Officers

Nate Romero

President

Jefferson County

Nate Romero is honored to serve as the Colorado Chapter of ICC President for the 2025 year. Nate brings over 24 years of experience with the City of Arvada, transitioning from the Utility Department to the Building Department a decade into his tenure. With roles ranging from Building Inspection to Combination Plans Examination, Nate now serves as Deputy Building Official, wielding unparalleled expertise in code compliance.

Beyond his professional duties, Nate is a steadfast advocate for industry education and community service. He leads the Education Committee, co-chairs Give a Day initiatives, and contributes to the Building Futures Committee within the Colorado Chapter. Additionally, Nate lends his expertise to the City of Northglenn's Board of Adjustment and Planning Commission, embodying his dedication to community betterment.

Nate’s journey has been shaped by mentors, fueling his commitment to mentoring the next generation in the industry. Outside of work, he enjoys exploring new destinations, staying active, and cherishing moments with his family.

[email protected]

 

Rachel Patterson

Vice President

City of Westminster

Rachel Patterson is a lifelong code enforcement professional with over 14 years of enforcement experience within the industry. Rachel started her enforcement career in the private sector, moving to the public sector and now within a local Police Department. She has a positive outlook and approach to gaining compliance, as she believes everyone’s story matters.

Rachel has served on various committees within the local Code Enforcement Association and was recently appointed to the Board of Directors for the Colorado Chapter of the International Code Council (ICC). Rachel Patterson is a Code Enforcement Officer III from Erie, CO . Rachel 's passion is  customer service. The ability to bring communities and individuals together for "creating, enhancing and maintaining quality of life and safe standards within the community.” is what she stands for. Rachel's approach to customer service reminds us that a human element and touch is what makes you love our job everyday.  Having a positive outlook and having a servant leadership mentality makes all the difference in the world when seeking swift and voluntary compliance.

Rachel was selected to be a board shadow for the International Code Council where she had the opportunity to shadow an ICC Board of Directors at the Annual Business Meeting in Pittsburg, PA in 2021. Rachel is also the co-host of "Code Concepts with Rachel Patterson and Pete Roque" where they interview industry professionals and give viewers information about relevant topics that may benefit code officials.  Industry professionals which have been interviewed include prosecutors, police chiefs, tv personalities, association presidents, attorneys, and more. The show is streamed live on LinkedIn and Facebook as well as on codeenforcementeducators.com which is a free code enforcement resource page where she is a contributor.

Currently, Rachel is collaborating on developing a children's animation series to promote early education on code enforcement. Rachel would like to see more of an interest in the industry from a young age similar to public safety professions. The first segment of the series featured "Fiona the Fox" teaching kids about snow removal. Rachel believes educating our future leaders on the benefits of a career in the Code Enforcement and Building industry is necessary and our duty to grow our industry. Her project creates a different approach to bringing the topic of Code Enforcement front and center and would further like to see additional youth discussions, activities and involvement in primary and secondary schools not just at the technical high school level. Rachel was also currently elected to the 2021 ICC Colorado Chapter Board of Directors and will be teaching a course at the Women Leaders in Code Enforcement Symposium in 2022 as well as creating training opportunities for her fellow code officials.

 

When she is not living code enforcement she is spending time with her children and thinking of ways to better serve our profession.

[email protected]

 

 

 

Heather Whitaker

Secretary

Adams County

I have been in the building industry for 10 years now. I started in this industry as an admin assistant for a code consulting firm. From there I became a building inspector, HERS rater, firestop inspector, code consultant, and now am a combination plans examiner for Adams County. I have a passion for education and serving the people around me. I have taught several classes at the CCICC Ed Institute ranging from Energy Code Plan Review to Submittal Requirements for Permit Techs. I served on the board of directors for the Colorado Association of Permit Techs (CAPT) for 2 years. I have served as Chair of the Membership committee for the Chapter since 2022 and served on the board of directors since 2023.

In my personal time my daughter and I race motocross, ride horses, and love spending time in the Colorado mountains.

[email protected]

Todd Jilbert

Director

Colorado Division of Fire Prevention & Control

 

First, I would like to thank everyone for the opportunity to serve on the Board of Directors. I am humbled and honored. I owe a lot to this organization. I have dedicated over 26 years to the fire and life safety industry. From covering nine states representing a leading manufacturer, to opening a specialty contractor as a managing partner, to co-founding a code consulting and third-party inspection agency with my wife, Sara Jilbert, I’ve experienced the many sides of our industry. I currently serve as a Fire Inspector for the State of Colorado Division of Fire Prevention & Control in the Acute Healthcare Unit. Our mission is to serve and safeguard the people and protect the property, resources, environment, and quality of life in Colorado. It is a very rewarding career that I thoroughly enjoy.

 

I have dedicated my career to advancing fire life safety codes, standards and the education thereof. I believe wholeheartedly that enforcement starts with education. We must strive to be educators first and enforcers second. Over the years, I have and will continue to enjoy presenting courses on the fundamentals of fire-resistance-rated assemblies and passive fire containment systems. I sit on several codes and standards committees and enjoy the continued education they provide me.

