FENCE RULES – STEPHENVILLE (CITY), TEXAS

OVERVIEW

This page addresses residential fence installation and replacement within the City of Stephenville’s municipal corporate territory in Erath County, Texas.

Stephenville’s fence requirements depend heavily on the site. The adopted residential code exempts ordinary fences not over seven feet from the building permit; taller fences require one. The city does not publish a general front-, side- or rear-yard fence-height schedule or a universal numeric property-line fence setback. Corner visibility, recorded easements, drainage and pool protection can still control the design. Wood, vinyl/PVC and ordinary yard chain-link are not specifically approved or prohibited by a general material rule. Utility easements carry separate restrictions, and a retaining wall or livestock enclosure can change both the construction requirements and the approvals needed. Updated November 2026.

Quick question	Stephenville answer
Permit or approval	Ordinary residential building permit: exempt for fences not over seven feet; required above seven feet. Easement, floodplain, pool and retaining-wall approvals are separate.
Typical fence height	No general front-, side- or rear-yard fence maximum is published. Corner-yard visibility limits, recorded sight easements and pool barriers have specific measurements.
Placement & property lines	No universal numeric fence setback from a property line is published. Establish the boundary and check rights-of-way, recorded easements, corner visibility and drainage.
Common fence materials	Wood: not specifically addressed by a general material rule. Vinyl/PVC: not specifically addressed. Chain-link: no general yard rule; expressly recognized for certain drainage-channel fences. Utility-easement restrictions still apply.
Important local conditions	Fence rules may be further affected by corner lots and recorded visibility easements, utility and drainage corridors, floodplain work, private pools, retaining walls, planned-development conditions and livestock or agricultural use.
Official local resource	City of Stephenville Development Services

The table above is for quick reference; the corresponding sections below explain additional fence-rule details. Before purchasing materials or beginning construction, read the sections that apply to the property, review the linked official sources, and confirm site-specific questions with Development Services or the responsible office identified for that issue.

GOVERNANCE

The Stephenville City Council adopts municipal ordinances for this home-rule city. Fence-related provisions are distributed across the Land Use and Zoning Code, including building regulations, zoning, floodplain management and subdivision rules, and the Code of Ordinances, including animal control and nuisance provisions. Chapter 155 incorporates the Engineering Standards Manual into subdivision regulations.

• Administration: Development Services includes the Building Official, Permitting, Planning and Zoning, and Code Enforcement. The Building Official handles building-code and permit questions; Planning and Zoning handles district and site-plan conditions. City Engineer/Public Works responsibilities include utility-easement fence approval and drainage. The Floodplain Administrator, appointed by the City Administrator, administers floodplain development review. The Fire Marshal administers applicable fire-code requirements. Animal Control handles livestock permits and animal-enclosure requirements.

• Adopted codes: Sections 150.01–150.09 adopt the 2015 International Building, Residential, Mechanical, Plumbing, Fuel Gas, Energy Conservation, Fire and Existing Building Codes, and the 2014 National Electrical Code, including the stated appendices. The 2015 IRC adoption is under Ordinance 2019-O-01. The municipal pool framework also includes Local Government Code §214.103 and its ISPSC baseline as it existed May 1, 2019.

• Property-specific controls: Recorded plats, easements, approved planned developments and applicable site-plan conditions may continue to affect an existing home. Confirm any applicable district or site-plan approval with Planning and Zoning. Establish the property boundary, building setback lines and easements separately for the proposed fence location.

PERMIT AND APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS

• Ordinary new or replacement fences: Under the adopted 2015 IRC R105.2(2), fences not over seven feet are exempt from a building permit; taller fences require one. The City’s published residential-code amendments, item (6), delete the accessory-structure and sidewalk/driveway exemptions, not the fence exemption. The incorporated NCTCOG amendments leave it unchanged. Exemption does not waive zoning, easement, floodplain or pool requirements. Where a permit is required, submit the applicable application and plans and pay fees before issuance under §150.18.

• Utility-easement approval: Under the Engineering Standards Manual, Part II, Utility Easements §3.1, fences in utility easements require written City approval, with the type approved by the City Engineer. Privacy fences are prohibited there. The manual also prohibits structures, buildings, walls and pools in utility easements. The separate ordinance wording on water/sewer easements is discussed under placement; obtain City clearance for the actual easement before proceeding.

