Fence laws in West Allis, Wisconsin
What the West Allis municipal code says about fences, one topic at a time, with the section number and a link to the document behind every line. Where West Allis sets no rule of its own, the Wisconsin rule is shown in its place and marked as such.
Fence laws in West Allis, Wisconsin, question by question
The short version
- Who pays on the line
- The West Allis fence section states no distance from a side or rear line, and the answer turns on whether the line faces a neighbor or a street. The figure is 0 feet, for setback stated from a side or rear property line.
- How tall
- West Allis does not set a low front yard figure because it does not allow a front yard fence at all, and the answer turns on the use, the yard and which street frontage is shorter. The figure is 6 feet, for fence in a side or rear yard at a one or two family use.
- Permits
- The West Allis fence section opens with a compliance rule rather than a permit rule: no person, firm or corporation may erect, construct, reconstruct, maintain, alter, move or enlarge any fence in the city that does not comply with the code, and the answer turns on when the fence was built and whether it needs relief from a rule.
- Pool barriers
- West Allis sets no statewide pool barrier rule. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Spite fences
- Wisconsin has a spite fence law and it covers hedges as well as fences. The figure is 6 feet, for height above which a maliciously built fence or hedge is a private nuisance.
- Measured from what
- West Allis answers the sloping boundary question by taking the worse of the two readings.
- Corner lots
- West Allis keeps its corner rule in its own section and defines what counts as an obstruction before setting any distance, and the answer turns on what kind of intersection it is and what the obstruction is. The figure is 20 feet, for leg of the triangle at a street or alley intersection.
- Retaining walls
- West Allis sets no rule for a wall that holds back earth. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide this one.
- Materials
- West Allis sets a short standard rather than a long list, and the answer turns on the material and how the fence is put together.
- Livestock
- Wisconsin lists the fences that count as legal and says nothing else does. The figure is 50 inches, for minimum height of a legal fence, measured at the posts.
Who owns the fence between two properties in West Allis?
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West Allis answers this, but the answer changes depending on whether the line faces a neighbor or a street.
The West Allis fence section states no distance from a side or rear line. Fences are permitted in the side and rear yards at up to six feet, which reads as a permission to build on the boundary, and the city describes it the same way in the answer it gives residents. The only line a fence is kept away from is the street: no fence is permitted in a required front yard setback, and on a corner lot that setback is measured on the shorter street frontage. Two limits come from elsewhere. Visibility at an intersection is governed by the obstructions section, which keeps anything over three feet out of a triangle measured from the right-of-way lines. And the whole section yields to the Common Council, Plan Commission or Board of Appeals, any of which may approve a fence that differs from the location, height and construction rules.
Side and rear yards. Fences are permitted, not to exceed six (6) feet in height, in the side and rear yards.
Section 13.31, Fence Location and Height Requirements
The answer turns on whether the line faces a neighbor or a street.
- a side or rear line
- No distance stated. 0 ft
- a front yard setback
- No fence in it.
- a corner
- The obstructions triangle applies.
- a fence that breaks a rule
- Three bodies may still approve it.
Also on fences on the property line in West Allis
- set in state lawWisconsin splits a fence on the property line in equal shares, but only where farming or grazing is involved. The duty runs between the people using two neighboring farm or grazing properties, and between the owners when one side is used that way. The fence stays in good repair all year unless both sides agree otherwise, and the two sides may agree to use markers instead of a fence. Wis. Stat. § 90.03Wisconsin · Statute
How tall can a fence be in West Allis?
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West Allis answers this, but the answer changes depending on the use, the yard and which street frontage is shorter.
West Allis does not set a low front yard figure because it does not allow a front yard fence at all. On a one or two family lot, fences are not permitted in the required front yard setback as the zoning code determines it, and side and rear yards take six feet. The corner lot rule then decides which street counts as the front, and it does so by measurement rather than by address: the shorter dimension abutting a street is the front and may carry no fence in its setback, whatever the property address or any other designation says, and the longer dimension is a side yard where six feet is allowed. A through lot gets six feet in its rear and side yards, judged against the setbacks that were in force when the dwelling was built. Anything other than a one or two family use gets its fence approved through site change review rather than by a stated height.
The shorter dimension of a corner lot abutting a street shall be considered the front yard and shall not be permitted to have a fence in the required front yard setback regardless of the property address or other designation of the lot. The longer dimension of a corner lot abutting a street shall be considered a side yard and fences shall be allowed, not to exceed six (6) feet in height.
