FENCE RULES – BAY MINETTE (CITY), ALABAMA
OVERVIEW
Residential fences are permitted on private property within City of Bay Minette, subject to local regulations.
For properties located outside City of Bay Minette municipal limits, Baldwin County regulates fences in unincorporated areas.
The principal residential fence standards appear in the City of Bay Minette Zoning Ordinance, with additional building-code, floodplain, animal-enclosure, street-excavation, and subdivision-easement provisions in the Bay Minette Code of Ordinances and City of Bay Minette Subdivision Regulations.
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 City of Bay Minette Zoning Ordinance, Ordinance 992 as amended through Ordinance 1057; Bay Minette Code of Ordinances; Ordinance 997; 2018 International Residential Code; City of Bay Minette Supplemental Code for Residential Structures; City of Bay Minette Subdivision Regulations; Planning & Development Services materials; and Alabama 811 materials as of July 2026.
GOVERNANCE
The City of Bay Minette regulates residential fences principally through Zoning Ordinance §7.16.05. The City does not use one stand-alone fence code for every condition; related requirements also appear in the corner-visibility, covenant, floodplain, animal-control, street-excavation, and subdivision provisions.
The Planning & Development Services Department administers Planning and Zoning, Building Permits, and Code Enforcement. The City Planner administers zoning fence standards, and the Building Official administers adopted building codes and floodplain-development review.
Ordinance 997 and Code §5-1 adopt the 2018 International Residential Code and the City of Bay Minette Supplemental Code for Residential Structures for applicable one- and two-family residential work. The City has a Local Adopted Code / Locally Administered residential-code posture.
The City Clerk administers the separate excavation-permit process under Chapter 21. The Building Official administers the current floodplain-development permit under Chapter 11.
PERMIT AND APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS
• Building-Code Permit Context: The City of Bay Minette administers the 2018 International Residential Code. That code includes a building-permit exemption for fences not over 7 feet high. The City of Bay Minette does not publish a separate local fence permit requirement for standard residential fences.
• Exemption Framing: The 7-foot figure is a building-permit exemption, not the zoning maximum for every yard. The Zoning Ordinance separately limits front-yard fences to 4 feet and side- and rear-yard fences to 7 feet.
• Zoning Compliance: Building-code permit exemptions and local residential-code administration are separate from zoning, setback, subdivision, floodplain, coastal-area and wetlands, stormwater, drainage, historic, right-of-way, easement, utility, and plat requirements. Confirm any applicable zoning conditions, setbacks, plat requirements, and site-specific limitations with the City of Bay Minette Planning & Development Services Department before construction.
• General Excavation Permit Context: Chapter 21 requires a City permit before excavating, cutting into, taking up, or undermining private or public real property. The code does not identify ordinary fence-post holes by name, so this published process is treated as excavation context rather than as a separate universal fence permit.
• Floodplain Development Permit: Chapter 11 requires a floodplain development permit before development begins in identified special flood hazard areas and community flood hazard areas. The ordinance also identifies a fence in or along a watercourse as a possible obstruction when it may alter water flow or collect debris.
FENCE PLACEMENT RULES
• Property Lines: Fences, walls, and screening must be located within the property lines unless adjacent property owners provide express written permission. The property owner is responsible for determining lot-line locations, and the City does not mediate property-line disputes.
• Roadway and Sidewalk Clearance: Fences may not be located within 5 feet of the edge of pavement or other roadway surfacing, or a public sidewalk.
• Drainage and Utility Easements: For property governed by the Subdivision Regulations, no permanent, temporary, or portable fence or structure may be placed within or extend into a drainage or utility easement.
• Stream Access Easements: Where the subdivision standards require an easement along a USGS blue-line stream, the easement must be 15 feet wide or another width recommended by the City Engineer, and no fence or other access barrier may be installed within it.
• Floodway and Watercourse Conditions: Chapter 11 treats a fence in, along, across, or projecting into a watercourse as an obstruction when it may alter, impede, retard, or redirect water flow or collect debris. Floodway encroachments are prohibited unless the ordinance’s technical approval conditions are satisfied.
• Utility Safety: Alabama law requires notice through Alabama 811 before excavation where the Alabama Underground Damage Prevention Law applies. For covered fence work involving digging, drilling, augering, boring, grading, or other excavation, notice must be given at least two but not more than 10 full working days before excavation begins, not counting the day of notification. Alabama 811 is a notification center and does not mark lines itself; member facility operators 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
• Front Yard: The maximum fence or screening height in a front yard is 4 feet.
