Commercial & HOA Landscape Conversions in Denver
Common areas, entries, medians, and commercial frontage converted to planted, low-water landscapes — planned around SB24-005, phased to your budget, and presented so your board can approve it.
- Designs that comply with SB24-005 — no new nonfunctional or artificial turf where the law bars it
- Phased plans that fit a reserve study or a capital budget, built so phase two doesn't undo phase one
- Board- and owner-ready presentation: scaled plans, plant lists, and a clear before-and-after
- Functional turf kept where people actually use it — play areas, programmed recreation
- Drip conversions that cut irrigation on large common areas
Get a free estimate
Tell us what you’re working with. We’ll walk the property and give you a real number.
What’s included
Site walk with the board, manager, or owner: what's used, what's only watered, and where water is going.
An inventory of turf by function — used for recreation, or only ornamental — which drives what SB24-005 allows.
A conversion plan with plant palettes, materials, and a phasing schedule tied to your budget cycles.
Drawings and a plant list for board review, owner meetings, and any municipal review.
Installation: turf removal, soil and grade work, drip conversion, planting, rock, and mulch.
An establishment watering schedule for your irrigation contractor or maintenance crew.
Commercial and HOA conversions are priced per project after a site walk — scope, phasing, access, and irrigation condition drive the number far more than square footage alone. We can price a full conversion and each phase separately so it fits the budget cycle.
The rules changed in 2026
Colorado's SB24-005 took effect for local governments on January 1, 2026. It bars them from allowing new nonfunctional turf, artificial turf, and invasive plants on:
- commercial, institutional, and industrial property,
- common-interest community (HOA) common property, and
- street rights-of-way, parking lots, medians, and transportation corridors.
Artificial turf on athletic fields is exempt, and the law applies to new installation rather than existing turf. But the practical effect is clear: when an entry bed, a median, or a strip of common-area bluegrass comes up for renovation, it can't simply be re-sodded or swapped for synthetic turf. It has to become something else.
That's a problem for properties that planned to kick the can. It's an opportunity for the ones that plan now, because the same conversion also cuts irrigation on the areas that cost the most to water and do the least.
How we approach a common area or commercial site
Inventory turf by function. Walk the site and sort every turf area into "people use this" and "it's only there to look at." The first group can often stay. The second group is where the conversion happens, and where the water savings are.
Design for how the site is seen. Commercial frontage and HOA entries are read at driving speed. That calls for bold, repeated plantings — drifts of ornamental grasses and tough native shrubs — over boulders and rock mulch, with clean edges that read as maintained. Small scattered plantings disappear from the road.
Plan the water. Large common areas usually run on old spray systems sized for sod. We re-zone by plant need and convert planted areas to drip, keeping spray only where functional turf remains.
Phase it. Few associations convert everything in one year. We design the full site, then break it into phases by area and budget, so each phase is finished on its own and the next one doesn't undo it.
Make it approvable. Boards and owners approve what they can picture. You get scaled plans, a named plant list with mature sizes, and a clear account of what changes, what stays, and what it saves.
Homeowners who want to xeriscape their own lots
Colorado law (C.R.S. 38-33.3-106.5) limits an HOA's ability to prohibit xeriscape or drought-tolerant landscaping on an owner's lot, while letting the association require approval and reasonable design guidelines. Associations that publish clear xeriscape guidelines — approved plants, required edging and mulch, minimum plant coverage — spend less time on one-off disputes. We can help draft a guideline palette that fits your community. Individual homeowners: see xeriscape installation.
Where we work
We take on commercial and HOA conversions across the Denver metro. Water providers set their own commercial rules and programs, so we check yours at the start — our city pages link the providers we see most.
Common questions
- What does SB24-005 do?
- Colorado's SB24-005 prohibits local governments from allowing the installation of nonfunctional turf, artificial turf, and invasive plants on commercial, institutional, and industrial property, common-interest community (HOA) common property, and street rights-of-way, parking lots, medians, and transportation corridors, starting January 1, 2026. Artificial turf on athletic fields is exempt. It governs new installation — it doesn't order existing turf removed — but any renovation now has to plan around it.
- What counts as 'nonfunctional' turf?
- Broadly, turf that's there only to look at — entry beds, slopes, medians, the strip along a parking lot — rather than turf people actually use for recreation. Your local government's ordinance sets the exact definitions, so we inventory each area by how it's used and check the local rules before designing.
- Can homeowners in our HOA xeriscape their own lots?
- Yes. Colorado law (C.R.S. 38-33.3-106.5) limits an HOA's ability to prohibit xeriscape or drought-tolerant landscaping on an owner's lot. The association can still require architectural approval and set reasonable design guidelines. Clear guidelines with an approved plant list make those requests easy to review.
- Can we keep turf in the park or play area?
- Where turf is genuinely used for recreation, it's generally treated as functional. Keeping it — and converting the ornamental turf around it — is usually the best mix of usability and water savings.
- Can we phase a common-area conversion over several years?
- Yes, and most associations do. We design the whole site first, then break it into phases by area and budget. Phasing only works if the plan anticipates it — otherwise phase two tears out phase one's irrigation.
- Can artificial turf replace our common-area lawn?
- Not as a new installation on HOA common property in most cases — SB24-005 bars local governments from allowing new artificial turf there from 2026, with an exemption for athletic fields. Planted, low-water landscapes are the path forward.
Read more
Commercial landscaping in Denver: low-water solutions
Denver commercial landscaping that cuts water and maintenance — xeriscape for HOAs, office parks, multifamily, and retail, and what SB24-005 now requires.
HOA landscaping in Denver
Denver HOAs are overpaying for landscaping that underperforms. Here is the case for choosing a xeriscape specialist — lower water costs, less maintenance.
Why cities and public spaces should xeriscape
Denver's medians and roadsides fight Colorado's climate. Here's what our cities could look like, what California is doing, and what SB24-005 changes.
Xeriscape in Colorado
Xeriscape in Colorado: the HOA law (C.R.S. 38-33.3-106.5), SB24-005 turf limits, rebates by water provider, and Front Range vs. Western Slope conditions.
Where we work
We’re Denver-based and work across the metro. Water rules and rebates depend on your provider — each city page covers yours.
Ready to get a number?
We design and build water-wise landscapes across the Denver metro. Free walkthrough, honest scope, no pressure.