 

On a personal note, I enjoy spending time with my family, my wife and 2 daughters, getting outdoors, skiing, riding my Harley, my vinyl record collection, and cooking. In my not-too-distant past, I was an award-winning competition BBQ Pit Master. I still find time to smoke a few briskets and ribs every now and then. I’m an alumnus of San Diego State University with a Bachelor of Science in Biology, which has nothing to do with fire and life safety codes.

 

I look forward to contributing to CCICC this year and in the future.

 

[email protected]

 

Alan Kee

Director

Larimer County
Alan Kee is one of the newly elected CCICC Board of Directors.  He is a Code Compliance Inspector with Larimer County, specializing in Building, Land Use, and Floodplain Enforcement.  Alan is actively involved in the Larimer County Damage Assessment Team, which has included deployment to the Alexander Mountain and Cameron Peak Fires, along with minor floods in Larimer County. He has been in the Building Safety industry for the past 9 years; serving as a Code Compliance Inspector, Plans Examiner and Building Inspector. Prior to working for the county, Alan worked in the Construction Industry, both in Commercial and Residential, for over 15 years; including owning his own business for 5 years.  Since joining the CCICC in 2016 he has been involved with the Educational Institute and the Education Committee; first volunteering as a Class Ambassador and now as the Co-Chair of the Education Committee. Alan is dedicated to education within our industry and helping code officials, designers, homeowners and contractors understand the “why” of code.

Bonnie Muhigirwa

Director

City of Aspen

Bonnie Muhigirwa is the Chief Building Official for the City of Aspen. She has been with Aspen for 17 years, starting as a permit technician and progressing to plans examiner/inspector, deputy building official, and into her current role. Her involvement with ICC at the national level includes serving on the governing committee for the Building Membership Council, the ADMIN Code Development Committee, and the 2027 IECC Commercial and Residential Admin Subgroups.
She is currently Secretary for the Region XI Board of Directors. Outside of work she loves to ski and hike and attend her kids’ soccer and basketball games. Her family loves to travel and their favorite places to visit are Rwanda, France, Cuba, and Chile. She's very excited to join the Board of Directors and looks forward to supporting all of the incredible work of the Colorado Chapter.
[email protected]

 

 

Andre Jaen

Director

Cherry Hills Village, Colorado

Andre Jaen performs plan reviews and inspections for his jurisdiction and serves as a consultant and instructor for Shums Coda Associates. Jaen is a Colorado native with 15 years of experience in the building safety industry. He began as a temporary inspector with the City of Lakewood, CO before becoming a full-time building inspector with Jefferson County, CO. After a time inspecting, Jaen was promoted to Permit Supervisor and supported a team of permit technicians. Later, he became Manager of Operations, supervising front office and plan review staff and supporting the organization as an acting building official. He moved then began with Shums Coda in June 2024.
Andre was elected to the International Code Council's Board of Directors in 2023 where he continues to serve as the Section C Director. Jaen holds 30 professional certifications including Certified Building Official, Certified Sustainability Professional and Master Code Professional. He was also a founding member of the ICC's Emerging Leaders Membership Council, serving as Chair from 2020-2022, as well as serving on the Building Membership Council Governing Committee 2022-23 and is the 2021 recipient of the Emory R Rogers Fellowship in Building Safety Leadership Award. Jaen holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Colorado, Denver.

 

Chad Johnson

Director

City of Thornton

Chad Johnson, a dedicated construction professional and public servant, was born and raised in Salem, Oregon. With a career spanning over 25 years, beginning as an electrician in 1995, he has built a strong foundation of expertise in the building industry that believes in bringing a high level of customer service to his community. He earned his first International Code Council inspector certification in 2005, transitioning to a building inspector role in 2007. Demonstrating a commitment to professional excellence, Chad achieved the prestigious Master Code Professional certification in 2010. Currently, he serves as the Chief Building Official for the City of Thornton, leveraging his extensive knowledge and experience to ensure safe and compliant construction practices. Outside of his professional life, Chad enjoys snowboarding, hunting, hiking, and camping. He is happily married and the proud father of an inquisitive 8-year-old.

 

 

Tim Moroney

Past President and Treasurer

City of Dacono

Hailing from Alberta, Tim is currently employed as the Chief Building Official for 5 communities.

Tim Moroney has worked in the construction industry since 1976.  He is a Master Electrician, holds over 25 ICC certifications.  With 18 years’ experience as an inspector/CBO Tim has made the natural transition into Building Department administration while still maintaining his connection to field work by regularly performing inspections and plan reviews.

While being a member of the Chapter for several years, Tim has had the opportunity of teaching at the Ed Institute for 5 years, been involved with the program committee for multiple years, and been part of the Chapter Board of Directors for 8 years.

Tim enjoys interacting with the Chapter members, both sharing and receiving valuable experiences and knowledge.

I look forward to helping the Chapter continue to be a valuable asset to the State and all we serve.

[email protected]