Philipstown building clerk proposes shifting Cold Spring permit fees to cost‑of‑construction basis

Jeff Bodakovich, the Philipstown building clerk who manages shared‑service permitting for Cold Spring, presented a proposal to change the village’s permit schedule from a per‑square‑foot fee to a cost‑of‑construction percentage model (the town’s approach). Bodakovich said the system "brings everything kind of into it's a fairness issue the way Cold Spring does it now," explaining that construction cost varies widely by materials and fixtures and that estimates come from contractor submissions and regional inspector benchmarking.

Trustees asked how estimates are kept current and how the village would handle renewals; staff noted permits in town have a two‑year life and that the town uses contractor estimates and regional inspector coordination to maintain realistic project valuations. The proposal would keep flat fees for common HDRB items (windows, siding, roofing) to avoid perception of fee‑driven design mandates and to reduce administrative complexity; trustees agreed to plug numbers and return drafts for adoption.