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 stated, 2 silent, 18 delegated. Every row links the state page and the document behind it.
| State | What the record says | Triangle rule | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Delegatedland inside a city that has adopted a zoning ordinance | none stated | Ala. Code 11-52-70 |
| Alaska | Statedthe right of way of a state highway or road, not private ground on a corner lot | none stated | AS 19.25.200 |
| Arizona | Stateda 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 | Statedthe right of way of a state highway, whether or not the whole width is paved | none stated | Cal. Sts. & Hy. Code 660 |
| Colorado | Statedoutdoor advertising devices needing a state permit along a highway, not a fence on a corner lot | 500 ft | C.R.S. 43-1-411 |
| Connecticut | Delegatedtowns, cities and boroughs setting their own building and obstruction lines | none stated | Conn. Gen. Stat. 7-148 |
| Delaware | Statedrights of way under Department of Transportation control in unincorporated parts of the state | 10 ft | 17 Del. C. 525 |
| District of Columbia | Silentzoned land in the District of Columbia | none stated | 11 DCMR |
| Florida | Statedoutdoor advertising signs next to the State Highway System, interstate or federal aid primary roads | none stated | Fla. Stat. 479.11 |
| Georgia | Delegatedcorner lots inside a Georgia county or city that has adopted zoning | none stated | O.C.G.A. 36-66-2(a) |
| Hawaii | Statedthe right of way of a state highway, not a county road or private land | none stated | HRS 264-6 |
| Idaho | Stateda highway or public right of way run by a county or highway district | none stated | Idaho Code 40-2319 |
| Illinois | Stateda public highway, when the highway authority has not given permission | none stated | 605 ILCS 5/9-117 |
| Indiana | Statedhedges, live fences and other natural growth outside cities and towns, not a built fence | 5 ft | IC 32-26-4-1 |
| Iowa | Statedground inside a highway right of way, not a fence set back on a private lot | none stated | Iowa Code 318.3 |
| Kansas | Statedhighway right of way or right of way boundary within 350 feet of a railroad grade crossing or an abrupt corner in the road | 350 ft | K.S.A. 19-2612 |
| Kentucky | Statedthe right of way of a public road, for obstructions the owner placed or consented to | none stated | KRS 179.240 |
| Louisiana | Statedanything inside the limits of a state highway | none stated | La. R.S. 48:347 |
| Maine | Statedsigns, billboards and other advertising devices near a highway | none stated | 23 M.R.S. 1153 |
| Maryland | Stateda State highway, where the State Highway Administration has not issued a permit | none stated | Md. Code, Transp. 8-646 |
| Massachusetts | Delegatedstructures projecting into or placed on or over a public way | none stated | M.G.L. c. 85, s. 8 |
| Michigan | Stateda fence, building or other encroachment on a public highway | none stated | MCL 247.171 |
| Minnesota | Statedthe 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 | Stateda public road right of way, outside charter counties and the City of St. Louis | none stated | Mo. Rev. Stat. 229.150 |
| Montana | DelegatedMontana sets no sight triangle of its own. | none stated | MCA 76-2-301 |
| Nebraska | DelegatedNebraska leaves the corner triangle to each city and village. | none stated | Neb. Rev. Stat. 19-901 |
| Nevada | Statedadvertising signs, signboards and other advertising matter placed along a public highway | none stated | NRS 405.110 |
| New Hampshire | Statedroadside 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 | Statedsigns permitted by the Roadside Sign Control and Outdoor Advertising Act along state highways | none stated | N.J.S.A. 27:5-9 |
| New Mexico | Stateddirectional 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 | DelegatedNew York hands the corner triangle to the town, village or city. | none stated | N.Y. Town Law 261 |
| North Carolina | DelegatedNorth Carolina gathers local development power into Chapter 160D, and that is the grant a corner triangle r... | none stated | G.S. 160D-702 |
| North Dakota | DelegatedNorth Dakota gives the zoning power to cities in Chapter 40-47 and to counties in Chapter 11-33, and neithe... | none stated | N.D.C.C. 40-47-01 |
| Ohio | Statedadvertising and other signs and posters on, along or near a public highway, enforced by the board of county commissioners | none stated | O.R.C. 5547.04 |
| Oklahoma | DelegatedOklahoma puts the zoning power in Title 11, Cities and Towns, and that grant is the only place a corner tri... | none stated | 11 O.S. 43-101 |
| Oregon | DelegatedOregon hands land development to the city, and a corner triangle is part of that. | none stated | ORS 227.215 |
| Pennsylvania | Stateda tree, plant, shrub or other obstruction that cuts corner sight distance, removable on order of the Department on state highways or of the local authority on any other highway | none stated | 67 Pa. Code 212.6 |
| Rhode Island | DelegatedRhode Island does more than allow zoning. | none stated | R.I. Gen. Laws 45-24-33 |
| South Carolina | DelegatedSouth Carolina writes the zoning grant broadly in Chapter 6-29 and lets each city and county fill it in. | none stated | S.C. Code 6-29-720 |
| South Dakota | DelegatedSouth Dakota gives municipalities the zoning power in Chapter 11-4 and counties the same power in Chapter 1... | none stated | SDCL 11-4-1 |
| Tennessee | Stateddriveway entrances built inside the right of way of a highway on the state highway system | none stated | Tenn. Comp. R. and Regs. 1680-10-01-.03, Manual section 5.2 |
| Texas | DelegatedTexas gives a whole chapter of the Transportation Code to sight distance and then hands it to the counties. | none stated | Tex. Transp. Code 255.002 |
| Utah | SilentUtah state law does not set a corner sight triangle. | none stated | Utah Code 72-7-102 |
| Vermont | DelegatedVermont comes closer than most states to naming the thing without setting it. | none stated | 24 V.S.A. 4414 |
| Virginia | Statedadvertisements and advertising structures in sight of a public highway | 400 ft | Va. Code 33.2-1216 |
| Washington | Statedbrush, timber and signs within 100 feet of a railroad grade crossing on a county road | 100 ft | RCW 36.86.100 |
| West Virginia | DelegatedWest Virginia lists in Chapter 8A what a zoning ordinance is allowed to contain, and traffic flow and acces... | none stated | W. Va. Code 8A-7-2 |
| Wisconsin | Statedland inside the triangle at a highway intersection outside the limits of any city or village | 1000 ft | Wis. Stat. 86.191(4) |
| Wyoming | DelegatedWyoming gives a city or town the power to zone height, lot coverage, yards and open spaces, and to set setb... | 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