All 50 states and DC
Fence rules for corner lots
A corner lot carries a rule an interior lot does not: a wedge of ground near the intersection where nothing tall may stand, so a driver can see across it. It goes by several names, the vision triangle, the sight triangle, the clear view area. It is almost always municipal, and it has a habit of living in the traffic title rather than the zoning title, which is why a fence chapter can point at it without ever naming it.
Fence rules for corner lots, state by state
29 set a rule in state law, 2 were checked and say nothing, 18 hand it to the town. Every row links the state page and the document behind it.
| State | What the record says | Triangle rule | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | left to the townland inside a city that has adopted a zoning ordinance | none stated | Ala. Code 11-52-70 |
| Alaska | set in state lawthe right of way of a state highway or road, not private ground on a corner lot | none stated | AS 19.25.200 |
| Arizona | set in state lawa public highway or airport, including a state highway, not a fence standing on private land | none stated | A.R.S. 28-7053 |
| Arkansas | Not read yet | none stated | none |
| California | set in state lawthe right of way of a state highway, whether or not the whole width is paved | none stated | Cal. Sts. & Hy. Code 660 |
| Colorado | set in state lawoutdoor advertising signs that need a state permit along a highway, not a fence on a corner lot | 500 ft | C.R.S. 43-1-411 |
| Connecticut | left to the towntowns, cities and boroughs setting their own building and obstruction lines | none stated | Conn. Gen. Stat. 7-148 |
| Delaware | set in state lawrights of way the Department of Transportation controls outside cities and towns | 10 ft | 17 Del. C. 525 |
| District of Columbia | no rule, documents checkedzoned land in the District of Columbia | none stated | 11 DCMR |
| Florida | set in state lawsigns next to a state highway, an interstate or a federal aid primary road | none stated | Fla. Stat. 479.11 |
| Georgia | left to the towncorner lots inside a Georgia county or city that has adopted zoning | none stated | O.C.G.A. 36-66-2(a) |
| Hawaii | set in state lawthe right of way of a state highway, not a county road or private land | none stated | HRS 264-6 |
| Idaho | set in state lawa highway or public right of way run by a county or highway district | none stated | Idaho Code 40-2319 |
| Illinois | set in state lawa public highway, where the highway authority has not given permission | none stated | 605 ILCS 5/9-117 |
| Indiana | set in state lawhedges, live fences and other growing things outside cities and towns, not a built fence | 5 ft | IC 32-26-4-1 |
| Iowa | set in state lawground inside a highway right of way, not a fence set back on a private lot | none stated | Iowa Code 318.3 |
| Kansas | set in state lawthe road strip within 350 feet of a railroad crossing or a sharp corner in the road | 350 ft | K.S.A. 19-2612 |
| Kentucky | set in state lawthe strip of a public road, for things the owner put there or allowed | none stated | KRS 179.240 |
| Louisiana | set in state lawanything inside the limits of a state highway | none stated | La. R.S. 48:347 |
| Maine | set in state lawsigns, billboards and other ads near a highway | none stated | 23 M.R.S. 1153 |
| Maryland | set in state lawa State highway, where the State Highway Administration has not issued a permit | none stated | Md. Code, Transp. 8-646 |
| Massachusetts | left to the townthings that stick out into or sit on or over a public road | none stated | M.G.L. c. 85, s. 8 |
| Michigan | set in state lawa fence, building or other object standing in a public highway | none stated | MCL 247.171 |
| Minnesota | set in state lawthe right of way of a trunk, county state aid, county or town road | none stated | Minn. Stat. 160.2715 |
| Mississippi | Not read yet | none stated | none |
| Missouri | set in state lawa public road right of way, outside charter counties and the City of St. Louis | none stated | Mo. Rev. Stat. 229.150 |
| Montana | left to the townMontana sets no clear view triangle at a corner. | none stated | MCA 76-2-301 |
