Planning Board recommends adoption of 2024 international codes to City Council

The Planning Board voted unanimously to recommend that City Council adopt ordinance 8,684, which updates Boulder’s building, fire and related codes to the 2024 International Code series with a set of local amendments.

Rob Adrian, City of Boulder chief building official, presented the draft ordinance and the rationale for updating the city’s codes. “The purpose of this is to provide a recommendation to approve, deny, or, sorry, modify, ordinance 8,684 to council,” Adrian said. He told the board the city plans to bring the ordinance to council for first reading on Feb. 6 and second reading on Feb. 20, and that a targeted effective date for the updated codes — if adopted — would be Aug. 1, 2025.

What changed and why

Adrian and staff described the update as an adoption of the 2024 International Building Code (and related 2024 ICC codes) with fewer local amendments than in previous cycles. Staff said goals included aligning Boulder with widely adopted national standards to reduce regulatory complexity and potential insurance premium increases, while using a racial‑equity review tool to identify local amendments that reduce disproportionate burdens.

Major technical changes noted by staff included:

- New allowances and rules for modern refrigerants (A2L/A2L technologies) and battery energy storage systems. - Clarified guidance for alternative means and methods (requests for nonstandard materials or techniques) and a new process for temporary/emergency uses of existing buildings (appendix e) to speed safe, short‑term occupancy changes. - A lowered minimum ceiling height for habitable space in the International Residential Code from 7 feet to 6 feet 8 inches (to make some basements/attics usable and help affordability/ADU creation). - Adjustments to property maintenance procedures and clarification of roles for qualified experts when testing or reporting is required. - New provisions addressing storage and fire protection for lithium‑ion batteries and micro‑mobility fleets; the International Fire Code appendix O was proposed to allow valet trash services under certain corridor widths and conditions.

Local amendments and clarifications

Staff proposed targeted local amendments, including reinstating an exemption for small decks (under 200 sq ft and less than 30 inches above grade) to reduce regulatory burden for mobile‑home residents; increasing an exempt shed size from 80 to 120 square feet; and removing a prior Boulder‑only requirement that added cost and complexity to electrical panel replacements (the city will align with the National Electrical Code to avoid a costly arc‑fault breaker retrofit requirement some owners could not feasibly meet). Staff also proposed deleting obsolete mobile‑home foundation language that is now handled at the state level.

Board questions and public comment

Board members asked detailed clarifying questions about how the changes would affect homeowners and renters. Mason asked whether staff would reach out to people who had previously been denied permits but might be able to build under the new rules; staff said public outreach would accompany adoption and that the city would offer guidance. Several board members — including Mark, Claudia and Laura — asked about window and siding permitting thresholds and whether piecemeal, small repairs would trigger new compliance obligations; staff said repairs (replacing glazing or sash) would not require a permit, but full window replacements that remove and replace the framed window unit typically would.

Fire marshal Dave Lowry explained lithium‑ion battery guidance and extinguishment. “The preferred and the recommended extinguishment of lithium ion battery … is copious amounts of water,” Lowry said, explaining that water is the appropriate suppression agent despite common misconceptions about reactivity.

A public commenter raised unrelated retrofit and field concerns; no substantive opposition to the code adoption was reported in the hearing record.

Vote and next steps

Board member Laura moved that planning board recommend adoption of ordinance 8,684; the motion was seconded and carried unanimously (yes votes recorded from Claudia, Kurt, Mason, Mark, Laura and the chair). Staff said the item will go to city council on the schedule described and noted staff will continue outreach and provide code implementation guidance if council adopts the ordinance.

Ending

Planning staff and the board stressed that the update is intended to reduce unnecessary local amendments, align Boulder with contemporary national standards, and address equity and cost considerations while improving building safety and clarity for designers, owners and the public.