FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Larimer County moved to adopt the 2024 editions of the International building and specialty codes and the state-required Colorado wildfire resiliency and solar/electric-ready codes, and the Planning Commission recommended the Board of County Commissioners adopt the package with two notable changes: removing a narrow state exemption for '35-acre' parcels and adopting the wildfire-resiliency requirements countywide for unincorporated areas.

County Building Official Eric Fried told the Planning Commission the International Codes are published on a three-year cycle and become local law only after adoption; Larimer County reviews codes with a joint code-review committee and the Board of Appeals before presenting them to the commission. Fried explained two state-mandated additions in the 2024 cycle: the Colorado Wildfire Resiliency Code and the Colorado Electric-Ready and Solar-Ready code. The county proposed alignment with state law on those points while limiting local amendments when possible.

On wildfire resiliency, staff recommended flattening the state’s three-tier map-based approach into a single standard that applies to the entire unincorporated county (i.e., treating all unincorporated parcels as at least medium wildfire hazard) to simplify enforcement and reduce mapping-based inconsistencies. The wildfire code establishes structure-hardening measures (Class A roofs, noncombustible gutters and downspouts, ignition-resistant attic/soffit/vent design, ignition-resistant exterior walls or equivalent siding, noncombustible decks/retaining walls/fencing within specified distance of structures) and site-area requirements for defensible space around new construction, additions over specified sizes and certain re-roof or re-siding work. Fried summarized that the best-available study (Headwaters Economics) suggests modest net construction cost changes once all elements are included.

Commissioners debated one specific statutory exemption in the state code that had said a 35-acre parcel with a single residence would be exempt from certain permit work under the wildfire resiliency code. The Planning Commission voted to recommend the removal of that exemption from the county’s adopted version of the wildfire code, citing public-safety and mapping concerns. The commission then voted to recommend adoption of the full 2024 code package (with the 35-acre exemption removed and other local amendments noted in staff packet), with an effective date of Jan. 1, 2026.

Commissioners, staff and members of the public discussed enforcement practicalities (how to maintain defensible space over time and how the code applies to additions vs. interior finishes), costs to homeowners and equitable impacts for rural and agricultural property owners. Fried said existing homes are not retroactively required to meet the wildfire code; the requirements apply to new buildings, additions that expand building footprint by 500 square feet or more, and certain re-roofing/residing work. The commission’s recommended motion to delete the 35-acre exemption passed on a roll call, and the motion to recommend adoption of the 2024 code package as amended also passed.

What’s next: The Planning Commission’s recommendation will go to the Board of County Commissioners for final adoption; the county aims for a Jan. 1, 2026 effective date so contractors and building departments across jurisdictions can align enforcement dates.