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Christian County commission approves higher building permit and inspection fees
Summary
The Christian County Commission approved a revised building permit and inspection fee schedule that raises several charges — including residential, accessory, manufactured-home, pool, demo and solar permits — to better align fees with costs and neighboring jurisdictions; changes are slated to take effect in early July.
The Christian County Commission voted to adopt a revised schedule of building permit and inspection fees after a presentation from county building staff and the building code board.
The building official told commissioners the last comprehensive fee update was in 2022 and that the board met May 4 to compare the county’s charges with nearby communities. "Currently, our charge for residential permit is 35¢ per square foot," the official said, and recommended increasing that rate to 50¢ per square foot to help cover departmental expenses. The board also recommended updating the commercial valuation reference to the 2024 International Building Code table while keeping the $3.75 per $1,000 construction rate.
Other recommended changes adopted by the commission include raising accessory-building fees from $0.10 to $0.15 per square foot, increasing manufactured-home permits from $100 to $200, raising above-ground pool permits from $60 to $150 and in-ground pool permits from $120 to $300, increasing demolition permits from $50 to $75, creating a $20 technology fee per permit to help cover a roughly $18,500 annual software license, and establishing a $75 solar permit inspection fee (up from a $40 trade fee). The building staff requested an effective date of July 2 for the new schedule.
Commissioners questioned how the county’s per-square-foot approach compares with city fee structures that use many small line items and discussed compliance and inspection consistency. One commissioner emphasized the public-safety rationale behind stricter inspections, noting concerns about uninspected work and potential hazards. A county speaker recounted a drowning incident from another jurisdiction to underline safety risks: "I went to the sergeant... a 5 year old boy... he drowned," the speaker said, arguing that barrier and alarm requirements matter for child safety.
Staff explained reinspection practices, saying inspectors generally give two opportunities to correct deficiencies before applying a reinspection charge; travel distances across the county’s 560-square-mile service area were cited as a driver of higher fees. The commission discussed inspector consistency and staffing levels, noting the department operates with limited full-time staff and part-time inspectors.
A commissioner moved to approve the amended permit fees as recommended by the building code board; the motion carried and the presiding commissioner said the motion passed. The commission adopted the updated fee schedule to better align departmental cost recovery with inspection workloads and to reflect current construction valuation references.
The full adopted fee schedule, the exact implementation timeline, and details about outreach to contractors and residents were not included in the meeting record and were marked as "to be handled by staff."
