Planning commission recommends city council allow 8-foot fences in community-facilities zones, with tighter rules for taller additions

The East Lansing Planning Commission on June 11 voted 5-1 to recommend that City Council amend the zoning code to allow fences up to 8 feet tall in properties zoned C, Community Facilities, and to permit an additional two feet (10 feet total) where the top two feet are at least 75% open and unobstructed. Commissioners agreed to remove the word "solid" from the draft language after discussion about unintended limits that word could impose.

The ordinance change originated after the Zoning Board of Appeals denied a variance the Parks, Recreation and Arts Department sought to install an 8-foot privacy fence with sound-dampening material at the pickleball courts in Patriot Ash Park. Planning staff presented the amendment as a narrowly targeted change intended primarily for publicly owned facilities such as parks, schools and similar community parcels; staff said there are about 43 parcels in the city zoned C.

Planning staff member Landon Bartley said the Zoning Board of Appeals found merit in the parks department's concerns about noise but could not grant the variance under the board's standards, and recommended a code change instead. Bartley said the parks department's consultant had recommended a 10-foot fence for maximum noise reduction and found an 8-foot fence would have a "significant impact" while anything lower would not. Grace Whitney, associate planner who staffs the ZBA, confirmed neighbors had filed complaints that prompted a sound study.

Commission discussion centered on the ordinance language and potential citywide effects. Several commissioners said they were sympathetic to neighbors where outdoor recreation generates noise, but also wanted to avoid inadvertently allowing opaque enclosures around parks and schools that would reduce public visibility. Commissioner Chapin moved the recommendation and added language specifying the 10-foot exception for the top 2 feet being at least 75% open; Chair Sullivan proposed, and the commission approved, striking the word "solid" from the ordinance so it would not limit the material types that could qualify.

The motion recommends the change to city council; planning staff said they will provide a list of C-zoned parcels and ownership information for council deliberations and will include that list in the next packet. The commission recorded five yes votes and one nay on the amended language; no public commenters spoke at the hearing.

Whatnext: The recommendation will be forwarded to City Council for consideration and possible adoption.