Arvada, CO Building Safety: Lead Paint (2026)
Key Facts
- Trigger
- Peeling paint demonstrated to be lead-based
- Required action
- Repair, remove, or cover
- Governing section
- Code § 18-510 (I.P.M.C. § 305.3)
- Max fine
- $2,650 per offense (Code § 1-5)
- Adopted
- Ordinance No. 4738, 9-14-2020
Summary
Arvada's property maintenance code requires peeling, chipping, or flaking paint on interior surfaces to be repaired, removed, or covered once it is shown to be lead-based. The rule sits inside the city's interior maintenance standard for windows, doors, walls, and other surfaces and applies to any dwelling regulated under Chapter 18's adopted I.P.M.C.
"Section 305.3. Interior surfaces. All interior surfaces, including windows and doors, shall be maintained in good, clean and sanitary condition. Peeling, chipping, flaking or abraded paint shall be repaired, removed or covered, if paint is demonstrated to be lead based paint. Cracked or loose plaster, decayed wood and other defective surface conditions shall be corrected."
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: City Council Policy Manual: Supplement 1 | Code of Ordinances: Supplement 67).
Full Breakdown
3, Interior surfaces, to read: all interior surfaces, including windows and doors, must be kept in good, clean, and sanitary condition, and cracked or loose plaster, decayed wood, and other defective surface conditions must be corrected. amendments under Ordinance No. 4738 in September 2020. That demonstration requirement means the duty to remediate attaches once testing or documentation confirms lead content, distinguishing this section from a blanket paint-condition rule. 5 (handrails and guards), all enforced by the same code compliance and building inspection staff who administer the rest of the property maintenance code.
Arvada's code does not layer on a separate municipal lead-paint disclosure or abatement licensing program beyond this maintenance-code trigger; remediation obligations for pre-1978 housing otherwise flow from federal EPA and HUD lead-based paint rules, which this local section cross-applies to by referencing a 'demonstrated' lead finding rather than restating federal testing procedures.
Violations & Fines
A property found with deteriorated, lead-demonstrated paint that goes uncorrected is enforced the same as any other I.P.M.C. maintenance violation: the citywide general penalty at Code § 1-5 applies, up to a $2,650.00 fine, up to 364 days imprisonment, or both, with each day of continued noncompliance chargeable as a separate offense in Arvada Municipal Court.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Arvada require lead paint testing before selling a home?
What counts as a violation under the lead paint section?
What is the penalty for an uncorrected lead paint violation?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Arvada
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