• Floodplain development permit: Chapter 152 requires a development permit for covered development in the city’s Special Flood Hazard Areas. “Development” includes man-made changes such as filling, grading, excavation and storage. A fence project involving such work must be evaluated by the Floodplain Administrator. Applications include duplicate scaled plans showing the project’s location, dimensions, elevations, landscape changes and watercourse alterations; additional engineering documentation depends on the location and work. Obtain the permit before development. The city’s application provides for compliance review and expiration if work does not begin within six months. For a property in Zone B or shaded X, confirm the mapped area and proposed work with the Floodplain Administrator; Chapter 152’s permit scope is the city’s Special Flood Hazard Areas.

• Floodway and unmapped-floodway engineering: Within a designated regulatory floodway, §152.54 generally prohibits encroachments unless engineering demonstrates no increase in base-flood elevation. Its stated 44 CFR §65.12 approval route permits an increase subject to that process. In A1–30 or AE areas without a designated floodway, cumulative development generally may not increase base-flood elevation more than 1 foot, unless the required §65.12 process is completed. Chapter 152 provides Council appeal/variance review, subject to its conditions, minimum necessary relief and applicable floodway safeguards.

• Pool permit: The city requires a swimming-pool permit. The residential application calls for a site plan/survey, pool-construction details if available, protection-fence information, electrical/plumbing contractor acknowledgments and discharge information. Barrier design and lawful alternatives are detailed below.

• Retaining walls: A privately owned retaining wall 4 feet tall or higher requires a Texas-licensed professional engineer’s design and signed/sealed plans submitted for City review. Earth terracing supporting a structure or vehicle load, or exceeding 4 feet measured from the bottom of footing to the top of wall, requires a building permit under §155.6.16. Engineering at exactly 4 feet and the over-4-foot permit threshold are distinct. Other applicable permits can still apply.

• Existing plats and development work: Chapter 155 contains platting and development requirements, including work on unplatted land. No development plat is required where an approved final plat, minor plat, replat or amending plat already exists. Confirm project-specific development requirements for the existing lot. Where a subdivision retaining-wall grading/design plan is changed, the ordinance requires sealed plans for the entire subdivision and City Administrator approval. The City Administrator may waive a single-home preliminary drainage plan where the property has no drainage problem.

• Livestock permits: Section 90.57 requires an Animal Control permit following inspection of the enclosure; it is valid for one year, with Council-set fees. School and 4-H projects remain subject to the permit and applicable standards, although proof of participation may support a fee waiver for the project’s duration. The animal-specific enclosure conditions and agricultural protections below must be considered together.

FENCE PLACEMENT RULES

• Boundaries and rights-of-way: Stephenville does not publish a universal numeric property-line setback for ordinary residential fences. Establish the legal boundary with the survey and recorded documents before placing posts. Identify the public right-of-way, utility or drainage easements, building lines and recorded visibility areas separately from fences, hedges, mowing lines, curbs, pavement edges and GIS lines. Resolve title, boundary ownership and cost-sharing through the applicable property documents and agreements.

• Utility easements and access: Use the actual plat or separate recorded instrument to establish the easement’s location and limits. The manual’s written-approval and fence-type requirements apply within the utility easement; its livestock-fence allowance is case-by-case for nonresidential settings. Section 155.6.08 preserves City/utility access and removal rights for interfering fences and other improvements. Property owners maintain the easement, and the City need not replace improvements it moves under the stated provision.

• Water/sewer easements and alley fences: Section 155.6.06M addresses driveways connecting to alleys in commercial or industrial areas: optional rear-lot-line fences may extend to within 5 feet of the point where the driveway would intersect alley pavement at 90 degrees. The paragraph also says no fences over water/sewer easements and allows consideration of fences that pass stormwater without collecting debris. Its prohibition and the manual’s written-approval route differ; obtain City clearance for the specific easement before proceeding.

• Drainage and flumes: Water Code §11.086 and city drainage provisions prohibit diverting, concentrating or impounding runoff so as to damage another property. Keep lawful drainage routes and maintenance access open. At the manual’s specified overflow flume, fences must remain behind the flume curb line. Owners must maintain stormwater facilities on their property. Residential retaining walls must preserve a drainage easement’s width and access when placed within or adjacent to it. Use the actual recorded easement to establish the site’s limits.

• Recorded floodplain easements: Section 155.6.08E’s dedication condition requires written City approval for construction within the floodplain easement, detailed engineering showing no resulting flooding or obstruction of natural flow, and participation of all affected owners in the request. Natural channels must remain open; owners keep them clear of debris and silt, with City inspection/access rights. The Floodplain Administrator determines the documentation applicable to the fence project.

