Strata councils in townhouse complexes and highrises have the right to enact a bylaw prohibiting the consumption of combustible materials, whether tobacco or marijuana.
Many already have this kind of bylaw in place so nothing much will change when the recreational use of pot is legalized on October 17.
Tony Gioventu is Executive Director of the Condominium Home Owner Association of BC. He offers strata councils two pieces of advice. First, if there is no bylaw in place, get one. A strata Council can legally say no to any habit or venture that could cause harm to another owner or renter. The second is that strata councils can also prohibit the cultivation of marijuana plants on their property. There's the potential of over-consumption of electrical, moisture issues and eventually mold issues, depending on the number of pot plants being grown.
Gioventu says the use of combustible materials like tobacco and marijuana has been an issue that strata councils have been dealing with for years' so the legalization of marijuana next week isn't likely to create any new problems other than bylaw enforcement. He says most strata rules are complaint based so unless there's an uproar among the neighbours, councils tend not to be too concerned.