Fort Collins, CO Building Safety: Green Building Code (2026)
Key Facts
- Trigger size
- Remodels/additions over 1,500 sq ft
- Required filing
- Signed construction waste declaration
- Exemption
- Basement finish projects
- Demolition threshold
- Excludes demolitions under 1,000 sq ft
- Adopting ordinance
- City Code Sec. 5-27, Chapter 36
Summary
Fort Collins adopted its own green building chapter, Chapter 36 Sustainable Building Construction Practices, which forces construction waste recycling on remodels and new buildings over 1,500 square feet and requires a signed waste declaration before a permit issues.
CHAPTER 36 SUSTAINABLE BUILDING CONSTRUCTION PRACTICES. Section 3601 General. 3601.1 Scope. The provisions of this chapter shall govern sustainable building construction practices for new construction and additions and remodels. Section 3602 Resource Efficiency. 3602.1 Construction waste management. For remodels over 1,500 square feet, additions over 1,500 square feet, and all new buildings, a signed construction waste declaration of responsibility is required at the time of application for a building permit; the construction waste recycling regulations shall be implemented; all concrete, asphalt, masonry, wood, metals and cardboard shall be recycled... Exemption: Basement finish projects.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Municipal Code: Supplement 155 | Transitional Land Use Code (for project before May 17, 2024): Supplement 61 | Traffic Code: Supplement 27).
Full Breakdown
City Code Sec. 1 as governing sustainable building construction practices for new construction, additions, and remodels. 1, Construction waste management, any remodel over 1,500 square feet, addition over 1,500 square feet, or new building must file a signed construction waste declaration of responsibility with the building permit application, implement construction waste recycling, and recycle all concrete, asphalt, masonry, wood, metals, and cardboard; all mixed construction and demolition debris must go to a facility identified in City Code Section 12-22(c). Basement finish projects are exempted from this requirement.
1 imposes the same recycling and declaration obligations on building demolitions, excluding non-structural demolitions under 1,000 square feet, and requires safe removal of asbestos and lead contaminants before demolition. ' Compliance across the chapter is certified through inspection, documentation, and a signed final waste management report submitted to CDNS, tying the green building requirements directly to the standard building permit closeout process rather than a separate green certification program.
Violations & Fines
Failing to file the required waste declaration or submit the signed final construction/demolition waste management report is enforced by CDNS as a permit condition; the department can withhold final inspection approval and certificate of occupancy until the recycling documentation is completed, and applicants who skip the recycling of required material categories can be required to remediate before the permit closes.
Frequently Asked Questions
What triggers Fort Collins' construction waste recycling rule?
Is basement finish work exempt from the green building recycling rule?
Do new trash chutes need a recycling chute in Fort Collins?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Fort Collins
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