Concrete in Cherry Hills Village, CO

Concrete work in Cherry Hills Village sits at the intersection of two separate City reviews: the Building Division, which governs a driveway slab itself, and Public Works, which governs anything that touches the curb or the public right-of-way. A driveway, patio, or walk that stays entirely on private property and stays low and flat is often permit-exempt on the building side. The moment a driveway crosses the curb, gets cut into, or rises more than a few inches, a second City department gets involved. We separate those two questions before we price a Cherry Hills Village concrete job.

Because Cherry Hills Village is a low-density, large-lot community, most of our concrete calls involve long driveway approaches, motor courts, and patios rather than short urban walks. That changes how much of the work touches the right-of-way and how much stays private, and it changes how we sequence permits.

When a Cherry Hills Village Driveway Needs a Building Permit

The City’s adopted code exempts sidewalks and driveways from a building permit by default. That exemption has three exceptions: a driveway needs a building permit if it is more than 30 inches above grade, if it sits over a basement or other constructed space, or if it does not provide access to a garage used for storing automobiles. A flat driveway leading straight into an attached garage usually clears all three tests and needs no building permit for the slab itself.

A raised motor court over a walkout basement, a bridge-style approach over sloped grade, or a parking pad that does not lead to a garage is a different story. We check each of those three conditions against the actual survey and grading plan before telling a homeowner whether the driveway itself needs a permit.

Curb Cuts and Right-of-Way Approvals

Any work that crosses the curb or occupies the public right-of-way is a separate matter from the driveway slab. The City’s Driveway/Curb Cut Policy requires an owner who wants a driveway encroaching into the right-of-way, or who wants to cut a curb for any purpose, to apply to Public Works and obtain a right-of-way permit before construction. That approval has to happen before a building permit is issued for related new construction or an addition.

The policy also sets hard limits that shape driveway layout on a Cherry Hills Village lot: no residential property may have more than two driveways per street frontage, and corner lots or lots fronting more than one street are capped at three curb cuts total. Sight distance at the curb cut is reviewed by the Public Works Director. We check frontage count and sight lines at the design stage, not after a curb has already been cut.

Right-of-Way Permit Fees

The City’s fee exhibit for work in public rights-of-way sets a management fee of $100 (two hours at $50 per hour) on every permit, plus a driveway/occupation/landscaping inspection fee of $50, and a pavement restoration fee of $300 for a minor installation. Larger excavations, defined as disturbing more than 50 linear feet or 200 square feet, are billed at actual restoration cost instead of the flat minor-installation rate. We price the right-of-way portion of a driveway job against this published fee structure rather than a rough guess, and we confirm the current fee-year with Public Works before finalizing a bid, since the fee document itself carries more than one revision date.

Drainage and Impervious Surface

A large concrete motor court, expanded patio, or long driveway can add meaningful impervious area to a Cherry Hills Village lot. The City’s code requires a drainage plan meeting the Arapahoe County Stormwater Management Manual once a project increases a structure’s footprint, hardscape, and pavement combined by more than 2,500 square feet. On the large lots common in Cherry Hills Village, a new driveway loop or expanded parking court can be the item that pushes a broader remodel or addition project past that threshold even when the house itself is not growing much.

We track cumulative impervious area across a project’s full scope, not just the concrete line item, so a drainage requirement triggered by the driveway does not surface as a surprise mid-permit.

Base Preparation for Front Range Soils

Front Range clay soils move with moisture, and a long Cherry Hills Village driveway crossing varied grade can see that movement unevenly along its length. We remove unsuitable material to the depth the field condition calls for, compact a uniform base, and place joints at panel breaks, thickness transitions, and fixed structures so cracking happens where it is planned rather than at random. Reinforcement helps hold a crack tight once it forms; it does not substitute for uniform support or working drainage, and we do not sell it as a fix for a soft or wet subgrade.

How We Sequence a Cherry Hills Village Concrete Project

We start by classifying the scope: does the driveway itself trip one of the three building-permit conditions, and does any part of the work touch the curb or right-of-way. If a right-of-way permit is needed, we get Public Works approval before any building permit is filed, consistent with the City’s own sequencing. We check frontage and curb-cut counts against the two-driveway and three-cut limits at the design stage, and we track cumulative impervious area against the 2,500-square-foot drainage-report threshold across the whole project.

Once approvals are in hand, our crew handles demolition of any existing slab, base preparation, forming, reinforcement, and placement, finishing to the drainage and grade the plan calls for. We confirm curing conditions before every pour, since Cherry Hills Village’s Front Range climate can swing sharply between a mild afternoon and a freezing night, and we protect fresh concrete through that window rather than treating a warm forecast as the entire plan.

Common Questions

Does a Cherry Hills Village driveway need a building permit?
Not by default. The City exempts driveways from a building permit unless the driveway is more than 30 inches above grade, sits over a basement or other constructed space, or does not lead to a garage used for automobile storage. Any one of those three conditions triggers a permit.

Do I need a separate permit to cut the curb or work in the right-of-way?
Yes. Any driveway that encroaches into the public right-of-way, or any curb cut, needs a right-of-way permit from Public Works, approved before a related building permit is issued. The City also limits residential lots to two driveways per street frontage, or three total curb cuts on a corner or multi-frontage lot.

What does a Cherry Hills Village right-of-way permit cost?
The City’s published fee exhibit lists a $100 management fee, a $50 driveway/occupation/landscaping inspection fee, and a $300 pavement restoration fee for a minor installation, with larger excavations billed at actual restoration cost. Confirm the current fee schedule with Public Works, since the fee document carries more than one revision date.

Does a new driveway trigger a drainage report?
It can. If the combined new structure footprint, hardscape, and pavement on a project exceed 2,500 square feet, the City requires a drainage plan meeting the Arapahoe County Stormwater Management Manual. A long driveway or expanded motor court counts toward that total along with any other work on the same project.

Talk to Us About Your Project

Tell us the driveway or patio dimensions, whether the work touches the curb or right-of-way, and what else is happening on the property at the same time. We will sort the scope against the City’s driveway-permit exceptions and right-of-way rules, flag any drainage-report threshold, and outline the approval sequence before pricing.