FENCE RULES – BROADVIEW HEIGHTS (CITY), OHIO

OVERVIEW

Residential fences are permitted on private property within City of Broadview Heights, subject to local regulations.

Broadview Heights uses a consolidated local fence code. Chapter 1312, Fences, establishes the permit, placement, height, material, construction, maintenance, inspection, variance, and enforcement framework. Related requirements appear in Chapter 1449 for permit fees, Chapter 1332 for swimming-pool barriers, Chapter 1283 for the Town Center Special Planning District #1, and the City’s drainage, sanitary sewer, and public-utility easement commitment materials.

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 the Charter and Code of Ordinances of the City of Broadview Heights, including the 2026 S-9 Supplement, Chapters 1312, 1449, 1332, and 1283; the City’s Drainage/Sanitary Sewer/Public Utility Easement Encroachment Commitment Form; the Ohio Board of Building Standards department lookup; the Residential Code of Ohio; and OHIO811 materials as of July 2026.

GOVERNANCE

The City of Broadview Heights adopts and administers its own municipal fence regulations. The Building Commissioner reviews fence permit applications, applies Chapter 1312, approves certain administrative exceptions, and enforces the fence chapter through the City’s building and zoning system.

The City of Broadview Heights Building and Zoning Department is the local administrative office. The Ohio Board of Building Standards department lookup identifies Broadview Heights as a municipal entity and states that residential code enforcement for one-, two-, and three-family dwellings is performed by the municipal government of Broadview Heights.

The Planning Commission acts on specified front-yard fence requests, eligible barbed-wire or razor-ribbon requests, and appearance or style modifications. The Board of Zoning Appeals considers height and location variances and appeals from Building Commissioner decisions.

The City Engineering Department supports review involving drainage, sanitary sewer, public-utility easements, riparian setbacks, and access to City infrastructure. Property-specific easement work may require the City’s recorded encroachment commitment in addition to the fence permit.

PERMIT AND APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS

Fence Permit: Any fence other than a living fence or snow fence requires a permit issued by the Building Commissioner before erection.

Scaled Plot Plan: The application must include a scaled plot plan showing property lines; existing driveways, sidewalks, fences, and structures; the proposed fence location; fence length, height, and style; and distances from the proposed fence to fences and structures located within 5 feet of the property lines.

Fee and Inspection: A permit fee is required under Chapter 1449. The person responsible for the work must contact the Building Department for an inspection when the fence is complete. The City’s inspection does not determine whether the fence encroaches on another parcel.

Building-Code Approval Context: The municipal government of Broadview Heights enforces the Residential Code of Ohio for one-, two-, and three-family dwellings. The Residential Code of Ohio includes a building-code approval exemption for fences not over 6 feet high. That statewide approval exemption does not replace the separate City fence permit expressly required by Chapter 1312.

Easements and Riparian Setbacks: A fence in a drainage easement or riparian setback requires prior approval from the Building Commissioner. A fence placed over a drainage, sanitary sewer, or public-utility easement may require the City’s encroachment commitment, under which the owner accepts removal, access, utility-damage, and restoration obligations.

Swimming-Pool Barriers: A fence used as a pool or spa barrier is reviewed under Chapter 1332 in addition to Chapter 1312. Pool-barrier gates or doors must be capable of being locked and kept locked when the pool is unattended, subject to the alternatives stated in the pool code.

Additional Approvals and Variances: Planning Commission approval is required for ordinary fence types proposed in a front yard and for other approvals expressly assigned to the Commission. A Board of Zoning Appeals variance is required for a tennis-court fence and may be requested for fence height or location hardship. The Planning Commission may consider appearance or style modifications.

FENCE PLACEMENT RULES

Rear-Yard Enclosures: A backyard enclosure fence must be located behind the rear wall line of the residence. It may follow the rear-yard property boundaries and must include a gate at least 3 feet wide positioned for reasonable access by safety forces.

Corner Lots and Rear Yards Adjoining Streets: On a corner lot, the enclosure must also remain behind the secondary setback line. When the rear yard fronts another street, the fence must remain behind the structural setback line established for that street. A residence with a side door may extend the enclosure into the side yard by no more than 3 feet closer to the street than the side door.

