colorado local government agency announces building plans

The Pikes Peak Regional Building Department has announced that it wants to build a new facility for processing building permits, among other things, in growing El Paso County.

That county is currently not just the second largest county in Colorado, but also the fastest-growing county in the state, with a population that has jumped from 516,000 two decades ago to nearly 714,000 today.

In response, the department wants to build a new facility in the northern Colorado Springs area.

The building department is part of a unique government agency created more than fifty years ago through an agreement between El Paso County and the City of Colorado Springs.

The department, based in Colorado Springs, is governed by the Regional Building Commission and focuses on design, construction, and the quality of materials used for all new building projects in both the county and city.

Because of the rapid growth of the county, a new Pikes Peak Regional Building Department would serve as a satellite office providing all the same services for contractors as does the main office, including an inspections division, and a plan review and permits office.

Exactly where the new facility will be built has not yet been announced.

Funding for the structure is expected to come out of the unprecedentedly large amount of revenue the department received due to an upsurge in building permits in the last two years.

By Garry Boulard

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