FENCE RULES – BELLEVUE (CITY), NEBRASKA

OVERVIEW

Residential fences are permitted on private property within City of Bellevue, subject to local regulations.

Local fence rules appear primarily in the Bellevue Zoning Ordinance, especially Article 9, Section 9.09, Fences, with related rules in the general yard, visibility, floodplain, overlay, and subdivision provisions. Bellevue’s Code Enforcement FAQ also provides current administrative guidance stating that permits are not required for fences.

This page focuses on typical single-family residential fencing, including rural residential and agricultural residential contexts where applicable. If the jurisdiction’s adopted materials do not state a specific limit or requirement, this page notes that the code does not specify one.

Compiled From Bellevue Zoning Ordinance, Ordinance No. 4146; Bellevue City Code; City of Bellevue Subdivision Regulations; Permits & Inspections materials; Building Permits materials; Documents & Forms materials; and Code Enforcement FAQ materials as of May 2026.

GOVERNANCE

The City of Bellevue regulates residential fences through the Bellevue Zoning Ordinance, the Bellevue City Code, and related administrative materials from Permits & Inspections, Planning Department, Public Works Department, and Code Enforcement.

The city does not publish a separate stand-alone residential fence code. Instead, fence rules are located in Zoning Ordinance Section 9.09, with related visibility rules in the general zoning provisions, floodplain rules in the FF/FW Flood Plain District, and subdivision easement and plat rules in the City of Bellevue Subdivision Regulations.

The Planning Department is the office identified in Bellevue’s FAQ for information regarding fence regulations. The Code Enforcement Unit enforces city codes and zoning ordinances and identifies fence upkeep, swimming pools, and fences around swimming pools as possible code enforcement subjects.

PERMIT AND APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS

• Fence Permit: Bellevue’s published Code Enforcement FAQ states that permits are not required for fences.

• Zoning Compliance: Building permit requirements are separate from zoning, setback, or plat requirements. Confirm any applicable zoning conditions, setbacks, and plat requirements with Planning Department before construction.

• Fence Standards Still Apply: A fence that does not require a permit must still conform to the Bellevue Zoning Ordinance, including height, openness, visibility, material, maintenance, pool enclosure, and finished-side requirements.

• Floodplain Development: In mapped flood hazard areas regulated by the FF/FW Flood Plain District, no development may be located, extended, converted, or structurally altered without compliance with the floodplain ordinance. Bellevue’s floodplain provisions require a separate floodplain development permit before floodplain development or substantial improvement begins.

• Subdivision and Plat Conditions: The code does not state that a standard residential fence requires subdivision approval. However, recorded plats, subdivision easements, private street easements, access restrictions, and utility easements may limit where improvements can be placed.

FENCE PLACEMENT RULES

• Required Yards: Fences and walls are permitted in required yards, subject to applicable height restrictions.

• Property Lines: The ordinance does not state a setback requirement for standard residential fences from property lines; however, fences must be located entirely on the owner’s property and must not encroach into rights-of-way or easements.

• Through Lots: On certain through lots that abut a major thoroughfare, such as Highway 370, Highway 75, and Fort Crook Road, where access is made from the other frontage street and access along the thoroughfare is restricted, the rear-yard setback for fences and screening devices is 0 feet. Where a through lot occurs outside that major-thoroughfare condition and all principal structures face the same frontage, the rear-yard setback for fences and screening is also 0 feet. Where principal structures face different directions along both frontages, the rear-yard setback for fences and screening is the prescribed rear-yard setback in the zoning district.

• Subdivision Perimeter Fences: Fences around an entire platted subdivision must be aesthetic in nature, located 6 inches within the lot line, constructed of wood, masonry, vinyl, or wrought iron, and maintained by the property owner or an appropriate homeowners association.

• Traffic Safety: No fence or vegetation may be placed or constructed in a way that obstructs vehicular traffic or creates a traffic safety hazard.

• Easements: Bellevue’s subdivision regulations require utility easements on final plats. In the easement ways described in those regulations, permanent buildings and retaining walls are prohibited, and other uses are allowed only if they do not interfere with the granted utility rights.

• Floodway Placement: In the floodway overlay district, wire fences or other appurtenances may be constructed only where they do not obstruct flood flows or create a debris-catching obstacle to the passage of flood waters.

• Utility Safety: Nebraska law requires notice through Nebraska 811 before excavation begins. For fence projects that involve digging, including fence post holes, notice generally must be given at least 2 full business days and not more than 10 business days before excavation begins, subject to limited exceptions.

FENCE HEIGHT AND VISIBILITY RULES

• General Height Limit: The height limitation for fences is 6 feet above ground level, except where Bellevue’s fence regulations provide a different rule.

• Residential Front Yard: A fence constructed within the front yard of a residential lot, and vegetation used as a barrier, screen, or fence along and parallel to the front line of a residential lot, must be open, with at least 50% of the surface area in open spaces, and may not exceed 48 inches in height.

• Required Front-Yard Space: On portions of a lot not covered by street or alley intersection restrictions, fences of any length and foliage continuous for 5 feet or more are limited to 48 inches in the required front-yard space. Decorative or ornamental features, such as end posts, corner posts, caps, or gates, may reach 60 inches if they comprise no more than 10% of the overall length of the fence on any one side.

• Other Lot Lines: On all other portions of lot lines, fences, hedges, and continuous foliage barriers may not exceed 72 inches in height.

• Arterial Street Edges: Fences constructed along and parallel to rear and side lot lines adjoining arterial streets designated by the Nebraska Department of Roads may not exceed 8 feet in height.