Section 13.31, Fence Location and Height Requirements
The answer turns on the use, the yard and which street frontage is shorter.
- a required front yard setback
- No fence at all.
- a side or rear yard
- Six feet. 6 ft
- a corner lot
- The shorter street side is the front.
- an apartment or a business
- Approved through site change review.
Also on fence height in West Allis
- no rule, documents checkedWisconsin sets no limit on how tall a fence at a house can be. The six feet in the spite fence law is what starts a nuisance claim and not a cap, and that same law says a city or village may ban a fence under six feet. Chapter 90 describes legal fences for farm and grazing land without limiting height, and the Uniform Dwelling Code does not reach fences at all. Wis. Stat. § 844.10Wisconsin · Statute
Do I need a permit for a fence in West Allis?
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West Allis answers this, but the answer changes depending on when the fence was built and whether it needs relief from a rule.
The West Allis fence section opens with a compliance rule rather than a permit rule: no person, firm or corporation may erect, construct, reconstruct, maintain, alter, move or enlarge any fence in the city that does not comply with the code. It names no application, no fee and no threshold of its own, and it sits inside the building code chapter, which carries the general permit and inspection sections. Relief is the part the section does state, and it comes from three different bodies. The Common Council, the Plan Commission or the Board of Appeals may approve a fence that differs from or exceeds the location, height and construction requirements, under the site change and appeal sections of the zoning chapter. A fence that existed before July 1, 1988 is outside the section entirely, although a non-conforming one may not be altered or enlarged unless it is brought into compliance.
The Common Council, Plan Commission or Board of Appeals may approve fences that differ or exceed the location, height and construction, requirements of this section, in accordance with Sections 12.13, 12.15 and 12.16 of this Code.
The answer turns on when the fence was built and whether it needs relief from a rule.
- an ordinary fence
- Compliance stated, no permit named here.
- one that breaks a rule
- Council, Plan Commission or Board of Appeals.
- a fence older than July 1988
- Outside the section.
- altering that old fence
- It has to comply then.
Also on permits in West Allis
- set in state lawWisconsin does not use the International Residential Code. It writes its own Uniform Dwelling Code in chapters SPS 320 to 325, which sets one set of building standards and inspections for one and two family homes and modular homes across the state. That code covers homes and their attached garages, porches, decks and stairways, and the word fence is nowhere in it. So a fence permit in Wisconsin is purely a local zoning question. Wis. Admin. Code § SPS 320.01Wisconsin · Building code
Pool fence requirements in West Allis
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West Allis law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
Wisconsin sets no statewide fence rule for a pool at a house. The state pool chapter, SPS 390, says on its face that it covers public pools and water attractions only. The Uniform Dwelling Code, which governs one and two family homes, has no pool, barrier, fence or enclosure section in any of its six chapters. A pool fence at a home is a local matter.
This one is Wisconsin law, not West Allis law. All Wisconsin findings
Documents read before writing that:
- Wis. Admin. Code § SPS 390.02Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services
- Wis. Admin. Code § SPS 320.01Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services
Spite fence laws in West Allis
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Wisconsin answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Wisconsin has a spite fence law and it covers hedges as well as fences. Any fence, hedge or structure like a fence that goes over six feet with no need to, and was put up or kept up out of spite to annoy a neighbor, is a private nuisance, which means the neighbor can sue over it. The same section says it does not stop a city or village from banning a fence under six feet, so local rules still bite below that line.
This one is Wisconsin law, not West Allis law. All Wisconsin findings
Any fence, hedge or other structure in the nature of a fence unnecessarily exceeding 6 feet in height, maliciously erected or maintained for the purpose of annoying the owners or occupants of adjoining property, shall be deemed a private nuisance.
6 ftheight above which a maliciously built fence or hedge is a private nuisance
How fence height is measured in West Allis
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West Allis answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
West Allis answers the sloping boundary question by taking the worse of the two readings. Fence height is the distance from the top of the fence materials to the grade on either side of the fence, whichever is greater, so the measurement is made from the lower ground and the taller of the two possible figures is the one that counts. That is the strictest of the three approaches in this state: Janesville measures from the inside, Kenosha from the outside, and West Allis from whichever side gives the bigger number. Posts are expressly excluded from the measurement, so a post standing proud of the top rail does not put the fence over. What the section does not address is a berm or a fence built on a retaining wall, although the whichever-is-greater rule already makes raising the ground on one side pointless, because the other side then becomes the side that governs.
