To my Pagosa Lakes Property Owners Association neighbors,
I have been hearing complaints about the current Department of Community Standards, particularly about their Selective Enforcement.
I feel extremely conflicted about my submission because it will increase the size of the ever-growing target on my back. That said, I have had enough with my local HOA Department of Community Standards and their EnvironMENTAL Control Committee. During my first fence ECC review (summer of 2025), my favorite quote was an ECC board member saying, “Well, you should have known when you moved into this neighborhood that you can’t have a fence.” There are 129 fences in my subdivision. Yes, many were built recently. There are thousands of fences throughout the HOA itself (27 subdivisions total, I am told).
According to the Colorado Division of Real Estate:
Can volunteer HOA boards set a legal precedent in Colorado?
Yes, volunteer Homeowners Association (HOA) boards in Colorado can set internal precedents through their actions, decisions, and rule enforcement, which may bind future boards. If a board allows a specific improvement or violation, that decision can be considered precedent, potentially making it “arbitrary and capricious” for a later board to enforce the rules differently.
Key Considerations for Colorado HOA Precedents:
Uniform Enforcement: Under Colorado law and governing documents, boards are generally required to enforce rules uniformly. Unequal enforcement creates a “precedent” that can render rules unenforceable.
My friends, family, and neighbors have told me about their issues as well. So, here I am. Sticking my neck out…
This is unique, and unlike finance, lifestyle, recreation, environment, etc. departments at PLPOA that do a splendid job, from my experience and by testimony of our community. I want to be clear that I love the overwhelming majority of the HOA staff and that they are wonderful, fair, and kind. I want to be clear that I want to live in an HOA so we don’t have broken down cars, etc. As a matter of fact, our Recreation Manager taught both of my children how to swim at our private recreation center. He is admired and valued by every person I have ever spoken to about him in our community.
However, harassing people in million-dollar homes about their new fence, new concrete slab for a hot tub, improving their shoreline, etc., is absolutely not what the HOA was founded for. And it is illegal to allow one neighbor to have something and tell the next one they can’t. That is blatant, arbitrary, and capricious discrimination, and it is not allowed by the State of Colorado.
Right now, the ECC board appears to have a strong appetite to deny fences. Ironically, 50% of those board members have a fence on their property boundary line (that doesn’t meet building setbacks they constantly clamor about). I want to get the word out to encourage neighbors to exercise their legal process if the HOA attempts to infringe on their real property rights. Do not lie down and be intimidated by a group of Grass Overlords. The way we can change this is by taking them head-on.
Also, maybe a change of leadership is past due for our Association? Term limits sure seem to help with leaders getting too comfortable in their power. We should, at a minimum, add an appeal process to our ECC Board decisions to state our case in front of the Board of Directors. That way, the grievance is transparent before a lawsuit is filed.
I have had an awful time lately with them, as has my best friend (who also lives in the Association). Another set of friends sold and left the PLPOA because their fence permit was denied in the same subdivision where I live. A fence with the exact specifications that their next door neighbor has. Now I hear a rumor of an acquaintance on Cloud Cap Ave also having the same fence issue, and another about 5 doors down, and another in Pagosa in the Pines subdivision.
Another note on fences: the County building department doesn’t require fence permits. The County assessor doesn’t track or value fences (for property taxes). As a Colorado licensed real estate appraiser, I do not value (or even mention) fences in my appraisal reports.
Do you know why? Because they are not treated as real structures. They’re easily removable and intended to only protect your dog, children, and property.
Here is an example of information for my specific subdivision within the HOA.
As of 5/12/2026: There are 446 parcels within the Lake Pagosa Park subdivision.
There are 325 Single Family Residences within the Lake Pagosa Park subdivision (houses with yards that could apply for fence).
There are 129 fences within the Lake Pagosa Park subdivision that are built on the property line OR within the building setbacks required in the Declaration of Restrictions (reception #73297, recorded on June 24, 1970) for the Lake Pagosa Park subdivision.
21 of those 129 fences are lakefront.
This means that 40% of parcels within the Lake Pagosa Park subdivision have a fence within the building setbacks and did not require a variance permit to be built.
This is consistent with the other 26 subdivisions in the PLPOA, as there are over 3,000 fences and the overwhelming majority of those fences are built directly on the property line.
In conclusion, the legal precedent (for over 56 years) has long since been set, that fences are not treated as real structures and do not need to meet property setbacks.
Section 4, Article G. (pertaining to the ECC reviews) of the Declarations of Restrictions says:
The Committee shall have the authority to set up regulations as to the height and size requirements for all other types of outbuildings and structures, including fences, walls, copings, etc,
Which means the Declarations do not even give the ECC permission to dictate where a fence sits or deny the fence. They can only dictate the SIZE and HEIGHT of the fences. And that is limited by CCIOA State Laws as such…
Under the Colorado Common Interest
Ownership Act (CCIOA), an association is strictly prohibited from picking and choosing how architectural rules are applied. Colorado Revised Statute § 38-33.3-302(3)(b) dictates that architectural or landscaping decisions must be based on clear, written procedures and cannot be made in an arbitrary or capricious manner.
Justin Griffin
Pagosa Springs, CO