Fence laws in Grand Junction, Colorado
What the Grand Junction municipal code says about fences, one topic at a time, with the section number and a link to the document behind every line. Where Grand Junction sets no rule of its own, the Colorado rule is shown in its place and marked as such.
Fence laws in Grand Junction, Colorado, question by question
The short version
- Who pays on the line
- Grand Junction sets no distance between a fence and a lot line, which means a conforming fence may run along the boundary, and the answer turns on whether the fence is still a fence.
- How tall
- In every residential zone district and the MU-1 district a fence in the required front yard setback may not exceed thirty inches, and may rise to forty-eight inches only where the material above the thirty-inch line runs at a ratio of two-thirds open space to one-third closed per square foot, and the answer turns on the yard, the road it faces and how open the fence is. The figure is 30 inches, for fence in a required front yard setback.
- Permits
- Grand Junction requires a fence permit for the installation of any fence, with no exemption for height, length or repair, and the answer turns on whether the fence passes six feet. The figure is 6 feet, for height at which a fence becomes a structure.
- Pool barriers
- A fence around a pool open to the public in Colorado stands at least sixty inches high, with gates that close and latch by themselves and a latch at least fifty four inches up. The figure is 60 inches, for minimum fence height around a public swimming pool.
- Spite fences
- Grand Junction has no spite fence statute. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Measured from what
- Height is measured from the ground level the fence sits on, and the grade may not be altered for the sole purpose of increasing fence height, and the answer turns on what the fence sits on and whether water has to pass under it. The figure is 2 inches, for extra height allowed for drainage clearance.
- Corner lots
- Grand Junction leaves corner clearance to the Transportation Engineering Design Standards in Title 29, and the City Engineer in nonresidential districts. The figure is 6 feet, for street side fence on a corner lot, before the standards apply.
- Retaining walls
- Grand Junction leaves retaining walls to each board of county commissioners, and separately each city and town, which adopt building codes on their own.
- Materials
- Fences and walls in Grand Junction have to be built of materials approved by the Director, which puts the final say with a person rather than a list, and then the code supplies the list anyway, and the answer turns on the district and what the fence protects. The figure is 3 strands, for barbed wire excluded from the height calculation.
- Livestock
- A lawful fence in Colorado is a well built three barbed wire fence on strong posts set about twenty feet apart, good enough to turn back ordinary horses and cattle. The figure is 3 strands, for barbed wires in a lawful fence.
Who owns the fence between two properties in Grand Junction?
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Grand Junction answers this, but the answer changes depending on whether the fence is still a fence.
Grand Junction sets no distance between a fence and a lot line, which means a conforming fence may run along the boundary. What it does instead is take that privilege away at six feet, because a fence over six feet is treated as a structure and the setbacks for structures apply to it, pulling it back off the line and into the building envelope. A retaining wall of four feet or more is treated the same way. Three other limits touch a boundary. Nothing may be built in a public right-of-way without a revocable permit from the city. Fence location in the mixed-use and nonresidential districts needs City Engineer approval for sight distance. And along an arterial a fence over four feet needs a five foot planting strip between itself and the right-of-way. Nothing in the section names which side the finished face or the posts point toward, or divides the cost of a fence on a shared line.
Fences within a required principal structure setback exceeding six feet in height require an Administrative Adjustment in accordance with GJMC § 21.02.040(c).
21.05.090(a)(1), with (d)(2) and 21.05.100
The answer turns on whether the fence is still a fence.
- a fence up to six feet
- No stated distance from the line.
- a fence over six feet
- The structure setbacks apply.
- a right-of-way
- A revocable permit.
- orientation and cost
- Neither is addressed.
Also on fences on the property line in Grand Junction
- set in state lawColorado splits the cost of a fence on the line between farm and ranch neighbors. Where farm or grazing land of two or more people touches, each owner builds half of the line fence, and it has to meet the state lawful fence standard. A person who already has a lawful fence on the line is owed half its cash value by the neighbor who moves in next to it. This rule covers farm and grazing land only, not a fence at a house. C.R.S. 35-46-112Colorado · Statute
How tall can a fence be in Grand Junction?
