FENCE RULES – D’IBERVILLE (CITY), MISSISSIPPI

OVERVIEW

Residential fences are permitted on private property within City of D’Iberville, subject to local regulations. For properties located outside City of D’Iberville municipal limits, Harrison County regulates fences in unincorporated areas.

The principal local fence rules appear in Article 9 of the City of D’Iberville Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance, with additional traffic-visibility standards in Section 5.4.3, adopted construction-code provisions in Chapter 8, floodplain requirements in Chapter 13, and administrative guidance from the City of D’Iberville Building Department and the Department of Planning & Zoning and Development.

This page focuses on typical single-family residential fencing. If the jurisdiction’s adopted code or ordinance materials do not state a specific limit or requirement, this page notes that the code does not specify one. If no local code or ordinance is available in the approved source packet, this page notes that the jurisdiction does not publish the relevant standard in the referenced published materials.

Compiled From the City of D’Iberville Code of Ordinances, Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance Article 9, Building Department fence-permit guidance, Planning and Zoning and Development materials, Subdivision Regulations, Flood Prevention Management materials, Mississippi Department of Marine Resources wetlands-permitting materials, and Mississippi Underground Facilities Damage Prevention requirements as of July 2026.

GOVERNANCE

The City of D’Iberville regulates fences through Article 9 – Fences of its Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance. Article 9 is the principal fence chapter and governs permit review, placement, height, materials, pool barriers, inspections, and maintenance.

The Building and Zoning Department reviews fence-permit applications, and the Building Official issues permits when the application and plans comply with Article 9 and other applicable ordinances. The Department of Planning & Zoning and Development administers the City’s zoning ordinances, subdivision regulations, SmartCode, and architectural guidelines.

Chapter 8 locally adopts the 2018 International Residential Code and other 2018 ICC codes, including the 2018 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code. Article 9 separately imposes the City’s fence-specific permit and zoning standards.

The City of D’Iberville Building Department administers floodplain development review in identified Special Flood Hazard Areas. The Engineering Division reviews driveway approaches for vehicle gates, while easement users control the written permissions required for fences within the limited easement situations allowed by Article 9.

PERMIT AND APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS

• Fence Permit: A separate fence permit for each regulated fence is required before a person erects, constructs, enlarges, alters, repairs, replaces, removes, or demolishes a fence regulated by Article 9. Minor repair or painting does not require the fence permit.

• Application and Plans: The application must be made on a form furnished by the Building Official. Scaled plans must show building locations, the area to be fenced, the legal description, fence height and materials, intersections of streets, roads, highways, alleys and driveways, zoning, and the corner visibility range when required.

• Review and Issuance: The Building and Zoning Department reviews the application and plans for compliance with Article 9 and other applicable laws and ordinances. Work must follow the approved plans, and plan changes require City authorization.

• Permit Duration: The permit becomes void if work is not commenced within 60 days or is abandoned for 60 days. Recommencing work requires a new permit under Article 9’s renewal provisions.

• Required Inspections: Article 9 requires an alignment inspection after posts or support structures are in place, or when the holes are dug before posts are inserted or concrete is poured, and a final inspection after the fence is completed.

• Floodplain Development: A floodplain development permit is required before development begins in identified Special Flood Hazard Areas and community flood hazard areas. The Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance defines development broadly to include structures, filling, grading, excavation and drilling, and identifies a fence as a possible watercourse obstruction. Fence projects in mapped hazard areas therefore require review by the City of D’Iberville Building Department before work begins.

• Coastal Wetlands: When fence-related excavation, clearing, fill, access work, or placement would occur in a designated wetland, the City directs applicants to determine delineation and obtain any required permits from the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers before submitting the local permit application.

FENCE PLACEMENT RULES

• Property Boundaries: 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.

• Front-Yard Setback Areas: In R-1, R-2, R-3, R-4, R-5, R-O, and WF zoning districts, a fence may not be constructed in the required front-yard building setback area. A decorative fence may be placed outside any defined or dedicated easement when it is no more than 3 1/2 feet high and no more than 50 percent solid.

• City Property and Easements: A fence, guy wire, brace, or post may not be placed over property controlled or owned by the City or over or under an easement, except for specified underground drainage, sanitary-sewer, and utility easements when written permission is obtained from all users.

• Drainage Easements: A public or private drainage easement may not be fenced or obstructed without prior written permission from all users. An approved fence along an easement must include a gate for maintenance access.

• Corner and Driveway Visibility: Street-intersection corner lots must preserve a triangular sight area measured 50 feet along each curb line, or pavement edge where there is no curb. Driveway or accessway intersections use a 25-foot triangle. These areas must remain free of sight obstructions between 2 and 10 feet above the applicable centerline grades, and the Planning and Zoning Director may require an additional clear zone.

• Vehicle Gates: A driveway approach conforming to the general development ordinance and approved by the Engineering Division is required for vehicle gates.

• Utility Safety: Mississippi law requires notice through Mississippi 811 before excavation where the Mississippi Underground Utility Damage Prevention Act applies. For fence projects that involve digging, including digging, drilling, augering, boring, grading, or other movement of earth, notice generally must be given at least three full working days before excavation begins. Mississippi 811 is a notification center and does not mark lines itself; member utilities or their locators mark covered facilities, and the excavator must check the positive-response status before beginning work where required. This statewide utility-notice framework is separate from local fence permitting, zoning, development approval, easement limits, right-of-way approvals, floodplain review, stormwater review, drainage review, historic or design review, HOA restrictions, and other applicable requirements.