Side Yards: Living fences and open ornamental fences are the standard fence types permitted in side yards, together with the limited rear-enclosure and side-door exceptions stated in Chapter 1312. The Building Commissioner may grant a limited side-yard height extension for special hardship in the area from the rear corner to the front corner of the house, with written approval from the adjacent property owner.

Front Yards: Living fences and open ornamental fences are permitted within the stated height and openness limits. Other fence types are prohibited in the front yard unless approved by a simple majority of the Planning Commission.

Access Corridor: A fence may not create an inaccessible or unmaintainable corridor with another principal structure, accessory structure, or fence. Unless the fence is adjacent to or attached to the other structure, the corridor must be at least 30 inches wide.

Property Lines and Neighboring Structures: The owner is responsible for determining property lines and preventing an unauthorized encroachment. A fence may cross a property line to connect to a neighboring principal structure, accessory structure, or fence only when notarized authorization from the adjacent owner is submitted with the permit application as a permanent agreement.

Easement and Utility Access: Fences on utility easements must preserve access to manholes, utility boxes, cleanouts, and other utility apparatus. When a fence obstructs utility access, the owner must remove it at the owner’s expense. City easement commitments may also require removal within the stated notice period or immediate access during an emergency.

Town Center Special Planning District #1: In the low-density single-family conventional detached area of TC-SPD-1, fences are limited to rear yards and chain-link fences are prohibited. Some attached-cluster and planned residential portions of the district allow only fencing approved and installed as part of the original development, with maintenance assigned to the homeowners association.

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

Rear-Yard Privacy and Boundary Fences: Privacy and boundary-line fences may not exceed 6 feet above existing natural finished grade. For the first 15 feet from a public sidewalk, they may not exceed 3 feet. Fence posts may extend up to 6 inches above the fence.

Rear-Yard Chain-Link and Backyard Enclosure Fences: Chain-link fences and backyard enclosure fences may not exceed 6 feet above existing natural finished grade. Chain-link posts may extend up to 6 inches above the fence.

Front and Side Yards: Open ornamental fences may not exceed 36 inches. Living fences may not exceed 3 feet for 15 feet from the front property line or a public sidewalk, as applicable; beyond that front-yard distance, living fences may grow to their natural height. The Building Commissioner’s hardship authority permits a limited side-yard extension up to 72 inches with the required adjacent-owner approval.

Nonresidential Adjacency Exception: A rear-yard privacy fence may reach 8 feet, including posts, when the rear or side property line abuts property zoned or used for nonresidential purposes. The fence remains limited to 3 feet for 15 feet from a public sidewalk.

Patio Privacy Fences: A patio privacy fence may not exceed 6 feet above existing finished grade or the finished deck. It must be behind the rear wall line, remain within 3 feet of the patio boundary, and remain at least 10 feet from the side-yard line stated in the code.

Stone Fences: A solid stone, brick, or masonry fence may not exceed 36 inches above existing natural finished grade and must meet the code-defined wall-width and design-review requirements.

Pool and Spa Barriers: A pool or spa must be surrounded by a fence or barrier at least 48 inches high on the side facing away from the pool. The maximum clearance between grade and the bottom of the barrier is 2 inches, subject to the above-ground-pool provisions in Chapter 1332.

State Code Context: The Residential Code of Ohio’s 6-foot approval-exemption threshold is not the City’s maximum fence height. The yard-specific and fence-type limits in Chapter 1312 control the local fence design.

MATERIAL AND CONSTRUCTION LIMITS

Permitted Residential Fence Types: Chapter 1312 lists living, boundary-line, privacy, open ornamental, chain-link, deer, split-rail, picket, backyard enclosure, patio privacy, latticework, shadowbox, stone, swimming-pool, silt, stockade, well, and horizontal fences as permitted residential types, subject to each type’s location and design limits.