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Grand Junction answers this, but the answer changes depending on the yard, the road it faces and how open the fence is.
In every residential zone district and the MU-1 district a fence in the required front yard setback may not exceed thirty inches, and may rise to forty-eight inches only where the material above the thirty-inch line runs at a ratio of two-thirds open space to one-third closed per square foot. The openness requirement applies to the added part rather than the whole fence, so a solid base with an open top is what the rule is written for. Outside the front setback a fence may go to six feet, and anything taller inside a required principal structure setback needs an administrative adjustment. Along an arterial or major collector road a fence may reach six feet inside the front setback, on terms: four feet or less needs an open design of at least two-thirds open space or a decorative wall and no landscaping, while anything over four feet needs a five foot planting strip between the fence and the right-of-way carrying at least one tree per forty feet.
Fences in the required front yard setback shall not exceed 30 inches in height. Such fences may be increased to 48 inches maximum height if the fencing material is at a ratio of two-thirds open space to one-third closed space per square foot for that part of the fence extending above the thirty-inch height.
The answer turns on the yard, the road it faces and how open the fence is.
- a front yard setback
- Thirty inches. 30 in
- a two-thirds open top
- Forty-eight inches. 48 in
- the rest of the lot
- Six feet. 6 ft
- an arterial or major collector
- Six feet with a five foot planting strip.
Also on fence height in Grand Junction
- no rule, documents checkedColorado sets no limit on how tall a fence at a house can be. The city sets it. The state fence law only describes a lawful fence for farm and grazing land and gives no top height for a fence at a house, and state law gives cities and towns the power over fences on the line. C.R.S. 35-46-101 to 35-46-115Colorado · Statute
Do I need a permit for a fence in Grand Junction?
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Grand Junction answers this, but the answer changes depending on whether the fence passes six feet.
Grand Junction requires a fence permit for the installation of any fence, with no exemption for height, length or repair. The interesting part is what happens above six feet. A fence or wall over six feet, and a retaining wall of four feet or higher, is no longer treated as a fence at all: it becomes a structure requiring a planning clearance and a building permit rather than a fence permit, and the setbacks that apply to structures apply to it. So passing six feet does not simply raise the paperwork, it moves the fence out of the front and side yard where a fence may stand and into the building envelope where a structure has to sit. Everything, including a fence considered a structure, still has to meet this section and comply with the Transportation Engineering Design Standards in Title 29. A separate revocable permit from the city is needed before any fence is built in a public right-of-way.
A Fence Permit is required for installation of any fence, except that a fence or wall that exceeds six feet in height and a retaining wall of four feet or higher are considered a structure requiring a Planning Clearance and building permit rather than a Fence Permit, and setbacks for structures apply
The answer turns on whether the fence passes six feet.
- any fence
- A fence permit.
- over six feet
- A structure: planning clearance, building permit, structure setbacks. 6 ft
- a retaining wall of four feet or more
- Treated the same way. 4 ft
- a public right-of-way
- A revocable permit first.
Also on permits in Grand Junction
- no rule, documents checkedWhether a fence needs a permit in Colorado is a county or city question. The state adopts no building code for houses at all, so there is no statewide permit rule and nothing statewide to be exempt from. State law says a board of county commissioners may adopt a building code, which leaves the choice to each county, and cities and towns get their own power over building rules and over fences on the line. C.R.S. 30-28-201Colorado · Building code
Pool fence requirements in Grand Junction
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Colorado answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
A fence around a pool open to the public in Colorado stands at least sixty inches high, with gates that close and latch by themselves and a latch at least fifty four inches up. Section 3.24 of the state swimming pool rule requires the fence so people reach the pool only through controlled ways in, and a building or other structure can do the job of the fence. A stricter local code or ordinance takes the place of this rule.
This one is Colorado law, not Grand Junction law. All Colorado findings
Every swimming pool in a non-restricted public place shall be fenced to prevent unauthorized access to the pool except through controlled entrances.
60 inminimum fence height around a public swimming pool
Spite fence laws in Grand Junction
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Grand Junction law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
Colorado has no state law about a fence built to annoy a neighbor. The fence law in Title 35 and the property laws in Title 38 have no spite fence rule and no height that turns a fence into one. A limit of that kind comes from a local ordinance.
