Fence laws in Akron, Ohio
What the Akron municipal code says about fences, one topic at a time, with the section number and a link to the document behind every line. Where Akron sets no rule of its own, the Ohio rule is shown in its place and marked as such.
Fence laws in Akron, Ohio, question by question
The short version
- Who pays on the line
- Akron requires the area of a yard or court at any given level to be open from that level to the sky unobstructed, and then lists exactly two exceptions: the ordinary projection of eaves, soffits, fascias, windowsills, chimneys, air conditioners and similar devices up to twenty inches, and a fire escape, stairway or balcony projecting no more than five feet into a side or rear yard and staying four feet off the lot line, and the answer turns on which rule is being read.
- How tall
- Akron states no maximum fence height, and the answer turns on whether the fence is one the city is requiring or one the owner wants. The figure is 8 feet, for fence around a construction operation near the street.
- Permits
- A fence six feet tall or less needs no building approval in Ohio. The figure is 6 feet, for residential fence height at or below which no approval is required.
- Pool barriers
- Ohio requires a 48 inch barrier around a public swimming pool, measured from the ground to the top of the fence. The figure is 48 inches, for perimeter barrier around a public swimming pool.
- Spite fences
- Akron has no spite fence statute. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Measured from what
- Akron leaves the measuring rule to the planning commission of a municipal corporation, and a township board of trustees outside municipal limits.
- Corner lots
- In the U1, U2, ULB and UD districts no wall, vegetation, fence, earthbank or other obstruction to visibility may stand higher than two feet six inches above the curb within twenty feet of the street, in the front or side yard of any lot, at a location within twenty feet of any driveway or street, and the answer turns on how open the fence is and how far it sits from the street. The figure is 20 feet, for distance from the street the rule reaches.
- Retaining walls
- A retaining wall four feet tall or less needs no approval in Ohio, measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall. The figure is 4 feet, for retaining wall height at or below which no approval is required. It reaches one, two and three family dwellings only.
- Materials
- Ohio says what a fence on the line is made of through one defined term, the preferred partition fence.
- Livestock
- Ohio names one build as the standard for a fence on a line where livestock are kept, and calls it a preferred partition fence. The figure is 48 inches, for height above the ground of the barbed wire strands on a woven wire preferred partition fence.
Who owns the fence between two properties in Akron?
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Akron answers this, but the answer changes depending on which rule is being read.
Akron requires the area of a yard or court at any given level to be open from that level to the sky unobstructed, and then lists exactly two exceptions: the ordinary projection of eaves, soffits, fascias, windowsills, chimneys, air conditioners and similar devices up to twenty inches, and a fire escape, stairway or balcony projecting no more than five feet into a side or rear yard and staying four feet off the lot line. A fence is not on that list. Read on its own the sentence would keep a fence out of every required yard, which is plainly not how the city applies it, because the visibility rule in the next section takes for granted that fences stand in front and side yards. What the code never does is state a setback for a fence from a lot line, so nothing in it holds a fence back from the boundary.
The area required in a yard or court at any given level shall be open from such level to the sky unobstructed
The answer turns on which rule is being read.
- a required yard
- Open to the sky, with two exceptions.
- a fence
- Not named in those exceptions.
- the visibility rule
- Assumes fences stand in front and side yards.
- a lot line
- No setback stated for a fence.
Also on fences on the property line in Akron
- set in state lawWhere a fence already stands on the line between two Ohio properties, both owners keep it in good repair in equitable shares, which means each pays a fair part rather than a strict half. Where no fence has ever stood there, section 971.07 puts the whole cost on the owner who builds it. That owner then files a sworn statement of the cost with the county recorder and can claim a share back later. Section 971.04 lets the two owners sign their own written agreement, and that agreement replaces the statute. ORC 971.06(A)Ohio · Statute
How tall can a fence be in Akron?
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Akron answers this, but the answer changes depending on whether the fence is one the city is requiring or one the owner wants.
