2024 Mayor's Design Award Winner: RiNo ArtPark

Development news from Community Planning and Development (CPD)

In this issue, you will find:

• Three innovations to reduce permit review times
• Denver expands its SolarAPP+ program 
• Streamlining the Zoning and Neighborhood Inspections team 
• New third-party firestop special inspections and contractor licensure policy
• ICYMI: Recaps from our last newsletter

Three innovations to reduce permit review times 

Earlier this year, Mayor Mike Johnston announced his citywide goals for 2024. To foster great government, the city is looking to cut permitting time by re-envisioning the development permitting process and reducing city review times by 30%. A multi-agency team is working together, with a sense of urgency, to find ways to solution process innovations across the system. The team collaborating in these efforts include representatives from the Department of Community Planning and Development (CPD), Denver Fire, the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure (DOTI), Excise and Licensing, Technology Services, and more. We're pleased to report that we've begun implementing a few initiatives to help us achieve this goal.

• Increased valuation thresholds for commercial projects

Given the rising cost of construction materials in the past decade, the valuations of projects have increased accordingly about 50%. As such, the city has adjusted the valuation thresholds for Major, Intermediate, and Minor commercial projects. This will better align with the current market and more projects will have a shorter review time as a result.

• Combining building permits needed for select single-family duplex projects to simplify the process

New residential projects building a house and a garage formerly had to obtain two permits, one for the house and another for the garage. Now, these projects only need to obtain one permit for both the house and garage. This initiative reduces plan review time and improves efficiencies within the inspections process.

• How the city accepts plans for permit reviews is seeing improvements

We have also implemented a suite of changes to the intake process that will reduce the amount of time an application is in the city’s hands, as well as the number of applications rejected at intake.

Updates on this important work will be provided as we continue to innovate and improve the city's permitting process.

Last year, the city adopted SolarAPP+, a plan review software program developed by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) that can run compliance checks and process building permit approvals as “quick permits.”

Now, single-family/duplex projects that include energy storage systems, main electrical panel upgrades, and main electrical panel deratings related to the solar photovoltaic (PV) system installation are allowed to use SolarAPP+ to aid in processing these applications as “quick permits” without the need for a city plan review.

“The expansion of Denver's SolarAPP+ program is an exciting advancement for the city,” said Manish Kumar, CPD executive director. “The mayor has set a bold goal to re-envision the development permitting process and reduce city review time by 30 percent in 2024. Innovations like this are a prime example of our department working to use all available avenues to improve the city’s permitting process.”

Since CPD launched the use of SolarAPP+ last year, the city has issued 759 solar permits – saving city staff approximately 320 hours of total review time. To use SolarAPP+, licensed contractors who have registered as an installer with SolarAPP+ need to submit their project details through the tool, and then upload the SolarAPP+ confirmation to the city’s online e-permits system to obtain their quick permit.

“Denver’s implementation of SolarAPP+ has been a tremendous help in streamlining the adoption of rooftop solar within the city,” said Ben Long, co-owner/utility and permitting coordinator for Namaste Solar. “The new system allows for instant approval of nearly all our residential permits so we can provide customers with quicker installation timelines. These efficiency gains allow Namaste Solar, a local and employee-owned company, to continue providing the best service for our customers. We are excited about Denver’s embrace of new technology commitment to expanding the number of service offerings eligible for approval in the new system.”

Learn more and apply for permits using SolarAPP+ >>

Historically, the city’s Zoning and Neighborhood Inspections team (ZNIS) has covered a wide variety of inspection types, from property maintenance issues (weeds, trash, snow removal, etc.) to more technical zoning code violations. Over the past year, we’ve restructured this group to not only to give inspectors the ability to focus and grow their unique skillset, but also provide opportunities for professional growth and expertise in the field. 

This team has been divided into two groups, each with a supervisor. 

1. The zoning inspections group now focuses solely on zoning inspections for development sites, as well as complex zoning code enforcement such as an illegal use at a site. Luisa Martinez, Zoning Inspection Supervisor, Luisa.Martinez@denvergov.org
2. The city inspection group focuses on property maintenance enforcement like snow removal, overgrown vegetation, trash, and graffiti as well as less technical zoning code violations like too many vehicles, over height fences, and inoperable vehicles. Orlando Gonzalez, City Inspection Supervisor, Orlando.Gonzalez@Denvergov.org

Previously, we were seeing some inconsistencies with code enforcement as our inspectors were expected to be generalists and have foundational knowledge of multiple codes. Now, they can be specialists and focus their expertise on fewer codes, resulting in better customer service, higher employee retention rates, and pathways for professional growth and development.

What does this mean for your development project? Project teams may experience more inspection questions and denials due to this additional level of expertise. These could include changes in the field that were not reflected on the approved zoning plans or permits. We understand things change, but please make sure you are submitting a modified site plan for zoning and talk to your zoning reviewer. Modified drawings are submitted as a new project. A new log number is assigned, and new permits will be issued. Don’t wait until the last minute! If changes in the field are found by a zoning inspector this could result in a delay in getting your Certificate of Occupancy.

Questions? Please reach out to your zoning reviewer directly or email Neighborhood.InspectionService@denvergov.org. 

Effective immediately, the city has launched new requirements for the installation and special inspection of firestopping in buildings subject to the requirements outlined in 2021 IBC Section 1705.18. Firestop installers and inspectors must obtain a contractor license to perform this work in the City and County of Denver.

Firestopping Installer Minimum Qualifications:

A Specialty Class D Supervisor Certificate and Specialty Class D License is required for the installation of firestopping in buildings subject to the special inspection requirements of 2021 IBC Section 1705.18 on or after September 1, 2024. A valid Supervisor Certificate is required for issuance and maintenance of a Class D License. This license will be valid for 3 years from date of issue.

Firestopping Special Inspector Minimum Qualifications:

The special inspector must be completely independent from the installer, contractor, manufacturer, or supplier of any firestopping material being inspected. A “qualified person” (as used in this policy) for a project may be either an installer or an inspector, but never both for the same project, nor the same person on different projects for the same contractor at the same time. Additionally, the special inspector must not be a competitor of the installer, contractor, manufacturer, or supplier of any material being inspected.

See building code policy IBC 1704.2.1 for complete information >>

ICYMI:

Recaps from our last newsletter

Get caught up on last month's news >>

• As part of the city’s ongoing effort to expand housing availability and choice, Denver Community Planning and Development launched the Citywide ADUs project, in partnership with Mayor Mike Johnston and Councilmembers Sarah Parady, Chris Hinds, and Darrell Watson. Allowing ADUs in all residential areas of the city would expand housing availability and choice and remove barriers for homeowners who would no longer be required to undertake a lengthy and expensive rezoning process before building an ADU. Learn more >>

Your resource for permitting and policy changes

View recent CPD news

Copyright © 2024 City and County of Denver. All Rights Reserved.