Fence laws in Marana, Arizona
What the Marana municipal code says about fences, one topic at a time, with the section number and a link to the document behind every line. Where Marana sets no rule of its own, the Arizona rule is shown in its place and marked as such.
Fence laws in Marana, Arizona, question by question
The short version
- Who pays on the line
- Marana caps the continuous, unbroken fence or wall plane at thirty feet, which is far shorter than the hundred to two hundred feet most codes allow, and it applies to every multi-family, commercial and industrial fence rather than only to the ones facing an arterial. The figure is 30 feet, for longest unbroken run of fence or wall.
- How tall
- Marana sets no maximum fence height. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Permits
- Arizona has no statewide building code and gives the job to the counties.
- Pool barriers
- Arizona writes its pool fence rule straight into state law instead of leaving it to a code. The figure is 5 feet, for minimum height of the wall, fence or barrier enclosing a pool, measured on the outside face.
- Spite fences
- Marana has no spite fence statute. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Measured from what
- Arizona names a starting point in the one place it gives fence sizes. The figure is 50 inches, for top wire of a lawful fence, measured above the ground. It reaches a lawful fence on open range land only.
- Corner lots
- Arizona sets no clear view rule at a corner on a private lot. It reaches a public highway or airport, including a state highway, not a fence standing on private land only.
- Retaining walls
- Marana leaves retaining walls to county boards of supervisors and city and town councils, each of which adopts a national model building code of its own choosing.
- Materials
- Marana bans two materials by how visible they are rather than by district, and the answer turns on whether the fence can be seen from a street or from homes nearby.
- Livestock
- Arizona says exactly how to build a lawful fence. The figure is 50 inches, for height of the top wire on a lawful fence.
Who owns the fence between two properties in Marana?
Compare fences on the property line across all 50 states
Marana answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Marana caps the continuous, unbroken fence or wall plane at thirty feet, which is far shorter than the hundred to two hundred feet most codes allow, and it applies to every multi-family, commercial and industrial fence rather than only to the ones facing an arterial. Longer spans have to be articulated using a combination of decorative columns, diversity in texture or materials, offsets, landscape pockets, a serpentine design, or similar features, so a long boundary wall in Marana is built as a series of segments by design. The section states the reason for it in its intent clause: to promote visually interesting and attractive streetscapes along the town arterials, to encourage creativity in fence design, and to keep fences consistent with the character of the development they serve.
The maximum length of continuous, unbroken fence or wall plane shall be 30 feet.
30 ftlongest unbroken run of fence or wall
Also on fences on the property line in Marana
- no rule, documents checkedArizona has no law splitting the cost of a fence on a boundary between neighbors. Arizona is an open range state, so the fence law in Title 3 is about keeping livestock out and about what is owed when animals break through. Title 33, the property title, has no fence chapter at all. Two neighbors settle the cost themselves, or a city rule covers it. A.R.S. Title 3Arizona · Statute
How tall can a fence be in Marana?
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Marana law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
Arizona sets no limit on how tall a fence at a house can be. City, town or county zoning sets it, and there is no statewide building code behind that. State law has two fence heights and neither is a cap: the five foot pool fence in Title 36, which is about pool safety, and the six foot line in A.R.S. 11-861(G)(2), which only marks when a fence counts as a side structure for a county fire code rule.
This one is Arizona law, not Marana law. All Arizona findings
Documents read before writing that:
- A.R.S. Title 3Arizona State Legislature
- A.R.S. Title 33Arizona State Legislature
Also on fence height in Marana
- no rule, documents checkedThe Marana fencing and walls section states its intent, sets five design standards and never gives a height. There is no maximum for a front yard, a side yard or a rear yard, no figure for a screen wall and no allowance for a post or a cap. The section also states plainly which development it is written for: multi-family, commercial and industrial, so a single family fence is not addressed by it at all. What the section does set is a dimension in plan rather than in section, capping the continuous unbroken fence or wall plane at thirty feet. The height question for any particular Marana lot is therefore answered by the zoning district standards elsewhere in Title 17 rather than by the fencing section. 17-8-16Marana · Zoning code
Do I need a permit for a fence in Marana?
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Arizona answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Arizona has no statewide building code and gives the job to the counties. In a county that has zoning, the board of supervisors may adopt and enforce a building code for the zoned areas outside any city, and may leave out areas zoned rural or unclassified. The code has to be adopted by reference after notice and hearings before the county planning and zoning commission and the board. The choice is limited too: a building, electrical, plumbing or mechanical code from a national code group, or the one the largest city in the county already uses.
