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[desert_phoenix]

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[Papa bear]

No, not at all.


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[Papa bear]

It does absolutely nothing structural to your home.  You should be fine to move forward unless there are other regs that need to be taken into account.


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[lthenderson]

I wouldn't consider a drop ceiling structural at all. But there are perhaps some alternatives. Popcorn is a fairly easy DIY project to remove. Just fill an empty spray bottle with water and squirt a section of popcorn and then scrape clean with large wide putty knife. I usually file the corners of the putty knife (can be a drywall knife too) round so they don't dig into the drywall. The wet popcorn comes off really easily. Another alternative is that they make a product that looks like a drop ceiling but attached directly to the bottom of your floor joists or in this case, you popcorn ceiling. It allows you to get the look without losing much height to your room like you would when using a traditional drop ceiling.

[Fishindude]

"no structural improvement which affects the load bearing walls, the stability of the buildings or any parts thereof, the structural integrity of the building or any parts thereof, or in any way jeopardizes the safety or soundness of the buildings or any parts thereof shall be made unless first, in writing, approved by the Board."

Although the ceiling itself is not structural, it does add some load to the structure that is is supported from, so you would be violating the terms of your deal.  We built lots of commercial buildings and always allowed approx. 1.5 lbs per square foot for a suspended ceiling with lights and factored that in to the design loads of our buildings.

I'm not a fan of suspended ceilings in residences, looks like a cheap afterthought.

[YttriumNitrate]

"no structural improvement which affects the load bearing walls, the stability of the buildings or any parts thereof, the structural integrity of the building or any parts thereof, or in any way jeopardizes the safety or soundness of the buildings or any parts thereof shall be made unless first, in writing, approved by the Board."

Although the ceiling itself is not structural, it does add some load to the structure that is is supported from, so you would be violating the terms of your deal.  We built lots of commercial buildings and always allowed approx. 1.5 lbs per square foot for a suspended ceiling with lights and factored that in to the design loads of our buildings.

Since something as small as replacing a burnt out light bulb with a slightly heavier one would "add some load to the structure that is is supported from" it seems that the definition of "structural improvement" would be key in this analysis. Perhaps it is defined in the somewhere else in the building agreement.

[Jon Bon]

Well it sounds like he lives in a concrete box, so no amount of lighting or drop ceiling would effect the structural integrity of the building whatsoever.

However you live in a place with an HOA and shared walls so YMMV.

Is it going to effect the building, and be in violation of the spirit of the rule? No
Is it going to cause some busy body from interpreting that rule however they want? Perhaps

[Systems101]

Given the definition you provided, I'd also advise you investigate if any electrical work requires their approval (or a city code inspection, for that matter). 

The statements and definitions are intentionally broad, to defend the condo complex.  Think of it as a (not so?) gentle nudge to take anything questionable through the longer process, just for safety.  The 60 day period gives the board (usually volunteers) time to look at it, and it protects you by providing an upper time bound.  It's not an unreasonable or heavy burden.

Look at this another way:

The upside is you save 60 days and a few dollars for a certified letter.

The potential downside could be what?  $100/day fine until you rip out the improvements?  Then go back and get approval and re-install, at more expense?

This is not a good risk/reward trade-off.  If it were me, there is no way I'd skip the longer process.

[Cadman]

How would you support the drop ceiling? The rails typically are supported by wires every few feet that would need to anchor into the concrete above.

I'm afraid the only way you're going to get a smooth look like that photo is to use actual drywall (1/4" would work) but you're looking at major modifications to support it (probably 1x sleepers anchored to the concrete, then drywall attached with screws, then mud and tape).