FENCE RULES – FRANKLIN (CITY), OHIO
OVERVIEW
Residential fences are permitted on private property within City of Franklin, subject to local regulations.
Local fence rules appear primarily in the City of Franklin Unified Development Ordinance (UDO), especially §1107.11, together with the City’s permit table, Accessory Use Permit Application, official zoning map, floodplain materials, and Building & Zoning guidance.
This page focuses on typical single-family residential fencing. If the jurisdiction’s code, ordinance, or zoning-resolution materials do not state a specific limit or requirement, this page notes that the controlling regulatory text does not specify one. If no local code, ordinance, or zoning resolution is available in the approved source packet, this page notes that the jurisdiction does not publish the relevant standard in the referenced published materials.
Compiled From City of Franklin Unified Development Ordinance, City of Franklin Building & Zoning Division materials, Do I Need a Permit table, Accessory Use Permit Application, official zoning and floodplain maps, City Engineer materials, the 2019 Residential Code of Ohio, Ohio Board of Building Standards materials, OHIO811 materials, and Ohio Revised Code as of July 2026.
GOVERNANCE
The City of Franklin regulates residential fences through the Unified Development Ordinance and related permit and administrative materials. The City does not publish a separate consolidated fence code; the principal standards appear in UDO §1107.11.
The City of Franklin Building & Zoning Division administers the UDO and permit process. The Zoning Official reviews Accessory Use Permit applications and enforces the fence and wall standards.
The City Engineer administers floodplain review and related engineering functions for affected sites. The City of Franklin Building & Zoning Division is an Ohio-certified residential and commercial building department and directly administers the Residential Code of Ohio within the city.
PERMIT AND APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS
• Accessory Use / Zoning Permit: A new fence or replacement fence requires an Accessory Use Permit from the City of Franklin Building & Zoning Division. Under the UDO, that permit acts as the Certificate of Zoning Compliance for the project.
• Application Materials: The fence application and site plan must identify existing property lines and setbacks and show the proposed fence location, materials, size, and the property’s zoning classification.
• Building Permit: The City’s permit table states that a building permit is not required for a new or replacement fence. The 2019 Residential Code of Ohio separately includes a building-code approval exemption for fences not over 6 feet high. This approval exemption does not replace the City’s Accessory Use / Zoning Permit.
• Floodplain Development: When fence-related construction, filling, grading, or other development activity is wholly within, partially within, or in contact with an identified special flood hazard area, the UDO’s floodplain process applies. A Floodplain Development Permit is required before covered work begins. Small nonstructural development valued below $2,500 is exempt from permit filing unless it involves filling or grading, but the UDO requires a Certificate of Zoning Compliance for exempt floodplain development.
FENCE PLACEMENT RULES
• Property Lines: The ordinance does not state a setback requirement for standard residential fences from property lines; however, fences must be located entirely on the owner’s property and must not encroach into rights-of-way or easements.
• Public Right-of-Way: A fence is not permitted in a public right-of-way unless specifically permitted by the City Manager or the City Manager’s designee.
• Corner and Through Lots: The frontage aligned with the primary entrance is treated as the front yard. A fence in a secondary front yard may be up to 6 feet high and opaque if it is set back from the secondary front property line by the required front-yard setback or one-half the distance between that property line and the applicable building line, whichever is less.
• Intersection Clearance: On a corner lot, the intersection clearance zone is formed by the curb lines or pavement edges and a diagonal line connecting points 30 feet from the street intersection. Fences and walls in that zone cannot exceed 32 inches above the pavement-edge or gutter grade.
• Parallel Fences: Two more-or-less parallel fences in the same yard must be separated by at least 5 feet.
• Utility Safety: Ohio law requires notice through OHIO811 before excavation where Ohio’s underground utility protection law applies. For covered fence work involving digging, drilling, augering, boring, grading, or other excavation, notice must be given at least two working days, not including the day of notification, but not more than 16 calendar days before excavation begins. For an owner personally excavating at property containing one through four dwelling units or another property category covered by the statutory owner-excavator provision, the notice requirement does not apply unless excavation is planned in a utility easement, a public right-of-way, or an area where utility facilities are known to serve the property; an excavator employed by the owner must comply. OHIO811 is a notification center and does not mark lines itself; participating utilities or their locators mark covered facilities and provide positive-response information. This statewide utility-notice framework is separate from local fence permitting, zoning certificates, development approval, easement limits, right-of-way approvals, floodplain review, stormwater review, drainage review, road or county-engineer review, historic or design review, HOA restrictions, and other applicable requirements.
FENCE HEIGHT AND VISIBILITY RULES
• Front Yards: A fence or wall in a front yard is limited to 4 feet in height and must provide at least 40 percent transparency, unless the UDO specifically authorizes another standard.
• Side and Rear Yards: A fence or wall in a side or rear yard cannot exceed 6 feet above the ground elevation at that point.
