FENCE RULES – PASCAGOULA (CITY), MISSISSIPPI

OVERVIEW

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

Local fence requirements for the City of Pascagoula appear primarily in the City of Pascagoula Unified Development Ordinance, the City of Pascagoula Code of Ordinances, the locally adopted 2018 International Building Code and 2018 International Residential Code, the City Building Permit Application, historic-preservation provisions, the Floodplain Ordinance, and the Storm Water Ordinance. The City does not publish a single standalone residential fence code; these requirements operate together.

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 Pascagoula Unified Development Ordinance with amendments through September 21, 2023, City of Pascagoula Code of Ordinances, Supplement No. 42, June 2026, City of Pascagoula Planning, Building and Code Enforcement materials, City of Pascagoula Building Permit Application, Floodplain Ordinance No. 1-2009, Storm Water Ordinance No. 2-2012, Mississippi Department of Marine Resources coastal-wetlands permitting materials, and Mississippi Damage Prevention Law / Mississippi 811 as of July 2026.

GOVERNANCE

The City of Pascagoula administers fence-related zoning, development, permit, inspection, floodplain, and code-enforcement functions through the Planning, Building and Code Enforcement Department and the Building Official. The Unified Development Ordinance supplies the principal location, height, visibility, material, appearance, drainage, and maintenance standards for fences and walls.

The City locally administers the 2018 International Building Code and the 2018 International Residential Code through Chapter 14 of the Code of Ordinances. The City permit provisions and fence-marked Building Permit Application establish the local administrative permit process for fence work. The Mississippi State Fire Marshal's limited statutory jurisdiction is separate from the City's ordinary one- and two-family residential fence-permit system.

The City Manager reviews requests to place fences in utility easements and requests for security-plan exceptions. The Historic Preservation Commission reviews and recommends certificates of appropriateness for fences affecting designated historic properties, with approval by the City Council. The Building Official also administers the local Floodplain Ordinance.

PERMIT AND APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS

• Standard Fence Permit: The City of Pascagoula requires a permit before constructing a new fence or wall or undertaking substantial reconstruction or replacement. The City Building Permit Application expressly lists FENCE as a permit work type, and Chapter 14 requires a permit before work governed by that chapter or the adopted technical codes begins. Minor repairs or alterations costing less than $500 are exempt under Section 14-41.

• Application Materials: The development-permit application requires a properly completed form and applicable project information. For fence work, the relevant materials include a plot plan showing existing buildings, the proposed fence location, and setbacks, together with construction details sufficient to describe the work. The Building Official may require scaled drawings or a boundary survey when necessary.

• Locally Adopted Building Codes: The City locally administers the 2018 International Building Code and 2018 International Residential Code. Temporary construction fences must comply with the adopted Building Code, and a fence used as a swimming-pool barrier is subject to the Building Code barrier standards in addition to the zoning rules below.

• Historic Properties: Within a designated historic preservation district, on a historic landmark site, or for a historic landmark, a fence may not be created, altered, restored, moved, cut, or demolished until a Certificate of Appropriateness has been reviewed by the Historic Preservation Commission and approved by the City Council. Ordinary maintenance or repair that does not change the fence's design, material, color, or appearance does not require that certificate.

• Floodplain Development Permit: A development permit is required before development activity begins in a mapped flood-prone area. The Floodplain Ordinance defines an obstruction to include a fence or wall that may alter, impede, retard, or redirect water flow or collect debris in a watercourse. Development located in or adjacent to a stream may require a no-rise certification before permit issuance or construction.

• Stormwater and Land Disturbance: Stormwater permitting is triggered by the amount and context of land disturbed, not by fence status alone. Disturbance of 0 to 0.9 acre requires no stormwater permit or Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan unless it is part of a larger common plan or nuisance conditions arise. Disturbance of 1 to 5 acres requires permits from the City and the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality. Disturbance above 5 acres also requires a Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan and the applicable state construction notice.