This one is Arizona law, not Marana law. All Arizona findings
In any county that has adopted zoning pursuant to this chapter, the board of supervisors may adopt and enforce, for the unincorporated areas of the county so zoned, a building code and other related codes to regulate the quality, type of material and workmanship of all aspects of construction of buildings or structures
Also on permits in Marana
- set in state lawCities and towns get the same power under a separate law. An Arizona city may adopt an existing code by reference without printing the code itself, as long as the ordinance doing it is published in full. At least three paper copies, or one paper and one electronic copy, stay on file with the city clerk for anyone to look at. So the fence permit rule in Arizona is whichever code the city or town picked. A.R.S. § 9-802Arizona · Statute
- set in state lawArizona law puts a number on an ordinary fence in exactly one place, and it is in the same county statute. A county fire code cannot make a small side building or structure put in fire sprinklers by way of a fire truck access road rule. The list of what counts as one of those side structures names a fence more than six feet high, next to barns, carports, sheds and walls that hold back earth. Six feet is not a cap on fence height. It is the line above which a fence counts as a structure for that one fire code rule. A.R.S. § 11-861(G)(2)Arizona · Statute
Pool fence requirements in Marana
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Arizona answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Arizona writes its pool fence rule straight into state law instead of leaving it to a code. A pool or other held body of water at least eighteen inches deep and wider than eight feet gets a fence at least five feet high, measured on the outside face of the wall, fence or barrier. Gates close and latch by themselves, the latch sits at least fifty four inches above the ground, and the gate opens away from the pool.
This one is Arizona law, not Marana law. All Arizona findings
Be entirely enclosed by at least a five foot wall, fence or other barrier as measured on the exterior side of the wall, fence or barrier.
5 ftminimum height of the wall, fence or barrier enclosing a pool, measured on the outside face
Spite fence laws in Marana
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Marana law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
Arizona has no spite fence law. The fence sections in Title 3 are about livestock and no fence districts, and Title 33 has no fence rules in it. Neither one sets a height that turns a fence into a nuisance, and neither one says anything about a fence put up to annoy a neighbor.
This one is Arizona law, not Marana law. All Arizona findings
Documents read before writing that:
- A.R.S. Title 3Arizona State Legislature
- A.R.S. Title 33Arizona State Legislature
How fence height is measured in Marana
Compare how height is measured across all 50 states
Arizona answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Arizona names a starting point in the one place it gives fence sizes. Section 3-1426 describes a lawful fence on open range and puts the top barbed wire fifty inches above the ground, with the other wires spaced down from it. The ground is the starting point and the law says so. That rule is there to turn livestock, not to size a fence at a house. Section 9-462.01 lets a city set the height of structures, so a fence at a house is a city matter and the city picks the surface to measure from.
This one is Arizona law, not Marana law. All Arizona findings
A fence shall be deemed a lawful fence when it is constructed and maintained with good and substantial posts firmly placed in the ground at intervals of not more than thirty feet, upon which posts are strung and fastened at least four barbed wires of the usual type tightly stretched and secured to the posts and spaced so that the top wire is fifty inches above the ground
50 intop wire of a lawful fence, measured above the ground
Fence rules for corner lots in Marana
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Arizona answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Arizona sets no clear view rule at a corner on a private lot. What Title 28, Chapter 20 does is make it a petty offense to place or keep anything blocking a public highway. Section 28-7053 covers a structure or object of any kind placed in, under or over part of the road, which is wide enough to catch a fence. Section 28-7054 sets the notice and removal steps. The rule stops at the edge of the public road. Height and setback on the lot behind it come from city and county zoning under sections 9-462.01 and 11-812.
This one is Arizona law, not Marana law. All Arizona findings
Places or maintains an encroachment or obstruction on, makes any use of or otherwise occupies a public highway or airport of this state or any of its political subdivisions for any purpose other than for authorized public travel, communication, transportation or transmission, except as otherwise provided in this section.
Retaining wall rules in Marana
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Marana does not set this. It leaves it to county boards of supervisors and city and town councils, each of which adopts a national model building code of its own choosing.
Arizona has no statewide building code, so it has no state rule for a wall that holds back earth. Section 11-861 lets a county board of supervisors adopt a building code for the parts of a zoned county outside any city. The choice is limited to a code from a national code writing group, or the code the largest city in that county already uses. The height at which a wall of that kind needs a permit comes from whichever code the county or city picked.