• Secondary Frontages: The corner-lot and through-lot rules may allow an opaque fence up to 6 feet in a secondary front yard when the required secondary-frontage setback is provided.
• Intersection Visibility: Within the defined 30-foot intersection clearance zone, fences, walls, ornamental features, snow fences, mounds, and hedges cannot exceed 32 inches above the applicable pavement-edge or gutter grade.
• Raised Ground or Mounds: When a fence or wall is built on a mound or raised surface, its permitted height is reduced by the height of the mound or raised surface.
• Temporary Snow Fences: A temporary snow fence may be no more than 42 inches high and may be erected only from November through March for snow-drift control.
MATERIAL AND CONSTRUCTION LIMITS
• Permitted Materials: Permitted fence and wall materials include wood, ornamental iron, aluminum, vinyl, stone, block, and similar material approved by the Zoning Official or designee.
• Prohibited Materials: Plywood, particle board, doors, fiberglass, corrugated or sheet-metal panels, shipping crates, pallets, skids, and other nontraditional fence materials are prohibited.
• Front-Yard Materials: Chain-link fencing, construction fencing, wire fencing other than Kentucky Board fencing, and pallets are prohibited in a front yard.
• Barbed and Cutting Materials: Fences or walls with wire or metal prongs, spikes, cutting points, or cutting edges are prohibited in residential districts.
• Electric Fences: Electrically charged fences are prohibited except under the UDO’s specific conditional-use process or for permitted livestock containment in the Agricultural District.
• Picket Points: Picket-fence points must be blunted.
• Finished-Side Orientation: Supporting cross-elements, exposed posts, and similar features must face the interior of the property. Written consent from an adjacent owner may allow those elements to face that owner’s property, but exposed posts or support elements cannot face public property. This rule does not apply to fences that are the same on both sides.
• Temporary Front-Yard Barriers: A front-yard boundary barrier made from stretched wire, rope, cord, plastic, or similar line is prohibited. A readily visible temporary barrier may be used only as long as reasonably necessary to protect a new lawn, planting, driveway, or sidewalk.
PRIVATE RESTRICTIONS
Homeowners’ association rules, subdivision covenants, deed restrictions, private easements, architectural-review covenants, boundary agreements, and other private restrictions operate independently from the City of Franklin permit process and may be more restrictive than the UDO.
A City-issued Accessory Use Permit confirms compliance with the applicable municipal review; it does not establish compliance with separate private restrictions.
REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT CONTEXT
Fence issues are typically reviewed during permit or approval review when required, and through complaint-based code enforcement. Examples include:
• Accessory Use Permit Review: The Zoning Official reviews the proposed location, materials, size, site plan, zoning classification, and compliance with UDO §1107.11.
• Building-Code Context: The City’s permit table publishes no building-permit requirement for a new or replacement fence, while the Residential Code of Ohio contains an approval exemption for fences not over 6 feet high.
• Height and Visibility Review: Review may address the 4-foot front-yard limit, 40 percent transparency, the 6-foot side- and rear-yard limit, secondary-frontage conditions, and the 32-inch intersection-clearance limit.
• Materials and Construction Review: Review may address prohibited materials, front-yard material limits, barbed or electric fencing, picket points, finished-side orientation, parallel fences, and temporary barriers.
• Right-of-Way and Easement Review: Fences cannot occupy the public right-of-way without specific City authorization, and the application process requires the proposed location to be shown in relation to property lines and setbacks.
• Floodplain Review: The City Engineer acts as Floodplain Administrator for covered development activity in an identified special flood hazard area.
• Code Enforcement: The Zoning Official administers enforcement of the UDO’s fence and wall standards.
USING THIS INFORMATION
This page provides general orientation on how residential fence rules are structured and applied within City of Franklin, based on the referenced published materials as of July 2026.
In addition to local fence rules, certain Ohio laws apply statewide. See Statewide Fence Laws in Ohio.
It is not legal advice and does not replace official ordinances, zoning resolutions, permits, zoning certificates, development approvals, applicable building-code requirements, surveys, or professional guidance. Rules and interpretations may change, and application may vary based on zoning district, site conditions, easements, rights-of-way, floodplain status, restricted-floodway or stream conditions, stormwater requirements, drainage conditions, road or highway conditions, county-engineer jurisdiction, railroad adjacency, historic district status, design-review status, rural or agricultural context, livestock, partition-fence or preferred-partition-fence context, certified residential building-department status, contracted administration, pool-barrier use, OHIO811 utility-safety requirements, utility-clearance conditions, and private restrictions such as HOA covenants, deed restrictions, private agreements, recorded partition-fence agreements, or conservation easements. Before purchasing materials or beginning construction, confirm current requirements and any site-specific limitations with City of Franklin Building & Zoning Division and any applicable private agreements. If this page conflicts with official ordinances, zoning resolutions, published guidance, or direction from City of Franklin Building & Zoning Division staff, the official sources control. For legal advice or legal interpretation, consult a licensed attorney.