Norfolk, VA Outdoor Cooking: Smoker Rules (2026)

Norfolk City Code does not contain a smoker-specific ordinance. Backyard pellet grills, offset smokers, and wood-fired pizza ovens at single-family or duplex homes are treated as ordinary residential cooking and are not regulated by city code. At multi-unit buildings (3 or more dwelling units), IFC §308.1.4 — adopted via the Virginia Statewide Fire Prevention Code — extends to smokers because pellet grills, offset pits, and wood-fired ovens are 'open-flame' or solid-fuel cooking devices and are prohibited on combustible balconies or within 10 feet of combustible construction. Smoke that substantially and unreasonably crosses property lines may be addressed under: (1) Norfolk City Code general nuisance provisions, enforced by Code Enforcement under the Department of Neighborhood Development; (2) Va. Code §15.2-900, which authorizes localities to abate nuisances generally; (3) common-law private nuisance action in Norfolk Circuit Court for damages and injunctive relief. The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality regulates outdoor air quality but only for industrial sources, not residential cookers. Virginia DEQ ozone-action advisories are advisory and do not impose binding restrictions on residential smokers. Norfolk's dense rowhouse stock in Ghent, Park Place, and Larchmont can lead to neighbor smoke complaints; Hampton Roads humidity also concentrates smoke. HOA and condominium covenants under Va. Code §55.1-1800 and §55.1-1900 frequently restrict smokers in multifamily and gated communities.