Akron states no maximum fence height. The zoning code sets lot sizes, rear yards and side yards for every residence use and never reaches a fence, and the fence heights that do appear in the code are all floors rather than ceilings. A construction site within five feet of the street lot line has to be enclosed with a fence of at least eight feet. An outdoor storage area in a biomedical use district has to be screened by a solid wall or solid fence of at least six feet. An automobile body shop has to store vehicles awaiting repair inside a solid screened fence or walled area of not less than six feet. So the only number that actually limits a fence in Akron is the visibility rule, which caps anything within twenty feet of the street at two feet six inches above the curb unless it is eighty-five percent open.
Every construction operation located five feet (one thousand five hundred twenty-four millimeters) or less from the street lot line shall be enclosed with a fence not less than eight feet (two thousand four hundred thirty-eight millimeters) high to prevent entry of unauthorized persons.
The answer turns on whether the fence is one the city is requiring or one the owner wants.
- an ordinary house fence
- No maximum stated.
- near the street
- Two feet six inches, unless it is open.
- a construction site
- Eight feet, as a minimum. 8 ft
- a required screen
- Six feet, also a minimum. 6 ft
Also on fence height in Akron
- no rule, documents checkedOhio sets no statewide limit on how tall a fence at a house can be. Chapter 971 is about who pays for a fence on the line and never caps one. The six foot figure in the Residential Code of Ohio is the point where approval starts being needed, not a ceiling. Cities and townships set the height. ORC ch. 971Ohio · Statute
Do I need a permit for a fence in Akron?
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Ohio answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
A fence six feet tall or less needs no building approval in Ohio. Ohio calls the step approval rather than a permit, and the Residential Code of Ohio puts a fence at or under six feet on the list of work that skips it. The same list covers a detached shed under 200 square feet, a retaining wall under four feet with no extra load pressing on the dirt behind it, and a sidewalk or driveway no more than thirty inches above the ground. Work that skips approval still has to meet every other rule in the code.
This one is Ohio law, not Akron law. All Ohio findings
Fences not over six feet (1829 mm) high.
OAC 4101:8-1-01, Section 102.10
6 ftresidential fence height at or below which no approval is required
Also on permits in Akron
- no rule, documents checkedAkron requires a permit for any operation regulated by the building code and then lists the operations that each need a separate permit: sitework, demolition, a storage tank, a swimming pool and its required fencing, and a structure in, under or over the public right-of-way. An ordinary fence appears nowhere on that list, and the one exception the section grants is for a small shallow swimming pool. The zoning code adds nothing, because it never mentions a fence permit or a zoning certificate for a fence. So the only fence the building code plainly reaches is the barrier around a pool, which is permitted as part of the pool rather than on its own. Anything else has to be argued from whether a fence counts as an operation regulated by the building code, and the code does not say. Section 190.201Akron · Building code
Pool fence requirements in Akron
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Ohio answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Ohio requires a 48 inch barrier around a public swimming pool, measured from the ground to the top of the fence. It is a health department rule and it reaches a public pool that is newly built or heavily rebuilt. Gates have to lock, and a gate the public uses closes and latches on its own with the latch at least 38 inches up. Horizontal pieces on the outside face that would make the barrier easy to climb are not allowed. The Residential Code of Ohio has no swimming pool chapter of its own.
This one is Ohio law, not Akron law. All Ohio findings
The perimeter barrier shall be at least forty-eight inches in height from the ground to the top of the fence.
48 inperimeter barrier around a public swimming pool
Spite fence laws in Akron
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Akron law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
Ohio has no spite fence law. Chapter 971 is the fence chapter and every section in it deals with fences on the line, cost shares, fence viewers and township trustees. Chapter 3767 is the nuisance chapter and it never names a fence. A fence built out of ill will is handled by a nuisance lawsuit or by a city or township rule.
This one is Ohio law, not Akron law. All Ohio findings
Documents read before writing that:
- ORC ch. 971Ohio Laws and Administrative Rules
- ORC ch. 3767Ohio Laws and Administrative Rules
How fence height is measured in Akron
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Akron does not set this. It leaves it to the planning commission of a municipal corporation, and a township board of trustees outside municipal limits.
