Commissioners debate raising residential fence height and rules for combined walls

City planning staff proposed increasing the allowed height of fences in residential interior yards to 7 feet and adding clearer rules to measure combined fence-plus-retaining-wall heights, including counting berms in height calculations. The proposal is part of a code maintenance package the commission will take to a public hearing on Sept. 11. Under the draft language, front-yard fences would remain limited to 4 feet; interior-yard fences could be up to 7 feet. For locations where a fence sits on or near a retaining wall the draft would treat the fence and wall as a combined structure and set a total combined height cap (staff discussed 8 feet in examples), and would include berms in height measurements to prevent circumvention by mounding soil. A city staff member explained that “any fence that's over 7 feet in height…requires a building permit,” and that building-permit review checks footings and structural integrity. Commissioners raised several concerns. Some said a 7-foot limit is reasonable but questioned inconsistency where a combined wall/fence provision would allow 8 feet in some cases while the general residential fence maximum would be 7 feet. Commissioners also objected to a draft rule that would force fences to be set back 5 feet from retaining walls located within 10 feet of the street; those members argued that requirement could create narrow, unusable strips of land and complicate existing lots. Commissioner Matthew Mansfield advocated removing the 5-foot setback clause; several commissioners indicated staff should return with clarified, consistent text and rationale. Staff said they would refine language and include the revised proposal in the public hearing draft.