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Despite some concerns about increasing building costs, the Boulder County Board of Review approved updates to require some ignition-resistant construction standards for buildings on the eastern side of the county.
The recommendation will go to the Boulder County commissioners next month for consideration and possible adoption at a public hearing in May.
Boulder County is currently split into two wildfire zones, splitting the mountains and forested part of the county from the plains and grasslands along Foothills Highway. The Boulder County Building Code previously adopted comprehensive ignition resistant construction requirements on the western side of the county.
Ron Flax, deputy director of community planning and permitting and chief building official for the county, explained in a staff report to the board of review that the Marshall fire’s destruction of 150 parcels in unincorporated Boulder County prompted an update for the eastern side of the county.
“... Our current codes, which address the hazards of the Wildland Urban Interface of the forested portion of Boulder County (Wildfire Zone 1) do not adequately address the hazards of a changing climate to properties in the grasslands (Wildfire Zone 2),” Flax wrote.
The update to the current code is meant to ensure a minimal level of ignition resistance for structures in Zone 2. These building requirements, including those being contemplated, are only applicable in unincorporated Boulder County.
Flax explained to board members on Wednesday that the proposed changes are immediate steps aimed at preventing widespread devastation like the Marshall fire. One of the main changes is to require the exteriors of buildings to be more resistant to combustion.
“Many of the homes that we saw get consumed by the Marshall fire really fell prey to widespread ember intrusion,” Flax said. “So these were windblown embers from the burning grasslands as well as burning homes. Once they caught fire, they generated embers that were deposited on other homes and we had this cascading effect that quickly overwhelmed our local fire resources.”
The other major change would require that things like fences and retaining walls be constructed of noncombustible or fire resistant materials within three feet of buildings. Flax described fences as a “fuse” leading flames to buildings.
He said a buffer would help prevent this cause of ignition, though he did concede that the specific distance was slightly arbitrary. He emphasized that staff did not want to overburden people constructing homes while creating some level of protection.
Flax emphasized that the requirements would not increase the cost of construction by a substantial amount, with most required materials not costing much more.
While the board and public commenters agreed for the most part that increasing fire protection was a good thing, there was some worry about adding more building costs to a county that’s already expensive to build in.
“The additional cost to build is something that is of great concern to the many residents in rural Boulder County, as well as builders, contractors and whatnot,” said Amy Aschenbrenner, vice president of government affairs and community investment for BoLo Realtors. “As a native, my fear is that we’re continuing to increase the cost of building a little bit at a time.”
Board members reflected concerns about cost, but ultimately decided that the burden was not too great and that there were still options to keep the building prices down while accommodating these new requirements.
The board of review unanimously approved the recommendations of staff. The county commissioners are scheduled to discuss this topic at 11:30 a.m. May 12.
As part of the review process, on Feb. 4 the county temporarily suspended issuing building permits for new structures and certain additions in areas of Zone 2 not affected by the Marshall fire. The pause is in place through June 6 unless amendments are implemented earlier.
The pause does not apply to property owners who commit to rebuild to the requirements adopted as Appendix A of Article 19-500 of the Boulder County Land Use Code.
Flax added in the staff report that the update is considered an urgent matter, which is why it is being considered in a standalone update. He said staff is working on a larger code update to consider requirements for all wildfire zones.
“This will hopefully give us some time to begin the next step, which is a more comprehensive review and update to the wildfire requirements countywide,” Flax said.
That includes looking at creating a new, more nuanced framework for categorizing and regulating wildfire hazards countywide.
