Aurora, CO Environmental Rules: Flood Elevation Requirements (2026)
Key Facts
- Residential freeboard
- 2 feet above BFE
- Nonresidential freeboard
- 1 foot above BFE (or flood-proofed)
- New subdivision lot grading
- 1 foot above BFE minimum
- Certification required
- Licensed CO engineer/architect/surveyor
- Governing instrument
- Aurora City Code Ch. 70, current thru Ord. 2026-17
Summary
Aurora requires new homes in mapped floodplains to sit two feet above base flood elevation, and new commercial buildings one foot above it or flood-proofed to that level.
New construction and Substantial Improvement of any residential structure shall have the lowest floor (including basement or crawl space), electrical, heating, ventilation, plumbing, and air conditioning equipment and other service facilities (including ductwork), elevated to two feet above the base flood elevation. Upon completion of the structure, the elevation of the lowest floor, including basement or crawl space, shall be certified by a licensed Colorado Professional Engineer, architect, or land surveyor. Such certification shall be submitted to the floodplain administrator, prior to issuance of a certificate of occupancy.
a. All new subdivisions shall be constructed so the lowest point on any lot shall be located one foot above base flood elevation.
b. Manufactured home standards are governed by subsection (4) of this section and not by the standards in subsection (1) of this section.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 2026-30, passed June 22, 2026).
Full Breakdown
In any special flood hazard area with base flood elevation data, Aurora, Colorado's City Code sets a freeboard standard above the FEMA base flood elevation (BFE). New construction and substantial improvement of a residential structure must have its lowest floor, plus mechanical, electrical and ductwork, elevated two feet above BFE, certified by a licensed Colorado engineer, architect, or surveyor before a certificate of occupancy issues. Nonresidential buildings need only one foot of freeboard, or must be flood-proofed watertight to that height with structural components able to resist hydrostatic and hydrodynamic loads. New subdivisions must also grade so the lowest lot point sits at least one foot above BFE. This is City Code, current through Ordinance 2026-17 (May 18, 2026), and applies citywide across Aurora's Arapahoe, Adams and Douglas County territory, not to unincorporated county land or Buckley Space Force Base.
Violations & Fines
Building below the required freeboard without an approved flood-proofing design blocks issuance of a certificate of occupancy, and the floodplain administrator can deny or condition a floodplain development permit under Sec. 70-22.
Frequently Asked Questions
How far above base flood elevation must a new Aurora house be built?
Do commercial buildings get the same freeboard requirement?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Aurora
Compare Aurora to another location·View the Colorado environmental rules overview
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Flood Elevation Requirements in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Arapahoe County handle flood elevation requirements.