This one is Colorado law, not Grand Junction law. All Colorado findings
Documents read before writing that:
- C.R.S. 35-46-101 to 35-46-115Colorado General Assembly
- C.R.S. Title 38Colorado General Assembly
How fence height is measured in Grand Junction
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Grand Junction answers this, but the answer changes depending on what the fence sits on and whether water has to pass under it.
Height is measured from the ground level the fence sits on, and the grade may not be altered for the sole purpose of increasing fence height. Then the code does something almost nothing else in this set does: it allows an increase of up to two inches where spacing for drainage under the fence is needed. That is a small allowance written for a real problem, a fence set clear of the ground so water and debris pass beneath it rather than piling against the boards, and without it a builder would have to cut two inches off the panel to stay legal. Two other rules finish the measurement. A fence erected on a retaining wall has to count the wall height in the fence height, which is the strict reading and makes a fence on a wall a structure quickly. And a pillar or other support may exceed the maximum height by up to one foot, at intervals no closer than eight feet, so decorative columns are allowed but a row of them is not.
The height of fences shall be determined by measurement from the ground level upon which the fence is located. Grade shall not be altered for the sole purpose of increasing fence height. An increase of up to two inches in height shall be allowed when spacing for drainage under the fence is needed.
The answer turns on what the fence sits on and whether water has to pass under it.
- level ground
- From the ground the fence stands on.
- a drainage gap
- Two extra inches. 2 in
- a retaining wall
- The wall counts toward the fence height.
- a pillar
- A foot taller, no closer than eight feet apart. 8 ft
Also on how height is measured in Grand Junction
- left to the townColorado has no fence height of its own, so it never says where one would be measured from. Section 31-23-301 lets the city council set the height, number of stories and size of buildings and other structures, and it even covers the height of trees. The state fence law describes a lawful fence by its three barbed wires and its posts about twenty feet apart, and gives no height at all. So the city picks the number and the surface it starts from. C.R.S. 31-23-301(1)Colorado · Zoning code
Fence rules for corner lots in Grand Junction
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Grand Junction does not set this. It leaves it to the Transportation Engineering Design Standards in Title 29, and the City Engineer in nonresidential districts.
The Grand Junction fence section states no sight triangle and gives no dimension. On a corner lot the part of a backyard fence that runs along the street side property line may be six feet high, but it is made subject to the provisions of the Transportation Engineering Design Standards in Title 29 and other engineering standards, which is where any limit actually lives. In the mixed-use and nonresidential districts the delegation is even plainer: the location of those fences has to be approved by the City Engineer to ensure that adequate sight distance is maintained, so an individual officer decides rather than a published triangle. The effect is that the code answers the height question at a corner and leaves the position question to a manual and an engineer, and a property owner cannot work out from the zoning code alone how close to the intersection a six foot fence may run.
On corner lots, that part of a backyard fence that extends to and along the side property line on the street side may be six feet high but is subject to the provisions of TEDS (GJMC Title 29) and other engineering standards.
6 ftstreet side fence on a corner lot, before the standards apply
The code hands this to the Transportation Engineering Design Standards in Title 29, and the City Engineer in nonresidential districts, which is not published in the code itself.
Also on corner visibility in Grand Junction
- set in state lawNo Colorado law draws a clear view triangle on a corner lot. Counties and towns write that under Titles 30 and 31. The state once had a general rule against blocking the view along a highway, and the legislature repealed it in 1981. What is left is narrower. Section 43-1-411 refuses a permit for an outdoor advertising sign within five hundred feet of the center of an intersection when it would badly cut the view of traffic on the crossing road or of an oncoming train. That is a sign rule on state highways. C.R.S. 43-1-411Colorado · Traffic code
Retaining wall rules in Grand Junction
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Grand Junction does not set this. It leaves it to each board of county commissioners, and separately each city and town, which adopt building codes on their own.