Ohio never says what the height of a fence at a house is measured from. The one measured height in the fence chapter is the 48 inches from the ground up to the barbed wire on a preferred partition fence, and that is a farm rule. For everything else, section 713.06 lets a city planning commission split the city into zones and set the height of buildings and other structures in each one, and section 519.02 gives township trustees the same power outside a city. The city or township rule is where the measuring point is written.
This one is Ohio law, not Akron law. All Ohio findings
for the limitations and regulation of the height, bulk, and location, including percentage of lot occupancy, set back building lines, and area and dimensions of yards, courts, and other open spaces, and the uses of buildings and other structures and of premises in such zones or districts
The code hands this to the planning commission of a municipal corporation, and a township board of trustees outside municipal limits, which is not published in the code itself.
Also on how height is measured in Akron
- no rule, documents checkedWith no maximum fence height in the code there is nothing for a general measuring rule to attach to, and none is written. The single vertical limit that exists is measured in an unusual way and it is worth knowing: the visibility rule caps an obstruction at two feet six inches above the curb, not above the ground where the fence stands. On a lot that sits well above the street that gives an owner less usable height than the number suggests, and on a lot that sits below the street it gives more. Nothing addresses a berm under a fence, a fence on top of a retaining wall, or ground raised before the posts go in, although the building permit application does ask for the elevation of the curb and the crown at the extension of the lot lines, which shows the city thinking in the same terms. Section 153.305(D)(3)Akron · Zoning code
Fence rules for corner lots in Akron
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Akron answers this, but the answer changes depending on how open the fence is and how far it sits from the street.
In the U1, U2, ULB and UD districts no wall, vegetation, fence, earthbank or other obstruction to visibility may stand higher than two feet six inches above the curb within twenty feet of the street, in the front or side yard of any lot, at a location within twenty feet of any driveway or street. A fence that is eighty-five percent or more open space is lifted out of the rule by name, which is a high bar and rules out most privacy designs while allowing wrought iron and open picket. Where the building line on a lot is less than twenty feet the cleared distance may shrink to match the building line, but never below ten feet. Two things make this rule bite harder than a corner triangle. It is measured above the curb rather than above the ground at the fence, so a lot that sits above street level loses height it never had. And it reaches every driveway and every street frontage, not only a corner.
In any U1, U2, ULB or UD District classification except for a fence which is eighty-five percent or more open space, no wall, vegetation, fence, earthbank or other obstruction to visibility shall be permitted to a height greater than two feet six inches above the curb, closer than twenty feet to the street, in the front or side yard of any lot (at a location within twenty feet of any driveway or street).
The answer turns on how open the fence is and how far it sits from the street.
- within twenty feet of the street
- Two feet six inches above the curb. 20 ft
- a fence mostly open
- Out of the rule at eighty-five percent. 85%
- a shallow building line
- May shrink, but not below ten feet. 10 ft
- a driveway
- The same rule applies within twenty feet.
Also on corner visibility in Akron
- set in state lawOhio has a state rule about blocking a driver view, and it covers signs rather than fences. Section 5547.04 makes a sign or poster put up near a public highway an obstruction when it hides the view of drivers at a curve or where roads cross, and the county commissioners enforce that. The section names no triangle and no distance, and it says nothing about a fence. O.R.C. 5547.04Ohio · Traffic code
Retaining wall rules in Akron
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Ohio answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
A retaining wall four feet tall or less needs no approval in Ohio, measured from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall. The pass is gone if the wall carries a surcharge, which means an extra load pressing on the dirt behind it. Ohio calls the step approval rather than a permit. A wall that skips approval still has to meet every other rule in the code.
This one is Ohio law, not Akron law. All Ohio findings
Retaining walls which are not over four feet (1219 mm) in height
OAC 4101:8-1-01, Section 102.10
4 ftretaining wall height at or below which no approval is required
Fence materials allowed in Akron
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Ohio answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Ohio says what a fence on the line is made of through one defined term, the preferred partition fence. Woven wire, standard or high tensile, with one or two strands of barbed wire on top, meets it on its own. So does a high tensile fence of at least seven strands that is not electric. A barbed wire fence, an electric fence or a live fence, meaning a row of growing plants, counts only when the owners on both sides agree in writing to allow it.