This one is Arizona law, not Marana law. All Arizona findings
In any county that has adopted zoning pursuant to this chapter, the board of supervisors may adopt and enforce, for the unincorporated areas of the county so zoned, a building code and other related codes to regulate the quality, type of material and workmanship of all aspects of construction of buildings or structures
The code hands this to county boards of supervisors and city and town councils, each of which adopts a national model building code of its own choosing, which is not published in the code itself.
Fence materials allowed in Marana
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Marana answers this, but the answer changes depending on whether the fence can be seen from a street or from homes nearby.
Marana bans two materials by how visible they are rather than by district. Chain link fencing and exposed cinder block walls may not be used in any area visible from the street or from surrounding residential properties, which leaves both available in an interior yard nobody looks into. Everything else is governed by three standards rather than a list. Colors, materials and forms have to complement the architectural character of the primary building or the overall development. Materials have to be durable and easily maintained to resist graffiti, which puts vandalism resistance into the design rules rather than into a maintenance clause. And a screen wall along a primary street frontage, or one visible from Interstate 10, has to carry a higher level of design detail for visual interest.
The use of chain link fencing or exposed cinder block walls is not permitted in areas visible from the street or surrounding residential properties.
The answer turns on whether the fence can be seen from a street or from homes nearby.
- chain link or exposed cinder block in view of a street or houses
- Not permitted.
- any fence or wall
- Durable, graffiti resistant, and complementing the building it serves.
- a screen wall on a primary street frontage or visible from Interstate 10
- A higher level of design detail.
Also on materials in Marana
- set in state lawArizona describes a lawful fence by its wire. It takes solid posts no more than thirty feet apart with at least four tight barbed wires on them. A fence built some other way still counts when it is as strong and turns livestock as well. A.R.S. 3-1426Arizona · Statute
Livestock and boundary fence law in Marana
Compare agricultural fencing across all 50 states
Arizona answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Arizona says exactly how to build a lawful fence. Posts go in the ground no more than thirty feet apart. At least four barbed wires are stretched tight and tied to those posts. The top wire sits fifty inches above the ground, and the other three sit twelve, twenty two and thirty two inches below it. Posts set more than one rod apart need stays no more than seven and a half feet from each other. Any other fence just as strong and just as good at turning livestock counts too.
This one is Arizona law, not Marana law. All Arizona findings
A fence shall be deemed a lawful fence when it is constructed and maintained with good and substantial posts firmly placed in the ground at intervals of not more than thirty feet, upon which posts are strung and fastened at least four barbed wires of the usual type tightly stretched and secured to the posts and spaced so that the top wire is fifty inches above the ground
50 inheight of the top wire on a lawful fence
Also on agricultural fencing in Marana
- set in state lawArizona is a fence out state. The landowner who wants animals kept off builds the fence, not the animal owner, and nothing is owed for a trespassing animal unless the land was already ringed by a lawful fence. A no fence district is the exception. Inside one, Section 3-1424 makes the person in charge of the livestock pay the damage and guilty of a class 2 misdemeanor for letting them run loose. A.R.S. 3-1427Arizona · Statute
Documents behind this page
9 documents, of which 1 was published by Marana itself. Each was read on the date shown.
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 3, Agriculture, full title listing
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 33, Property, full title listing
- Town of MaranaTown Code, Title 17, Land Development, Section 17-8-16, Fencing and walls
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 11, Chapter 6, Section 11-861, Adoption of codes by reference
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 9, Chapter 6, Section 9-802, Procedure for adoption by reference
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 36, Chapter 15, Article 5, Section 36-1681, Pools; enclosures; safety features
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 3, Section 3-1426, Lawful fence defined
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 28, Chapter 20, Section 28-7053, Misuse of public highway or airport; violation; classification; injunction; definition
- Arizona State LegislatureArizona Revised Statutes, Title 3, Chapter 11, Article 4
What this page does not cover
A city ordinance is not the only rule that reaches a fence. The zoning district a parcel sits in can change the height allowed on it, and so can an overlay district, a recorded easement, a fire hazard severity zone or a coastal zone. A homeowner association can be stricter than the city and nothing in the municipal code will say so. None of those appear here.
The rules above are the ones Marana publishes, plus the Arizona rules that apply where the city sets none. Fence laws in Arizona has the state layer in full.
This is general information drawn from published government documents. It is not legal advice, ordinances are amended, and the date beside each finding is the date the document was read. How findings are made · What the terms mean