• Corner Visibility: For fences and hedges at corner visibility areas, Bellevue requires an unobstructed view across the sight triangle between 30 inches and 10 feet above the grade of the bottom of the curb of the intersecting streets, measured from the curb corner points 45 feet in each direction along the curb. At intersections involving major or arterial streets, the 45-foot distance may be increased to at least 90 feet for each arterial leg of the intersection. The required distance may also be increased based on subdivision design and speed limits along major or other arterials.

• General Street-Intersection Visibility: Bellevue also prohibits obstructions to vision on a corner lot or street median or island within the area formed by the property lines at a distance of 30 feet from their intersections, between 30 inches and 10 feet above the grades of the bottom of the curb of the intersecting streets. The city may increase the 30-foot distance at intersections of major or other arterial streets.

• Height Measurement: Fence height is measured from the existing grade at the exterior side of the fence. A berm may not be constructed to support a fence unless the total height of the berm plus the fence stays within the maximum height allowed for the fence.

MATERIAL AND CONSTRUCTION LIMITS

• Fence Materials: Bellevue defines a fence as a permanent enclosure or barrier made from materials intended for fencing, including wood, wire, vinyl, wrought iron, composite, block, or stone materials.

• Open Front-Yard Fence Construction: Residential fences within required front-yard space must be open-type construction, such as picket, split rail, or chain link, with openings constituting at least 50% of the fence surface area.

• Barbed Wire: Barbed wire fences and barbed wire strung along or on a fence as a barrier are prohibited within the city limits and the city’s jurisdictional area, except for listed nonresidential or public-infrastructure contexts such as public institutions, public utilities, factories, storage yards, communication centers, or airports, subject to the city’s stated placement and height conditions. The code does not authorize barbed wire for standard residential fencing.

• Electric Fences: Electric fences are prohibited within the jurisdictional control of the City of Bellevue, except that in an area zoned agricultural, electric fences may be used to control the ranging of livestock.

• Pool Fences: Every regulated outdoor pool with a depth of 18 inches or greater and a diameter of 9 feet or greater must be completely surrounded by a fence or wall at least 72 inches high. The enclosure may not have openings, holes, or gaps larger than 4 inches in any dimension, except for doors and gates. If a picket fence is used, the horizontal dimension may not exceed 4 inches.

• Pool Gates and Doors: Gates or doors through a required pool enclosure must have a self-closing and self-latching device located at least 45 inches above grade level. A dwelling or accessory building may be used as part of the pool enclosure, and the door of a dwelling that forms part of the enclosure is not required to have the same self-closing and self-latching device.

• Finished Side: The finished surfaces of any fence must face toward adjacent properties and street frontages.

• Maintenance: All fences must be maintained in good repair.

PRIVATE RESTRICTIONS

Private restrictions operate independently from city fence rules. These may include homeowners association rules, subdivision covenants, deed restrictions, private easements, access restrictions, private maintenance agreements, rural or agricultural agreements, and boundary agreements.

Bellevue’s subdivision perimeter fence rule also recognizes that care, upkeep, and maintenance of a subdivision perimeter fence may be the responsibility of the property owner or an appropriate homeowners association.

REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT CONTEXT

Fence issues are typically reviewed during permit or approval review when required, and through complaint-based code enforcement. Examples include:

• No Fence Permit Required: Bellevue’s FAQ states that permits are not required for fences, but the fence must still comply with Bellevue’s zoning standards.

• Height and Openness: Review may involve the 48-inch open-fence limit in residential front yards, the 72-inch limit on other portions of lot lines, the 8-foot arterial-adjacent limit, and the 50% open-space requirement where applicable.

• Visibility and Traffic Safety: Review may involve fences, hedges, or vegetation that obstruct vehicular traffic, create a traffic safety hazard, or intrude into the required sight triangle or street-intersection visibility area.

• Pool Enclosures: Review may involve the required 72-inch pool enclosure, the 4-inch maximum opening rule, and the 45-inch latch-height rule for gates or doors.

• Materials and Construction: Review may involve prohibited barbed wire, prohibited electric fences except in agricultural zoning for livestock control, finished-side orientation, and fence maintenance.

• Subdivision Perimeter Fences: Review may involve the 6-inch inside-lot-line placement rule, the required materials, the height limits, and maintenance responsibility for fences around an entire platted subdivision.

• Floodplain and Floodway Areas: Review may involve floodplain development permits and the rule that wire fences or appurtenances in the floodway may not obstruct flood flows or create debris-catching obstacles.

• Easements and Rights-of-Way: Review may involve whether the fence conflicts with recorded easements, subdivision easement rights, access restrictions, rights-of-way, or utility access.

USING THIS INFORMATION

This page provides general orientation on how residential fence rules are structured and applied within City of Bellevue, based on publicly available materials reviewed as of May 2026.

In addition to local fence rules, certain Nebraska laws apply statewide. See Statewide Fence Laws in Nebraska.

It is not legal advice and does not replace official ordinances, permits, surveys, or professional guidance. Rules and interpretations may change, and application may vary based on zoning district, site conditions, easements, rights-of-way, rural or agricultural context, and private restrictions such as HOA covenants or private agreements. Before purchasing materials or beginning construction, confirm current requirements and any site-specific limitations with Planning Department and any applicable private agreements. If this page conflicts with official ordinances, published guidance, or direction from City of Bellevue staff, the official sources control. For legal advice or legal interpretation, consult a licensed attorney.