How do we convert our HOA's common area grass to water-wise landscaping?

By OurHOA · General information · Revised September 29, 2026

How an HOA board replaces common area grass with water-wise plants: which turf to keep, rebate pre-approval, state rules, removal methods, drip irrigation and a timeline.

Part of the HOA board handbook: vendors, projects and upkeep.

The short answer

Start with the grass nobody walks on: entry beds, medians, slopes, narrow strips along walls and fences. Keep the lawn where kids play and dogs run. Before a single square foot comes out, get written pre-approval from your water utility's rebate program, because most will not pay for work that started early. Convert in phases over two or three seasons, rebuild the irrigation for each area as you go, and tell owners what is coming before the sod cutter shows up. State law mostly protects what owners plant on their own lots and says little about common areas, so your declaration, your city and your utility set most of the rules. This guide is general education, not legal advice.

Decide which grass earns its water

Print an aerial photo of the property and color every turf area. Mark each one used or unused. A used area is somewhere people play, picnic, gather or walk pets. An unused area is grass that only gets mowed. Colorado's turf statute gives a handy yardstick even outside Colorado: it calls turf in playgrounds, sports fields, picnic grounds and other spaces regularly used for community or recreational purposes 'functional,' and treats turf in medians, street rights-of-way and parking lots as nonfunctional. Then put numbers on it. EPA's WaterSense program says outdoor use averages more than 30 percent of household water nationally and up to 60 percent in arid regions, and that as much as half of outdoor water is lost to wind, evaporation and runoff from inefficient irrigation. Your own meters tell you more than national averages. If you have not done an irrigation audit, do it first; our guide on cutting an HOA water bill with an irrigation audit walks through the meter sheet. Fixing leaks and pressure costs little, and it keeps you from blaming the grass for a broken valve.

What state law says, and what it leaves to you

Texas. Property Code 202.007(a)(4) bars a property owners association from prohibiting an owner's drought-resistant landscaping or water-conserving natural turf, though the association can still require a plan for review and may not unreasonably deny it. Section 202.008, in effect since September 1, 2025, bars fines under a green-lawn covenant while a city or water supplier's drought watering restriction is in effect and until the 60th day after it ends. Neither section tells an association what to plant on its own common area. Florida. Section 373.185(3)(b) and section 720.3075(4)(b) stop HOA documents from prohibiting Florida-friendly landscaping on an owner's own land. The Legislature also states, in 373.185(3)(a), that HOA participation in water conservation is essential. Neither statute addresses common areas. Colorado. Section 38-33.3-106.5(1)(i.5) requires associations with detached homes to allow a front-yard option of at least 80 percent drought-tolerant plantings and to post at least three preapproved water-wise designs on the association's website if it has one. Converting your own common areas is the natural way to show owners what those designs look like. Title 37, article 99, created by SB24-005, adds a rule that does reach common areas: since January 1, 2026, a local government may not install or allow nonfunctional turf as part of a new development or redevelopment project on common interest community property. A redevelopment project is one that needs a permit or design review and disturbs more than half of the landscape area. Existing turf can stay. If your plan is large, ask the city or county planning office whether it counts. Everywhere, read the declaration. If it describes 'lawns' the association must keep, or a landscape plan approved by the city, confirm with counsel whether a conversion needs an amendment or a city sign-off.

Line up the rebate before you touch anything

Utility programs pay real money, and nearly all of them attach strings to the start date. Denver Water's HOA and commercial program pays 50 cents per square foot, covers up to half of project costs, and requires at least a 50 percent match, a consultation with staff before applying, a design Denver Water approves and written board approval. Funded work must begin after the award letter and finish by October 15 of the award year. Applications for 2027 projects close November 1, 2026. Aurora Water's grass replacement program accepts HOAs and pays $3 per square foot for a traditional water-wise landscape or 50 cents for water-wise grass, with a 500 square foot minimum. Its manual says in plain words not to remove grass until the design is approved, and that rebates are not retroactive. Colorado's statewide turf replacement grants stopped taking applications in March 2025, and HOAs could never apply directly; the money reached them only through utilities. In Florida, the St. Johns River Water Management District's cost-share program accepts HOAs for irrigation upgrades, up to 50 percent of costs and $10,000 per fiscal year, and work may start only after the agreement is signed. In Texas, call your city or water district's conservation office. The rule is the same everywhere: no removal until you hold written approval.

Removal, irrigation and the first year

Colorado State University Extension compares the removal methods. Herbicide is fast and cheap and keeps the soil intact but may take two or three applications a few weeks apart. Solarizing under clear plastic takes four to eight weeks and works best from June through August. Smothering with compost and a thick layer of wood chips takes a season or more. A sod cutter is quick but leaves a pile of sod to haul away. Many boards use a sod cutter on the entry, where appearance matters, and solarize the back slopes. Rebuild the irrigation with the planting. Cap the spray heads in converted areas and switch those zones to drip, and never leave new shrubs on a zone shared with lawn, or one of them will be watered wrong. Plan for establishment. University of Florida IFAS says shrubs take 20 to 28 weeks to establish and do best with water applied right on the root ball. Budget weeding and mulch for the first two years and rewrite the landscaper's scope so the crew stops mowing and starts hand-weeding beds.

Bring owners along

Run a pilot on one visible area, such as the entry, and let owners see it for a season before you convert the rest. Survey before the big phases; our guide on surveying HOA homeowners covers the mechanics. A question that works: 'The board proposes replacing about 12,000 square feet of unused grass along the main road and the retention area with native plants, mulch and drip irrigation. Rebates would cover about half the cost, and the change is expected to cut common area water use. Do you support this plan? Yes / No / Need more information.' A notice paragraph: 'Beginning [date], crews will remove grass in the areas shown on the enclosed map. Areas will look bare for several weeks while the old turf dies back and new beds are prepared. Planting is scheduled for [month]. Questions go to [name] at [email].'

A sample timeline

Summer: irrigation audit and turf map. August: board picks phase one and requests a utility consultation. September and October: design, bids and rebate application. Winter: award letter, owner notice, contract signed. Late spring: removal starts, solarizing through summer where used. September and October: planting, when cooler weather is easier on new roots. The following year: establishment watering, weeding and a walk-through to pick phase two.

Mistakes to avoid

Tearing out grass before the rebate is approved, then losing the money. Replacing turf with bare rock and no plan for the weeds that come up through every gap. Keeping spray heads on new beds. Cutting the one lawn the kids used for football and hearing about it at every meeting for a year. Leaving the old mowing contract in place and paying for visits that no longer happen. Skipping the first-summer weed budget, which is where most of these projects start to look neglected.

Sources

These guides are general education for HOA boards and residents, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Rules vary by state and by your community's governing documents - check with a professional for your situation.

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