Commission recommends new rules for buffering, fences, materials and maintenance

Decatur planning staff brought a staff-initiated amendment to the commission on Aug. 5 proposing new rules for screening, buffering, fences, materials and ongoing maintenance; the commission voted to recommend the amendment to City Council.

Planning Director Lisa Hannon said the amendment adds definitions for fence types and materials and would allow alternatives to the current 6-to-8-foot solid masonry wall required between residential and nonresidential uses. Staff proposed options including privacy walls or privacy-style fencing, trees and shrubs, earthen berms, or a combination; Hannon said fencing substituted for masonry would need to be a minimum of 6 feet in height and of materials approved by the planning or development services director.

The amendment would require minimum plantings in buffer areas (for example, Hannon said a 10-foot buffer would require four trees and 35 shrubs per 100 linear feet), require that 50% of planted material come from an approved species list, and require irrigation for all commercial development. Staff said landscaping must be installed on the outside of fences and that required screening should reach a continuous scribe of at least 6 feet in height within two years of installation. Staff also said buffering requirements apply even if an easement exists and that property owners are responsible for ongoing maintenance in perpetuity; maintenance provisions in the draft require removal or replacement of disrepaired fences within 14 days.

Commissioners asked how maintenance would be enforced and who would identify violations over time. Hannon and Wayne Smith said the landscape plan is submitted at development and that staff currently inspects landscaping prior to issuance of a commercial certificate of occupancy; staff suggested instituting annual or biannual inspections and said many enforcement actions would be complaint-driven but that staff can pursue code-enforcement cases if needed.

Commissioners also asked whether the fence and material standards would be subject to state legislation restricting local control over building materials. Staff said the state legislation referenced by commissioners limits rules on building materials for primary structures but would not preclude the city from approving a list of acceptable fence materials because fences are accessory structures.

The draft prohibits certain materials for visible fencing including unfinished or bare wood, agricultural wire, chicken wire, chain link (and chain link with slats), solid panel lattice, and barbed or razor wire. The amendment would allow front-yard fences up to 36 inches in height (with setbacks), permit six-foot fencing on continuous corner lots behind the rear architectural feature and offset from the secondary street, and permit aluminum, vinyl, finished wood (treated/painted/stained/sealed), wrought iron or decorative metal, split rail and masonry features not to exceed 18 inches in certain contexts.

After the discussion the commission voted to recommend approval to City Council. During the discussion staff said the item would proceed to a second reading and potential adoption; in the transcript staff said the action is scheduled for "the 20 fifth" for second reading (phrase unclear in the record).