HomeMy WebLinkAboutFence GuidelinesCITY OF IOWA CITY
HOUSING AND INSPECTION SERVICES
BUILDING DIVISION
GUIDELINES FOR DRAWING RESIDENTIAL FENCE PLANS
The following form was prepared by the Building Division to be used only as a general guideline
for the drawing of construction plans which are required to be submitted at the time of
application for a building permit.
To make application for a building permit, the applicant shall submit two (2) sets of detailed
construction plans drawn to scale on minimum 8 1/2" x 11" sheets of each of the following to the
Building Division—Housing and Inspection Services, City Hall, between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Monday through Friday. The office is closed on all City holidays. If project is located in a Historic
District or Conservation District or is a Historic Landmark, a Historic
Review may be required.
1. Site Plan
2. Typical Fence Section
3. Additional Details (if necessary)
The following are lists of the items that should be shown on each of the above plans: The
illustrations are guides for plan preparation only to give you a basic idea what each type of plan
should look like and are not necessarily specific Code and other Ordinance requirements. Each
individual site location, the location of the building on the site and/or size of building might vary
as requirements of the Iowa City Zoning Ordinance, the Building Code, and other ordinances
dictate, and each will have to be reviewed on its own specific conditions after submittal.
SITE PLAN
√Indicate size and shape of your lot
√Indicate address and street (or streets if a corner lot)
√Indicate alley location
√Indicate size and location of existing house and other buildings
√Indicate location, length, height and type of proposed fence
√Indicate distance between the proposed fence and each of the property lines
√Indicate location of easements on your lot
TYPICAL FENCE SECTION
√Indicate size of footing and identify reinforcing
√Indicate depth of footing below finish grade line
√Indicate type and height of fence. Submit manufacturer’s specifications and installation
instructions if necessary
ADDITIONAL DETAILS
√Indicate whatever information is necessary to show how your proposal will be constructed
For additional information contact: Building Inspection Division at (319) 356-5120
GENERAL FENCE NOTES
1.Permit Required. A permit is required for all of the following:
o Electric fences
o Barbed wire fences
Updated 5/28/2020
1
W:\wpdata\HISBLG\Guidelines '08\Fence-08.doc 2
o Any fence or wall over 6 feet in height
o Any retaining wall over 4 feet in height and measured from the top of the footing to
the top of the wall; and
o A retaining wall of any height that supports a surcharge or impounds flammable
liquids.
2. Location and Height Requirements. All fences, walls, and hedges located within a principal
building front, side, or rear setback area or within 5 feet of a lot line, are subject to the
following location and height requirements.
o No portion of a fence or wall more than 10 percent solid shall exceed eight feet in
height. The solidity is the percent of the fence over a random area which is made up
of solid, opaque material, and which does not allow light or air to pass through.
Retaining walls are exempt from the provisions of this subparagraph.
o Fences, walls, and hedges must be set back at least 2 feet from any alley or street
right-of-way line.
o On corner lots, fences, walls, and hedges over 2 feet in height must comply with the
provisions of Article 14-5D, Intersection Visibility Standards
o Fences and walls that exceed 4 feet in height are not permitted in the principal
building, front setback area on properties zoned Residential or on properties located
within 50 feet of any property along the same frontage that is zoned Residential.
However, this height limit is increased to 6 feet for lots with frontages along an
expressway or an arterial street, provided that the lot is a double frontage lot or a
reversed corner lot. Retaining walls are exempt from the provisions of this
subparagraph.
3. Barbed wire and electric fences are subject to the following regulations.
o Barbed wire consists of twisted wires with barbs on each wire. The barbs on each
wire must be at least 4 inches apart. Any barbed wire that doesn’t meet this
description is prohibited. Concertina wire is prohibited.
o Except when used for the enclosure of livestock associated with an allowed
Agriculture Use, barbed wire fences are permitted only in the Commercial, Industrial,
and Research Zones, provided the bottom strand of barbed wire is not less than six
feet above grade.
o Except for the enclosure of livestock associated with an allowed Agriculture Use,
electric fences are not permitted in any zone.
o No electric fence shall carry a charge greater than 25 milliamperes nor a pulsating
current lower than one-tenth second in a one second cycle. All electric fences must
carry the seal of an approved testing laboratory.
o Barbed wire and electric fences are prohibited within 5 feet of a public sidewalk or
within 4 feet of a street right-of-way line where a public sidewalk does not exist. In
the latter case, however, a barbed wire or electric fence may be installed or
constructed along the right-of-way line if the property owner agrees to move the
fence back the required distance within 2 months after the installation of a public
sidewalk. Said agreement must be submitted with the application for a fence permit.
Updated 5/28/2020
W:\wpdata\HISBLG\Guidelines '08\Fence-08.doc 3Updated 5/28/2020
W:\wpdata\HISBLG\Guidelines '08\Fence-08.doc 4Updated 5/28/2020
W:\wpdata\HISBLG\Guidelines '08\Fence-08.doc 5Updated 5/28/2020
W:\wpdata\HISBLG\Guidelines '08\Fence-08.doc 6Updated 5/28/2020