• Coastal Wetlands: Where a proposed fence project involves coastal wetlands, marshes, tidal areas, waterways, submerged lands, fill, clearing, or related regulated work, approval from the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources may be required. The City development-permit application requires an applicable Department of Marine Resources permit before the City permit is issued. This is a site-specific coastal review layer, not an ordinary permit requirement for an established upland fence.

FENCE PLACEMENT RULES

• Property Lines and Yard Placement: Fences and walls may be placed along property perimeters and within front, side, and rear yards. 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.

• Downtown District: Within the Downtown (DT) District, a fence or wall may not be located along the front lot line or within a front yard.

• Street Rights-of-Way: A fence or wall located within 15 feet of a street right-of-way must remain outside the public right-of-way. The fence must also satisfy the street-facing design and material standards described below.

• Utility Easements: Fences are prohibited within utility easements unless the City Manager approves the placement after finding that it will not impede the easement's purpose or function. The City is not responsible for damage to or replacement of a fence removed for utility-easement access.

• Drainage: A fence may not be installed in a manner that blocks or diverts natural drainage flow onto or off another property. Stormwater rules also prohibit structures, excavation, grading, or fill that alters surface-water flow in a manner that damages adjacent property or increases blockage of the City drainage system.

• Fire Hydrants: Fences and walls may not be located where they prevent the immediate view of or access to a fire hydrant or other fire-fighting water-supply device.

• Buffers and Vegetation: A fence or wall within a perimeter buffer or riparian buffer must be installed without disturbing or damaging the required existing vegetation or installed plant material.

• Floodplain and Watercourses: Fence work in a mapped flood-prone area is subject to floodplain review before development begins. A fence located in, along, across, or projecting into a watercourse may be treated as an obstruction when it affects floodwater flow or collects debris.

• 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

• Front-Yard Maximum: A fence or wall may not exceed 3 feet within a front yard. Height is measured from natural grade.

• Corner-Lot Street Side: On a corner lot, a fence or wall may not exceed 3 feet within the part of a side yard located within 15 feet of a street right-of-way.

• Other Side and Rear Yards: A fence or wall may not exceed 8 feet within any other side yard or rear yard.

• Fences on Walls or Berms: When a fence is constructed on top of a wall or berm, the combined height of the fence and the wall or berm may not exceed the maximum height that would apply to the fence or wall alone.

• Driveway Sight Triangles: A 15-foot by 15-foot sight triangle is established on each side of a driveway where it intersects a street. Within that triangle, no fence, wall, hedge, shrub, earthwork, sign, structure, or planting may occupy the vertical space between 3 feet and 7 feet above the adjacent roadway or driveway grade.

• Roadway Intersection Visibility: Sight triangles at roadway intersections are established under the current Mississippi Department of Transportation roadway-design standards. Within an applicable roadway sight triangle, the same 3-foot to 7-foot clear-visibility zone applies to fences, walls, hedges, earthworks, and other obstructions.

• Special Height Exceptions: Required screening fences may reach 10 feet. Customary recreational fencing is exempt from the ordinary height limits. A property owner or tenant may also submit a security plan requesting a taller fence or wall; approval is discretionary under the ordinance and does not establish a general residential height allowance.

MATERIAL AND CONSTRUCTION LIMITS

• Customary Materials: Allowed customary materials include treated wood posts and planks, rot-resistant wood, wrought iron, decorative metal, chain link, brick, stone, masonry, and products designed to resemble those materials.

• Chain Link by District: Chain-link fencing is prohibited in the Downtown (DT), Gateway Commercial (GC), and Waterfront Mixed-Use (WMU) zoning districts.

• Street-Adjacent Materials: A fence or wall located within 15 feet of a street right-of-way must use brick, stone, concrete covered with stucco or a similar finish, vinyl, or vertical wooden boards. It must be of a uniform style and include breaks, offsets, access points, or other design details at least every 200 feet.

