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Resident seeks front-yard fence for pets; board cites ordinance, asks for survey
Summary
A Hobart resident asked the Redevelopment Authority for permission to extend a fence to her front yard to give her dogs usable outdoor space; the board said the city code generally bars front-yard fences, advised alternatives and required a property survey before any variance could be considered.
Kathleen Tellez, a resident and the applicant, asked the Hobart City Redevelopment Authority on March 5, 2026, for permission to install a fence that would extend from the front of her house to the rear to create secure space for her two small dogs. "I have 2 little dogs and the lot is consumed by house mostly all the way back to the alley," Tellez said during her presentation.
Board members and staff reviewed aerial and street views and raised concerns that allowing a fence in the front yard would set a precedent. The chair told the applicant, "we can't be careful, because if we allow you to do that, then we're setting precedent," explaining that the city ordinance generally prohibits front-yard fences except in unusual lot configurations.
Staff and board members explained that previous allowances for front-yard fences were typically for houses set unusually far back or where lot geometry made what appears to be a front yard effectively a backyard. The record includes multiple location references (mentions of Garfield and addresses transcribed as both "212 South Beach" and "212 South Ash" at different points), and the board did not confirm a single canonical property address in the meeting record.
The applicant described site constraints that limit access to the side strip behind an attached garage and said installing a new side door to reach that area would be costly. Board members suggested alternatives including placing a fence forward only to the front of the house (not to the curb/property line), routing the fence to use the side yard that already has some usable space, or adding a garage man door to provide access to the side strip. The chair advised the applicant that an "actual survey" is required: "You need to have a survey done, like, an actual survey to find out how much space you have there," and directed her to work with the building department on next steps.
No variance was granted at the meeting. The board instructed Tellez to obtain or submit an existing property survey and to coordinate with the building department and staff before the authority would consider any formal variance request; the meeting record shows discussion and guidance rather than a final action on the variance.