Prohibited and Restricted Materials: Chicken-wire fences are prohibited. Electrified fences are prohibited except for an underground low-voltage pet-containment cable approved by the Building Commissioner. Solid sheets of fabric, vinyl, or canvas used as screening are prohibited, as are pointed fences that create an impalement hazard. Snow fences are seasonal and may not create excessive drifting on another property.

Barbed Wire and Razor Ribbon: These materials are prohibited where the fence would abut a residential district or residential use. In another eligible residential setting, approval from the Planning Commission is required.

Open and Defined Fence Designs: An open ornamental fence must be at least 50% open, may not exceed 36 inches, and may not partially or completely surround a front yard. Picket, rail, split-rail, horizontal, and shadowbox fences are subject to the dimensional and spacing definitions in Chapter 1312.

Finished Side and Posts: Visible supports must face the property making the installation unless the Planning Commission approves another orientation. Fence posts must be secured at least 38 inches below finished grade, unless the Building Commissioner approves a modified depth.

Stone and Masonry Fences: A solid stone, brick, or masonry fence requires design drawings submitted to the Building Commissioner. The code specifies a minimum wall width of 12 inches and a maximum height of 36 inches.

Deer Fences: A deer fence must use types and designs recommended by the Ohio Division of Wildlife and must be approved by the Building Commissioner.

Maintenance: Fences must remain in good repair, structurally sound, sanitary, and maintained so they do not interfere with pedestrian or vehicular traffic. Living fences must be trimmed so they do not create a private nuisance or traffic interference.

Town Center Special Planning District: Along major roadways in TC-SPD-1, wood stockade, chain-link, and other utilitarian fence designs are prohibited. Long walls or fences are subject to the district’s texture, modulation, pier, and landscaping standards.

PRIVATE RESTRICTIONS

Homeowners associations, condominium documents, subdivision covenants, deed restrictions, architectural-control provisions, private easements, and written boundary or maintenance agreements operate independently of City fence approval and may be more restrictive than Chapter 1312. A City permit does not remove those private obligations.

REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT CONTEXT

Fence issues are typically reviewed during permit or approval review when required, and through complaint-based code enforcement. Examples include:

Permit and Plan Review: Construction without the required City fence permit, an incomplete scaled plot plan, or work that differs from the approved fence location, height, length, or style.

Yard and Height Compliance: A fence located outside the permitted front-, side-, or rear-yard area; a fence exceeding the applicable 36-inch, 6-foot, 72-inch, or 8-foot limit; or a fence that does not meet the public-sidewalk transition rule.

Property-Line and Access Conditions: Encroachment on another parcel, failure to preserve the 30-inch maintenance corridor, or connection to a neighboring structure without the required notarized authorization.

Easement and Infrastructure Access: A fence placed in a drainage easement or riparian setback without prior approval, interference with utility apparatus, or failure to comply with a recorded easement encroachment commitment.

Materials and Construction: Prohibited chicken wire, unapproved electric fencing, prohibited solid screening sheets, an impalement hazard, supports facing the wrong direction, insufficient post depth, or a defined fence style that does not meet its construction specifications.

Planning and Variance Review: A non-ornamental front-yard fence, a tennis-court fence, an eligible barbed-wire or razor-ribbon proposal, a height or location hardship, or a requested appearance or style modification.

Special District and Pool Review: Chain-link or non-rear-yard fencing in the low-density residential area of TC-SPD-1; unapproved owner-installed fencing in a development where only developer-installed fencing is allowed; or a pool or spa barrier that does not meet Chapter 1332.

Maintenance and Utility Safety: Deteriorated or unsafe fencing, living fences interfering with traffic, failure to maintain utility access, and covered excavation performed without the applicable OHIO811 notice and positive-response process.

USING THIS INFORMATION

This page provides general orientation on how residential fence rules are structured and applied within City of Broadview Heights, 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 the City of Broadview Heights Building and Zoning Department and any applicable private agreements. If this page conflicts with official ordinances, zoning resolutions, published guidance, or direction from City of Broadview Heights Building and Zoning Department staff, the official sources control. For legal advice or legal interpretation, consult a licensed attorney.