FENCE HEIGHT AND VISIBILITY RULES

• Maximum Fence Height: A standard fence may not exceed 10 feet measured from the finished grade of the lot, except where Article 9 provides a different rule. This is a height limit, not a permit threshold; the separate fence permit applies to regulated fence work regardless of height.

• Front-Yard Decorative Fences: Within the listed residential and waterfront districts, the front-yard exception is limited to a decorative fence no more than 3 1/2 feet high with no more than 50 percent solid area, located outside defined or dedicated easements.

• Visibility Range: Within the 50-foot street-intersection triangles and 25-foot driveway or accessway triangles, fences and other obstructions may not obscure vision between 2 and 10 feet above centerline grade.

• Private Swimming Pools: A fence or enclosure serving a private swimming pool must be at least 4 feet high, measured on the side facing away from the pool. A pool containing more than 24 inches of water must be fully enclosed, and access gates must be self-closing, self-latching, and child resistant.

MATERIAL AND CONSTRUCTION LIMITS

• Approved Materials: Residential fence materials may include wood, vinyl, chain link, masonry, or another material approved under the zoning ordinance.

• Electric Fences: A fence within City limits may not be electrically charged without prior written permission from the authority having jurisdiction.

• Barbed or Sharp Materials: Barbed wire and other sharp or pointed fence materials are prohibited, except on property zoned for agriculture that is at least 5 acres.

• Emergency Access Gate: Every fence must include at least one gate for emergency ingress and egress. The gate must be at least 3 feet wide.

• Private Pool Barrier Openings: The bottom of a private pool barrier may be no more than 2 inches above grade, and openings may not allow passage of a 4-inch-diameter sphere. Solid masonry or stone barriers may not contain climbable indentations or protrusions beyond normal construction tolerances and tooled joints.

• Pool Barrier Members: When the distance between the tops of horizontal members is less than 45 inches, they must be on the pool side and vertical-member spacing may not exceed 1 3/4 inches. When the distance between the tops of horizontal members is at least 45 inches, vertical spacing may not exceed 4 inches, and decorative cutouts may not exceed 1 3/4 inches. Chain-link mesh and lattice openings may not exceed 1 3/4 inches, subject to the ordinance’s slat provision for chain link.

• Pool Gates and Climbability: Pool gates must accommodate a locking device and be self-closing and self-latching. The release mechanism must be at least 45 inches above grade and located on the pool side at least 3 inches below the top of the gate; no opening greater than 1/2 inch is allowed within 18 inches of the release mechanism. Barriers must be placed so permanent structures, landscaping, equipment, or similar objects cannot be used to climb them.

• Maintenance: Existing and new fences must be maintained in a safe and aesthetically pleasing condition. Required devices and safeguards must remain operable, and graffiti must be removed immediately.

PRIVATE RESTRICTIONS

Homeowners’ association rules, subdivision covenants, deed restrictions, private easements, architectural-review covenants, conservation easements, and private boundary agreements operate independently of City requirements and may be more restrictive. A City fence permit does not replace approval required by an HOA or another private agreement.

REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT CONTEXT

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

• Permit Review: Construction, alteration, replacement, removal, or demolition of a regulated fence without the separate fence permit, except minor repair or painting.

• Plan and Inspection Review: Fence location, height, materials, zoning, visibility information, compliance with approved plans, the alignment inspection, and the final inspection.

• Placement and Visibility: Encroachment over City-controlled property, easement conflicts, blocked maintenance access, fences in required front-yard setback areas, excessive height, or obstruction of the required street and driveway sight triangles.

• Pool Barriers: Barrier height, opening sizes, gate operation, latch placement, locking capability, and climbable conditions when a fence encloses a private swimming pool.

• Floodplain and Coastal Review: Development in an identified flood-hazard area and fence-related work involving excavation, fill, grading, a watercourse obstruction, or a designated wetland.

• Maintenance and Utility Safety: Unsafe or deteriorated fencing, inoperable safeguards, graffiti, drainage obstruction, and excavation begun without the Mississippi 811 notice and positive-response steps required by state law.

USING THIS INFORMATION

This page provides general orientation on how residential fence rules are structured and applied within City of D’Iberville, based on the referenced published materials as of July 2026.

In addition to local fence rules, certain Mississippi laws apply statewide. See Statewide fence laws in Mississippi.

It is not legal advice and does not replace official ordinances, permits, zoning approvals, zoning certifications, development approvals, locally adopted building codes, surveys, or professional guidance. Rules and interpretations may change, and application may vary based on zoning district, site conditions, easements, rights-of-way, floodplain status, stormwater requirements, drainage conditions, historic district status, design-review status, rural or agricultural context, livestock or party-fence context, local building-code administration, adopted-code status, opt-out status, pool-barrier use, Mississippi 811 utility-safety requirements, coastal wetlands conditions, and private restrictions such as HOA covenants, deed restrictions, private agreements, or conservation easements. Before purchasing materials or beginning construction, confirm current requirements and any site-specific limitations with the City of D’Iberville Building Department and the Department of Planning & Zoning and Development and any applicable private agreements. If this page conflicts with official ordinances, published guidance, or direction from City of D’Iberville staff, the official sources control. For legal advice or legal interpretation, consult a licensed attorney.