Fence height shall be determined by the distance from the top of the fence materials, excluding posts, to the grade on either side of the fence, whichever is greater.
Section 13.31, Fence Location and Height Requirements
Also on how height is measured in West Allis
- left to the townWisconsin does not set this. The city does. The fence law in chapter 90 covers fences on a property line and what a fence viewer does, and it has no measuring rule in it anywhere. Section 62.23(7)(am) lets a city council set rules for the height, number of stories and size of buildings and other structures, and tells courts to read that power broadly in the city's favor. So the city ordinance sets the fence height and decides on its own what the height is taken from. Wis. Stat. 62.23(7)(am)Wisconsin · Zoning code
Fence rules for corner lots in West Allis
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West Allis answers this, but the answer changes depending on what kind of intersection it is and what the obstruction is.
West Allis keeps its corner rule in its own section and defines what counts as an obstruction before setting any distance. Fences, walls, signs, hedges, trees, rocks, other natural or constructed material, and even supported or unsupported earth are obstructions; buildings are not, and neither is a tree whose lowest branches are seven feet or more above the ground. Where two streets meet, or a street meets an alley, or two alleys meet, nothing over three feet above the curb or alley grade is permitted inside the triangle formed by the point where the right-of-way lines cross and two points twenty feet away along those lines. A driveway serving a multi-family, commercial, manufacturing or industrial use gets a smaller triangle of ten feet along the right-of-way and ten feet measured perpendicular into the lot from the driveway edge. Four separate city bodies may approve an obstruction the section does not permit.
No obstruction shall be permitted higher than three (3) feet above the curb or alley grade within the triangular area formed by: The point at the intersection of the street or alley right-of-way lines; and, The points on the street or alley right-of-way lines twenty (20) feet from the intersection point.
Section 13.30, Obstructions Prohibited
The answer turns on what kind of intersection it is and what the obstruction is.
- two streets or an alley
- Twenty feet each way. 20 ft
- anything inside it
- Three feet above the curb. 3 ft
- a commercial driveway
- Ten feet each way. 10 ft
- a tree limbed up to seven feet
- Not an obstruction. 7 ft
Also on corner visibility in West Allis
- set in state lawWisconsin draws a triangle at every highway crossing outside a city or village, running 1,000 feet out along each center line, and bans danger causing advertising inside it. Section 86.191 then goes past signs. The road authority has to ask the owner of land inside that triangle to cut back whatever blocks the view across it, as far as that can be done, and to work out an arrangement that makes travel on both roads as safe as it reasonably can be. It is a duty to work it out with the owner rather than a fixed height, and it stops at the city line. Wis. Stat. 86.191(4)Wisconsin · Traffic code
Retaining wall rules in West Allis
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West Allis law has no rule about this. The chapters that were read are listed below. Cities and counties decide it instead.
Wisconsin has no rule at all for a wall that holds back earth. It does not use the International Residential Code, so the model code line about a four foot wall never reaches this state. It writes its own Uniform Dwelling Code for one and two family homes, and both halves of that code were read end to end. Chapter SPS 320 is the paperwork half, covering the building permit, who issues it, inspections and exemptions, and the word retaining is nowhere in it. Chapter SPS 321 is the building half, covering digging, footings, frost protection, foundations, masonry walls and decks, and the word retaining is nowhere in it either. The code does have sections on digging next to a neighbor's land and on erosion control, and neither one sets a rule for a wall built to hold back earth. A permit for that kind of wall in Wisconsin is a local question.
This one is Wisconsin law, not West Allis law. All Wisconsin findings
Documents read before writing that:
- Wis. Admin. Code ch. SPS 320Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services
- Wis. Admin. Code ch. SPS 321Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services
Fence materials allowed in West Allis
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West Allis answers this, but the answer changes depending on the material and how the fence is put together.
