Council committee sends rewritten building‑construction ordinance and fee changes to public hearing

Torrington’s ordinance subcommittee reviewed a comprehensive rewrite of Chapter 85, which the building official said is intended to modernize the city’s building, mechanical and demolition permit rules and to update a fee schedule that has not been revised since 2010. Kevin Gillette, the city’s building official, explained the proposal simplifies fee calculations by charging based on total project value (e.g., a base charge for the first $1,000 and a per‑$1,000 increment thereafter) rather than the exhaustive itemized list now in the ordinance.

Gillette told the committee the proposed rates keep Torrington in the middle of the regional range and are intended to align with online permitting and easier plan review. The example given: a $10,000 residential deck permit fee would rise from $1,456 under the current ordinance to $1,926 under the new schedule — a modest increase the official characterized as overdue given the last update was 2010. Committee members asked about larger projects (for example $15 million affordable housing projects) and about flexibility to negotiate or waive fees for major public or economic development projects; the building official said large developments also generate additional plan‑review and third‑party review fees and that city leadership can work with developers on fee relief where appropriate.

Committee members debated whether to show redline changes versus wholesale replacement in materials; staff said the rewrite is a substantive replacement and recommended adoption and a public hearing. The subcommittee voted to move the new Chapter 85 and the fee schedule forward to the council for a public hearing.