This one is Ohio law, not Akron law. All Ohio findings
"Preferred partition fence" includes a barbed wire, electric, or live fence, provided that the owners of adjoining properties agree, in writing, to allow such fences.
Also on materials in Akron
- no rule, documents checkedNothing in the Akron zoning code says what a fence on a house lot may be built from. Barbed wire is not mentioned, razor wire is not mentioned, chain link is not mentioned, and there is no rule about which side of a fence faces the neighbor. Every material rule in the code belongs to a fence the city is requiring rather than permitting: a screen around outdoor storage has to be a solid wall or solid fence or landscaping, a body shop enclosure has to be a solid screened fence or walled area, a junk yard has its own fencing section in the business regulations, and a construction fence only has to be strong enough to resist wind pressure. A fence in a front yard is controlled by how much a driver can see through it rather than by what it is made of, since eighty-five percent open space is what lifts the visibility limit. Sections 153.300 and 153.305Akron · Zoning code
Livestock and boundary fence law in Akron
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Ohio answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Ohio names one build as the standard for a fence on a line where livestock are kept, and calls it a preferred partition fence. It is woven wire, standard or high tensile, carrying one or two strands of barbed wire that sit at least 48 inches off the ground. A high tensile fence of seven strands or more that is not electric also counts. Either build follows federal conservation practice standard 382. A barbed wire, electric or live fence counts only when both owners agree to it in writing.
This one is Ohio law, not Akron law. All Ohio findings
"Preferred partition fence" means a partition fence that is a woven wire fence, either standard or high tensile, with one or two strands of barbed wire located not less than forty-eight inches from the ground or a nonelectric high tensile fence of at least seven strands and that is constructed in accordance with the United States natural resources conservation service conservation practice standard for fences, code 382.
48 inheight above the ground of the barbed wire strands on a woven wire preferred partition fence
Also on agricultural fencing in Akron
- set in state lawOhio requires the preferred partition fence around a field or pen where livestock are kept when that field touches the line with another owner. An owner may build something stronger and pays the extra cost alone. The rule does not reach two owners who signed a written agreement to do it another way, and it does not reach a fence that was already standing when the section took effect. ORC 971.02(A)Ohio · Statute
- set in state lawOhio puts the duty on the livestock owner and not on the neighbor. An owner who is careless and lets livestock get out of the pen pays for all the harm they do on someone else's land, whether that is injury, death or damage to property. The section never asks the neighbor to have a fence first. ORC 971.18Ohio · Statute
Documents behind this page
13 documents, of which 3 were published by Akron itself. Each was read on the date shown.
- Ohio Laws and Administrative RulesOhio Revised Code, Chapter 971, Fences
- City of AkronAkron Codified Ordinances, Title 15, Chapter 153, Zoning Code, Article 6, Development and Area District Requirements
- Ohio Laws and Administrative RulesOhio Revised Code, Chapter 971, Fences
- Ohio Board of Building StandardsOhio Administrative Code, Rule 4101:8-1-01, Administration, Residential Code of Ohio
- City of AkronAkron Codified Ordinances, Title 19, Building Code, Chapter 191, Requirements and Safety, Article 2, Safety During Operations
- City of AkronAkron Codified Ordinances, Title 19, Building Code, Chapter 190, General Provisions
- Ohio Laws and Administrative RulesOhio Administrative Code, Rule 3701-31-05.1, Design criteria for new construction or substantial alteration of a public swimming pool on or after April 1, 2011
- Ohio Laws and Administrative RulesOhio Revised Code, Chapter 3767, Nuisances
- Ohio Laws and Administrative RulesOhio Revised Code, Title 7, Chapter 713, Planning
- Ohio Legislative Service CommissionOhio Revised Code, Title 55, Chapter 5547, County Highways, Use and Obstruction
- Ohio General AssemblyOhio Revised Code, Title 9, Chapter 971, Fences
- Ohio General AssemblyOhio Revised Code, Title 9, Chapter 971, Fences
- Ohio General AssemblyOhio Revised Code, Title 9, Chapter 971, Fences
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 Akron publishes, plus the Ohio rules that apply where the city sets none. Fence laws in Ohio 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