The board's position
In a converted building, a board usually controls the common elements, such as halls, stairs, risers and the building envelope, while owners control their own units within the limits of the declaration. Smoke ignores that line. It starts in a privately owned unit and arrives in another through shared walls and chases that the association maintains.
That gives a board two kinds of levers. One is physical: sealing penetrations in common elements, improving hallway ventilation and maintaining doors and weatherstripping. The other is governance: rules, policies and amendments to the governing documents. Physical fixes help no matter what, but in a building where several owners or tenants smoke, governance usually decides whether complaints stop.
Colorado associations operate under the Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act and their own declarations and bylaws. What a board can adopt by rule and what requires an owner vote varies, so legal review is part of any smoking policy.
Rules adopted by the board versus a declaration amendment
Board rule or policy
- Faster to adopt, typically after notice and a comment period set by the documents
- Often used for common areas such as halls, stairs and courtyards
- May have limited reach inside individual units
- Easier to adjust later
Amendment to the declaration
- Requires an owner vote at the threshold the documents set
- Can reach smoking inside units, depending on drafting
- Harder to challenge once adopted
- Takes more time and owner outreach
A typical path for a board considering a policy
- First
- Collect complaints in writing and ask maintenance to check shared penetrations and risers.
- Next
- Fund sealing work in common elements and share what was found with owners.
- Then
- Survey owners and residents about a policy, keeping responses confidential.
- With counsel
- Review the declaration and bylaws to see which route applies and draft language.
- Adoption
- Follow the notice, meeting and voting steps the documents require.
- After
- Communicate the policy, including to tenants of rented units through their owners, and set a fair complaint process.
Questions for the association's attorney
- Can the board restrict smoking in common areas by rule, and what notice is required?
- What vote would be needed to restrict smoking inside units?
- How do owners who rent out units pass the policy to their tenants?
- How should enforcement, fines and hearings work under the association's documents?
- How should the policy treat cannabis, vaping and requests for accommodation?
Common questions
Should the association pay for sealing between units?
Often the shared penetrations are common elements, but responsibility depends on the declaration. Ask the manager or attorney.
General information for Capitol Hill, not a quote or professional advice. In an emergency, call 911.