporated Washington County may also ask for: Use by Special Review (USBR) Application; Building Permit Application (Rev. 06-14). See the required-documents checklist on this page for details on each.

    Apply through Washington County Land Use Office (Planning & Zoning Department) at Washington County Courthouse, 150 Ash Avenue, 2nd Floor, Akron, CO 80720. Phone: (970) 345-2701 ext. 234 (fax (970) 514-7710, per the department's live webpage — resolved as current: a 2020 Wayback capture of the same page shows fax 345-2702 with then-Zoning-Official Denise Chavez named, while the live page today shows no named official ('temporary') and the new fax, indicating the webpage was updated since 2020 and the number changed; the Building Permit Application form (Rev. 06-14, unrevised since 2014) still carries the older 345-2702 and is treated as stale on this one field), email: planning@co.washington.co.us (per the Foundation Permit and Mobile/Manufactured Home Permit forms; also matches the address shown for then-Zoning-Official Denise Chavez on a 2020 Wayback capture of the department's own webpage — the current live webpage's visible text does not repeat an email address, but nothing found contradicts this one, so it is carried forward as still-current pending direct confirmation). Office hours: Not published as specific hours for this department; the County's website states only that proposed regulations are available for inspection 'during normal business hours' at 150 Ash Avenue. The Planning Commission's regular meeting is the third Monday of each month at 7:00 p.m. in the old courtroom at the Courthouse (date subject to change).. Official information: https://washingtoncounty.colorado.gov/departments/administration/planning-and-zoning.

    Unincorporated Washington County, Colorado has adopted: No model building code (IBC/IRC/NEC) found published online — see the FAQ below for what governs instead; Manufactured/mobile homes: Colorado Division of Housing state standards apply, not a county-adopted code; County Zoning Resolution is in force but not published online — full scope on this point unconfirmed; HB22-1362 (2022, Colorado's statewide model energy/low-carbon code law) population-based carve-out analysis: unincorporated Washington County's population is approximately 3,060 (county total 4,817 per 2020 Census, minus Akron's 1,757 — Akron is the only incorporated municipality in the county per this corpus's counties.json), which is ABOVE the law's 2,500-resident exemption threshold, so the population carve-out alone would not exempt the county. HB22-1362's model-code mandate is triggered only when a jurisdiction adopts or updates a building code; within the bound of what this file could actually read online, no building code (energy or otherwise) was found to have been affirmatively adopted, so no adoption/update event was found for the law's mandate to attach to. Given the unpublished-Zoning-Resolution caveat above, this is stated as 'no trigger event found' rather than an affirmative certainty that none exists. Re-check if the County adopts any future code, or if the Zoning Resolution's actual text is obtained and found to reference one — either would trigger the law's Model Low Energy and Carbon Code requirement (binding on any update after July 1, 2026).. Local amendments apply — see the Unincorporated Washington County overview page for the full list.

    No distinct 'Change of Use Permit' application or fee was found published anywhere on the County's website. A change to commercial, mixed-use, or industrial land use instead requires a Use by Special Review (USBR) application (its own public-hearing process with a $500 Administrative Review fee plus a $150 Sign Posting fee and recording fees); a physical remodel of an existing building without a change in use category is handled through the general Building Permit Application's 'Remodel' option.

    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 Unincorporated Washington County building department before you submit. PermitBase is an independent reference and is not affiliated with any government agency.

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