Regulatory agency feels effect of housing downturn

An agency that regulates the building industry in El Paso County eliminated 14 positions this week amid a steep decline in new house and commercial construction.

The Pikes Peak Regional Building Department will be left with 70 employees, down from 112 two years ago, agency official Henry Yankowski said Tuesday. The reductions include one person who retired and will not be replaced, and 13 people who got walking papers. The savings will be $902,000, or 9 percent of the department's 2009 budget, Yankowski said.

The department handles building permits and inspections for most local governments. Its largest members are El Paso County and Colorado Springs. It gets money from fees paid by development companies and property owners.

Reductions at the department reflect broader trouble in the economy, said Colorado Springs City Councilman Larry Small, the city's representative to the building department. The number of single-family building permits fell 43 percent from 2007 to last year, meaning the building department had less revenue and less work to do.

"There's so many foreclosures and resales on the market," Small said. "That, of course, strangles the demand for new housing, too, and you can't get a mortgage right now, so that's another big issue."

The only area where the department's workload has remained steady is in minor renovations, such as installing a new water heater. Department inspectors sign off on such projects, and their work has remained roughly steady.

Customers shouldn't notice much of a difference, except maybe waiting a few more minutes in line or on the phone to speak with a representative, Yankowski said.

The department is continuing its same-day inspection service and walking building permits through the steps each government requires, he said.

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