• Finished Side and Consistency: When one side of a fence appears more finished than the other, the finished side must face outward toward the perimeter of the lot. Fence or wall segments along a single lot side must use a uniform style and colors compatible with the other fence segments and associated buildings.

• Landscape Screening Near Arterial Streets: In a single-family residential zoning district, a chain-link fence or a fence or wall exceeding 4 feet and located within 15 feet of a principal or minor arterial street right-of-way must be supplemented with landscape screening. The ordinance requires one evergreen shrub for every 5 linear feet on the street-facing side; one understory or ornamental tree may replace every three required shrubs.

• Barbed, Concertina, and Electric Fencing: Barbed wire, concertina wire, and aboveground electrified fences are prohibited unless associated with agricultural activity or approved through a security plan. Underground electric fences designed to control domestic animals are allowed.

• Prohibited Waste Materials: Fences and walls may not be made from debris, junk, rolled plastic, sheet metal, plywood, or other waste materials unless the material has been commercially recycled and reprocessed as a building material resembling new material.

• Pool Barriers: An outdoor swimming pool must be enclosed by a fence or wall complying with the swimming-pool barrier standards in the locally adopted Building Code. Pool-barrier review is separate from the ordinary yard-fence height, placement, material, historic, floodplain, and utility requirements.

• Maintenance: Fences, walls, and associated landscaping must be maintained in good repair and in a safe and attractive condition, including replacement or repair of missing, decayed, or broken structural and decorative elements.

PRIVATE RESTRICTIONS

Private restrictions operate independently from the City of Pascagoula fence rules. These may include HOA covenants, subdivision restrictions, deed restrictions, private easements, architectural-review covenants, utility or drainage easements, conservation easements, agricultural agreements, private boundary agreements, and other recorded restrictions.

A private restriction may impose a lower height, different material, additional setback, design-review requirement, or other limitation even when a fence complies with the Unified Development Ordinance and City permit requirements. Private restrictions are not treated as City approvals unless the City's published materials expressly make them part of the applicable review.

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: Whether a new fence, wall, substantial reconstruction, or replacement has the required City permit and whether the application includes the applicable plot plan, location, setback, and construction information.

• Height and Visibility: Whether the fence exceeds the 3-foot front-yard or corner-side limit, the 8-foot other side- and rear-yard limit, or obstructs the protected 3-foot to 7-foot sight-triangle space.

• Location and Access: Whether the fence enters a public right-of-way or utility easement, blocks natural drainage, interferes with a fire hydrant, damages buffer vegetation, or conflicts with watercourse and flood-flow requirements.

• Materials and Appearance: Whether the fence uses an allowed material, complies with district-specific chain-link restrictions and street-adjacent material rules, places the finished side outward, provides required arterial-street landscaping, and avoids prohibited waste, barbed, concertina, or aboveground electric materials.

• Historic Review: Whether the property is within a designated historic preservation district or is a historic landmark or landmark site and therefore requires a Certificate of Appropriateness for the fence work.

• Floodplain, Stormwater, and Coastal Review: Whether the project is in a mapped flood-prone area, affects a stream or watercourse, disturbs enough land to trigger stormwater permitting, or involves coastal wetlands or other work requiring Mississippi Department of Marine Resources approval.

• Pool-Barrier Use: Whether the fence serves as a swimming-pool barrier and complies with the locally adopted Building Code in addition to the City's zoning and site requirements.

• Private Restrictions: Whether HOA covenants, deed restrictions, subdivision controls, easements, or other private agreements impose additional limitations.

• Utility Safety: Whether the project involves digging, drilling, augering, boring, grading, or other excavation requiring Mississippi 811 notice and positive-response review.

USING THIS INFORMATION

This page provides general orientation on how residential fence rules are structured and applied within City of Pascagoula, 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 Pascagoula Planning, Building and Code Enforcement Department and any applicable private agreements. If this page conflicts with official ordinances, published guidance, or direction from City of Pascagoula staff, the official sources control. For legal advice or legal interpretation, consult a licensed attorney.