Colorado has no state rule for a wall that holds back earth, because it adopts no building code for houses at all. State law says a board of county commissioners may adopt a building code for the parts of the county outside any city or town, and cities and towns get their own separate power over building rules. So there is no state height at which a wall of that kind needs a permit and no state standard for building one. Each county, city and town sets it.
This one is Colorado law, not Grand Junction law. All Colorado findings
A board of county commissioners is authorized to adopt ordinances and a building code consistent with the uniform building code, 1988 edition, as promulgated by the international conference of building officials and as revised from time to time, in all or part of the county, and not embraced within the limits of any incorporated city or town.
The code hands this to each board of county commissioners, and separately each city and town, which adopt building codes on their own, which is not published in the code itself.
Fence materials allowed in Grand Junction
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Grand Junction answers this, but the answer changes depending on the district and what the fence protects.
Fences and walls in Grand Junction have to be built of materials approved by the Director, which puts the final say with a person rather than a list, and then the code supplies the list anyway. Acceptable materials are wire, wrought iron, plastic, wood, and other materials with a similar look. Inside the Downtown Core the choice narrows to three: wrought iron, PVC vinyl, or wood. Unacceptable materials, where visible, are glass, tires, razor wire and concertina wire, and unconventional salvaged materials or anything similar, so a fence made from pallets or corrugated scrap is out by name rather than by inference. Electric fencing is allowed to contain large animals. The Director may approve materials for secure facilities or critical facilities, which is how a razor wire ban coexists with a substation. In the mixed-use and nonresidential districts not more than three strands of barbed wire may be added and are not counted in the height calculation.
Acceptable materials include wire, wrought iron, plastic, wood, and other materials with a similar look.
The answer turns on the district and what the fence protects.
- a house lot
- Wire, wrought iron, plastic or wood.
- the Downtown Core
- Wrought iron, PVC vinyl or wood only.
- salvage, glass, tires or razor wire
- Not acceptable where visible.
- a nonresidential fence
- Three strands of barbed wire, not counted in the height. 3 strands
Also on materials in Grand Junction
- set in state lawColorado defines a lawful fence as a well built three barbed wire fence on solid posts about twenty feet apart, good enough to turn ordinary horses and cattle, with gates as good as the fence. Any other fence that works as well counts the same. C.R.S. 35-46-101Colorado · Statute
Livestock and boundary fence law in Grand Junction
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Colorado answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
A lawful fence in Colorado is a well built three barbed wire fence on strong posts set about twenty feet apart, good enough to turn back ordinary horses and cattle. Every gate has to be as good as the fence. Any other fence that works just as well counts the same.
This one is Colorado law, not Grand Junction law. All Colorado findings
"Lawful fence" is a well-constructed three barbed wire fence with substantial posts set at a distance of approximately twenty feet apart, and sufficient to turn ordinary horses and cattle, with all gates equally as good as the fence, or any other fence of like efficiency.
3 strandsbarbed wires in a lawful fence
Also on agricultural fencing in Grand Junction
- set in state lawColorado is a fence out state. The landowner who wants livestock kept off builds the fence, not the animal owner. Money for a livestock trespass goes only to a person whose crops were behind a lawful fence at the time, kept in good repair, and whose fence the animals broke through. Without that fence, nothing is owed. C.R.S. 35-46-102Colorado · Statute
Documents behind this page
7 documents, of which 1 was published by Grand Junction itself. Each was read on the date shown.
- Colorado General AssemblyColorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 35, Article 46, Section 35-46-112
- City of Grand JunctionGrand Junction Municipal Code, Title 21, Zoning, Section 21.05.090, Fences
- Colorado General AssemblyColorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 31, Article 15, Part 6, Building and Fire Regulations
- Colorado General AssemblyColorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 30, Article 28, Part 2, Building Codes
- Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Water Quality Control DivisionCode of Colorado Regulations, Swimming Pools and Mineral Baths, Section 3.24, effective December 15, 2020
- Colorado General AssemblyColorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 38, Property, Real and Personal
- Colorado General Assembly, Office of Legislative Legal ServicesColorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 43, Transportation
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 Grand Junction publishes, plus the Colorado rules that apply where the city sets none. Fence laws in Colorado 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