Fayetteville, NC Outdoor Cooking: Smoker Rules (2026)

Fayetteville Code of Ordinances does not contain a smoker-specific ordinance. Smokers are treated as enclosed cooking devices distinct from the open burning rules in Chapter 12 (Fire Protection) and 15A NCAC 02D .1900 (NC Open Burning regulations). The state air rules exempt cooking from open-burning prohibitions. Air emissions are regulated by NC Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) Division of Air Quality, but residential cooking is not within the scope. Persistent or excessive smoke causing offensive conditions or interfering with neighbors' use of property may be enforced as a public nuisance under Chapter 14 (Health and Sanitation) and city nuisance authority under NCGS 160A-193. Tight-lot neighborhoods (Downtown Fayetteville, Haymount, Massey Hill, sections of Cliffdale) raise complaint frequency relative to larger-lot Vanstory Hills, Lake Rim, and rural-edge areas. Fayetteville sits in a humid subtropical climate where smoke disperses slowly, particularly during summer high-pressure systems. Higher-density apartment and townhome communities near Cross Creek Mall and Fort Liberty commonly restrict smokers through HOA declarations under NCGS 47F. North Carolina has no statewide preemption of municipal nuisance authority. The Sandhills region's traditional whole-hog barbecue culture is mostly catered or competition-based, not residential.