West Allis sets a short standard rather than a long list. A fence may be built of approved materials such as commercial fence materials, concrete block or treated lumber, and may not include sheet metal or salvage materials and may not be electrified. Posts and supporting framework go on the interior side, so the neighbor gets the finished face. The prohibition that stands out is the last one: a fence made of a single strand of wire, or of wires forming a single horizontal member, is prohibited. That bars the cheap wire-and-post line an owner might run along a boundary to mark it, on the reasoning that a single strand at knee height is something a person walks into rather than something anyone sees. Maintenance carries a standard rather than a schedule, requiring every fence to be kept in good repair and maintained as necessary to protect the general welfare and preserve the look of the neighborhood.
Fences may be constructed of approved materials, such as commercial fence materials, concrete block or treated lumber, but may not include sheet metal, salvage materials or be electrified. Fence posts and supporting framework shall be on the interior side of the fence. A fence constructed of a single-strand wire or wires forming a single horizontal member is prohibited.
Section 13.31, Fence Construction Requirements
The answer turns on the material and how the fence is put together.
- commercial fencing, block or treated lumber
- Approved.
- sheet metal and salvage
- Prohibited.
- a single strand of wire
- Prohibited.
- an electrified fence
- Prohibited.
Also on materials in West Allis
- set in state lawWisconsin prints a closed list of legal fences and says the builds on it and no others count. Barbed wire and high tensile wire run through most of the list, always above a woven wire or board base, and one build is four or more barbed or high tensile wires at least 48 inches high on steel or wood posts. An electric fence is on the list too, with two extra strings attached. It takes two strands of tightly stretched wire fed by a standard approved electric or battery charger, with the top wire 34 to 36 inches up on insulated posts no more than two rods apart, which is 33 feet. And it counts as a legal fence only where the owners on both sides put their agreement in writing. Wis. Stat. 90.02(1m)(i)Wisconsin · Statute
Livestock and boundary fence law in West Allis
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Wisconsin answers this in its own law. The words that do it are quoted below.
Wisconsin lists the fences that count as legal and says nothing else does. The list runs from woven wire of different widths with barbed or high tensile wire above it, to board fences on posts no more than eight feet apart, to a 48 inch fence of four or more barbed or high tensile wires. Whatever the build, the fence stands at least 50 inches high and its bottom sits no more than four inches off the ground, both measured at the posts.
This one is Wisconsin law, not West Allis law. All Wisconsin findings
Fences shall not be less than 50 inches high, and the bottom of the fence shall be not more than 4 inches from the ground, measurements to be made at the posts.
50 inminimum height of a legal fence, measured at the posts
Also on agricultural fencing in West Allis
- set in state lawIn Wisconsin the fence on the line is the price of a damages claim. An owner who does not keep that fence in repair cannot collect for damage done by a neighbor's animals. Building it does not settle the other side either, because the owner of pigs, horses, sheep or goats still answers for damage those animals do inside the enclosure. Wis. Stat. 90.04Wisconsin · Statute
Documents behind this page
13 documents, of which 2 were published by West Allis itself. Each was read on the date shown.
- Wisconsin LegislatureWisconsin Statutes, Chapter 90, Fences, Section 90.03, Partition fences; when required
- City of West AllisWest Allis Municipal Code, Chapter 13, Building Code, Section 13.31, Fence Regulations
- Wisconsin LegislatureWisconsin Statutes, Chapter 844, Section 844.10, Private nuisance; fence
- Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional ServicesWisconsin Administrative Code, Chapter SPS 320, Section 320.01 Purpose
- Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional ServicesWisconsin Administrative Code, Chapter SPS 390, Public Swimming Pools and Water Attractions, Section 390.02 Applicability
- Wisconsin State LegislatureWisconsin Statutes, Chapter 62, Cities, Section 62.23, City planning
- Wisconsin LegislatureWisconsin Statutes, Chapter 86, Miscellaneous Highway Provisions
- City of West AllisWest Allis Municipal Code, Chapter 13, Building Code, Section 13.30, Obstructions
- Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional ServicesWisconsin Administrative Code, Chapter SPS 320, Uniform Dwelling Code Administration and Enforcement
- Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional ServicesWisconsin Administrative Code, Chapter SPS 321, Construction Standards
- Wisconsin LegislatureWisconsin Statutes, Chapter 90, Fences
- Wisconsin State LegislatureWisconsin Statutes, Chapter 90, Fences
- Wisconsin State LegislatureWisconsin Statutes, Chapter 90, 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 West Allis publishes, plus the Wisconsin rules that apply where the city sets none. Fence laws in Wisconsin 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