Fence or deck costs in York

York measures a fence from the outside. The city's zoning code says height is taken on the side that faces the street, the alley or the neighbor's property, from the ground up to the top of the main section. On a sloped yard, that's the number that counts, not the one you see from your patio. In most districts the limit is 6 feet.

The city routes this work through the Bureau of Planning and Zoning. Its zoning permit covers fences, decks, patios, sheds, pools, spas and hot tubs. The permits office confirms that decks need a permit, and that fence permits go through Planning and Zoning rather than the building side.

Corner lots get extra scrutiny. In a corner lot's front yard, nothing can be built or grown that blocks drivers' view. Where arterial and collector streets meet, the code keeps a clear-sight triangle that runs 25 feet along each street line. If your lot is on a busy corner, a privacy fence may have to stop short of it.

The code is blunt about materials in residential districts. No scrap sheet metal or junk. No barbed wire or electric fence, unless you can show the Zoning Officer there's an unusual hazard to protect people from, such as an electric transformer. And a fence can't go in the street right-of-way at all unless the City Engineer or Public Works approves it.