• Side and Rear Yards: The maximum fence or screening height in a side or rear yard is 7 feet.
• Corner Visibility: In any district requiring a front-yard setback, no fence, wall, shrubbery, sign, marquee, or other vision obstruction between 3½ feet and 15 feet above street level may be placed within 20 feet of the intersection of the right-of-way lines of two streets or railroads, or of a street and railroad.
• Height by Berming: A fence may not be bermed for the purpose of increasing the allowable height.
MATERIAL AND CONSTRUCTION LIMITS
• Prohibited Panel and Sheet Materials: Corrugated or sheet metal; cloth, tarps, canvas, or similar material; corrugated or plastic sheeting; and plywood or similar material are prohibited for wall or fence installations.
• Prohibited Wire and Electrical Fencing: Barbed wire, single-strand wire, wire mesh or grid, and chicken wire are prohibited along the perimeter or boundary of a property, except for agricultural uses. Fencing charged with or designed to be charged with electrical current is prohibited.
• Other Improvised Materials: Materials not manufactured for or typically used for fences, walls, or screening are prohibited.
• Maintenance: Fencing and screening must be kept in good condition and appearance. The City Planner may require improperly maintained fencing or screening to be removed, replaced, repaired, or corrected.
• Finished Side, Opacity, and Color: The zoning ordinance does not specify a finished-side orientation, opacity standard, or color requirement for standard residential fences.
• Animal Enclosures: Animal-control rules separately require a vicious animal to be securely confined in an enclosure from which it cannot escape. When such an animal runs freely within a wall, fence, or enclosure, approved warning notices must be posted at every entrance. These animal-control provisions do not replace the zoning height and material limits.
PRIVATE RESTRICTIONS
HOA standards, recorded covenants, deed restrictions, subdivision restrictions, private easements, and other private agreements operate independently from City requirements and may be more restrictive.
Zoning Ordinance §7.17 states that more stringent deed restrictions or restrictive covenants apply. Property owners and authorized agents are responsible for confirming those restrictions before submitting an application to the Planning & Development Services Department.
REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT CONTEXT
Fence issues are typically reviewed during permit or approval review when required, and through complaint-based code enforcement. Examples include:
• Zoning Fence Standards: Front-yard height, side- and rear-yard height, property-line placement, the 5-foot roadway and sidewalk clearance, prohibited materials, electrical fencing, and berming may be reviewed under Zoning Ordinance §7.16.05.
• Building-Code Context: The City locally administers the 2018 International Residential Code, which exempts fences not over 7 feet high from building-permit requirements. The City does not publish a separate local fence permit requirement for standard residential fences.
• Corner Visibility: Fence and wall obstructions may be reviewed under the 20-foot corner-visibility area and the 3½-foot to 15-foot vision-obstruction range.
• Plat, Easement, and Drainage Review: Fence placement may be reviewed against recorded property lines, subdivision plats, drainage and utility easements, stream-access easements, and watercourse conditions.
• Floodplain Review: Fence-related development or a fence that functions as an obstruction in a watercourse may be reviewed under Chapter 11 in identified flood hazard areas and floodways.
• Excavation Context: Fence-related excavation may be reviewed under the separate Chapter 21 excavation-permit process when the work falls within that ordinance.
• Maintenance: Fencing and screening that is not kept in good condition and appearance may be reviewed by the City Planner.
• Animal-Enclosure Review: Enclosures used for vicious animals may be reviewed for secure confinement and required warning notices at entrances.
• Utility Safety: Covered fence excavation is subject to Alabama 811 notice and positive-response requirements.
USING THIS INFORMATION
This page provides general orientation on how residential fence rules are structured and applied within City of Bay Minette, based on the referenced published materials as of July 2026.
In addition to local fence rules, certain Alabama laws apply statewide. See Statewide Fence Laws in Alabama.
It is not legal advice and does not replace official ordinances, permits, zoning approvals, zoning certifications, development approvals, locally adopted or otherwise applicable residential 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, coastal-area or wetlands conditions, rural or agricultural context, livestock, lawful-fence or partition-fence context, local residential-code administration, adopted-code status, county or contracted administration, pool-barrier use, Alabama 811 utility-safety requirements, overhead high-voltage 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 Bay Minette Planning & Development Services Department and any applicable private agreements. If this page conflicts with official ordinances, published guidance, or direction from City of Bay Minette staff, the official sources control. For legal advice or legal interpretation, consult a licensed attorney.