| Nebraska | left to the townNebraska has no state rule about seeing around a corner. | none stated | Neb. Rev. Stat. 19-901 |
| Nevada | set in state lawadvertising signs, signboards and other advertising matter placed along a public highway | none stated | NRS 405.110 |
| New Hampshire | set in state lawroadside advertising near an intersection of class I and class II highways and near railroad grade crossings on them | 400 ft | RSA 236:54 |
| New Jersey | set in state lawsigns permitted by the Roadside Sign Control and Outdoor Advertising Act along state highways | none stated | N.J.S.A. 27:5-9 |
| New Mexico | set in state lawdirectional and other signs controlled by the New Mexico Highway Beautification Act along the interstate, national highway and primary systems | none stated | 18.21.5 NMAC |
| New York | left to the townNew York leaves the corner to the town, village or city. | none stated | N.Y. Town Law 261 |
| North Carolina | left to the townNorth Carolina has no clear view triangle in state law. | none stated | G.S. 160D-702 |
| North Dakota | left to the townNorth Dakota has no state rule about seeing around a corner. | none stated | N.D.C.C. 40-47-01 |
| Ohio | set in state lawsigns and posters on, along or near a public highway, enforced by the board of county commissioners | none stated | O.R.C. 5547.04 |
| Oklahoma | left to the townOklahoma has no state rule for the clear view at a corner. | none stated | 11 O.S. 43-101 |
| Oregon | left to the townOregon has no state rule for the clear view at a corner. | none stated | ORS 227.215 |
| Pennsylvania | set in state lawa tree, plant, shrub or other thing that blocks the view at a corner, which the Department may order cut back on a state highway and the local authority on any other highway | none stated | 67 Pa. Code 212.6 |
| Rhode Island | left to the townRhode Island requires every city and town to zone, and the corner question sits in that ordinance. | none stated | R.I. Gen. Laws 45-24-33 |
| South Carolina | left to the townSouth Carolina draws no corner triangle of its own. | none stated | S.C. Code 6-29-720 |
| South Dakota | left to the townSouth Dakota draws no corner triangle of its own. | none stated | SDCL 11-4-1 |
| Tennessee | set in state lawnew driveways built inside the right of way of a state highway | none stated | Tenn. Comp. R. and Regs. 1680-10-01-.03, Manual section 5.2 |
| Texas | left to the townTexas has a whole chapter about seeing around corners, and it does not reach fences. | none stated | Tex. Transp. Code 255.002 |
| Utah | no rule, documents checkedUtah sets no corner triangle in state law. | none stated | Utah Code 72-7-102 |
| Vermont | left to the townVermont does not set a corner triangle. | none stated | 24 V.S.A. 4414 |
| Virginia | set in state lawsigns and advertising structures in sight of a public highway | 400 ft | Va. Code 33.2-1216 |
| Washington | set in state lawbrush, trees and signs within 100 feet of a railroad crossing on a county road | 100 ft | RCW 36.86.100 |
| West Virginia | left to the townWest Virginia does not set a corner triangle. | none stated | W. Va. Code 8A-7-2 |
| Wisconsin | set in state lawland inside the triangle at a highway intersection outside the limits of any city or village | 1000 ft | Wis. Stat. 86.191(4) |
| Wyoming | left to the townWyoming does not set a corner triangle. | none stated | W.S. 15-1-601 |
The other nine questions
A fence rule usually turns on more than one of these, and the answer to one does not settle another.
What this page does not cover
Everything above is state law. Fence height, setback, corner visibility and materials are set by city and county ordinance in almost every state, and a local rule can be far stricter than the statewide default. A parcel can also carry an easement, an overlay district, a fire hazard zone or a recorded HOA restriction, none of which appear in a statute.
This is general information drawn from published government documents. It is not legal advice, statutes are amended, and each state page carries the date its documents were read. How findings are made · What the terms mean · Browse by state