• Retaining-wall easements and loads: Privately owned retaining walls must be on private property within a private retaining-wall easement. A wall traversing three or more subdivision lots must use an HOA/POA easement shown on the final plat. For the qualifying plat-stage wall over 6 feet, §155.6.08F requires an easement at least 10 feet or the wall width, whichever is greater, plus the engineered no-building zone. That zone extends on both sides where additional load would exceed wall capacity; fences or foundations adding such load cannot be placed there. Confirm the retaining-wall easement and engineered no-building zone for the site.

• Land disturbance: The manual distinguishes disturbance of 1 acre or more, including smaller work in a common plan of at least 1 acre, from its local erosion-control requirement for all construction sites. Additional sediment, materials and waste controls apply at the stated 1-acre threshold. Confirm the controls applicable to the actual disturbance and common-plan status.

• Joint or attached fences: Agriculture Code §§143.121–143.123 restrict removal of a jointly owned dividing fence or a fence attached to one another owns or controls unless there is mutual consent or the statutory process is followed. A person with an interest in an attached fence may physically withdraw their fence from the other fence after six months’ written notice to the other owner or authorized agent, attorney or lessee. An owner whose fence is wholly on their own land may require disconnection of an attached fence after the specified six-month written notice. Apply these notice provisions to the fence’s actual ownership and attachment; address cost-sharing in the applicable agreement.

• Pipeline easements: Health and Safety Code §§756.121–756.123 separately govern construction, repair, replacement or maintenance on, across, over or under a pipeline easement/right-of-way, and construction near a pipeline that can affect its risk. Notify the operator before covered work. Covered work may proceed through the operator’s no-increased-risk determination, payment before proceeding of reasonable necessary documented protective-work costs where risk increases, or work under an existing written agreement. A contrary written agreement can affect applicability. Obtain the operator’s required notice response and follow the easement’s site-specific construction conditions in addition to arranging an 811 locate.

• Texas811 before digging: Request a locate through Texas811 before post digging. Utilities Code Chapter 251 covers specified mechanized/powered excavation at 16 or more inches; ordinary notice is no earlier than the 14th day and no later than the 48th hour before excavation, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays. Give an accurate excavation area, excavator/contact and response information, planned start/completion details and any intended explosives use. Follow ticket/start instructions, check responses and site markings, resolve missing or conflicting information, protect marks and dig carefully. Private/on-site facilities may need separate identification; applicable agricultural and owner/operator exemptions have specific conditions. The Railroad Commission’s separate pipeline rules can cover manual digging deeper than 16 inches. Their default locate-ticket life is 14 working days. A longer agreement must be written, signed and dated by both the excavator and operator; retain a copy. Refresh an expired ticket for unfinished work, limited to the area still to be excavated. Retain required locate tickets and positive-response records for at least four years; notification-center retention is an acceptable method for locate tickets. If a facility is damaged, report immediately; do not backfill before the required report and repair-scheduling agreement, and control ignition sources where flammable material presents a hazard. Obtain permits, easement clearance, pipeline construction notice and private approvals independently of the locate.

FENCE HEIGHT AND VISIBILITY RULES

• Ordinary yard fences: Stephenville does not publish a general front-, side- or rear-yard fence-height maximum or a general combined fence-and-retaining-wall measurement formula. The specific corner-yard restriction, recorded visibility areas, pool rules, retaining-wall standards, easements and applicable private or planned-development conditions remain controlling.

• Corner-yard zoning restriction: Section 154.10B(5)(c) prohibits a wall, fence, sign, other structure or plant growth exceeding 2 feet above curb level within 15 feet of the intersection of property lines on a corner lot where a front or side yard is required. Measure from the property-line intersection and curb level.

• Recorded street-corner visibility easements: Section 155.6.08C requires 20 × 20-foot easements for residential zoning districts, including single-family, multifamily, mobile/modular-home and corresponding residential planned-development districts. Nonresidential commercial, industrial, utility and corresponding PD districts use 45 × 45 feet. Figure 9 shows the legs along property/ROW lines, separately from building lines and the back of curb. Use the recorded easement and the property’s actual zoning district, including where a residential use lawfully occupies a nonresidential district.

• Driveways and alley corners: Main driveways in multifamily and nonresidential districts have 15 × 15-foot sight easements. At an alley/street intersection, corner lots in all zoning districts have 15 × 15-foot easements.

• Clear vertical band and duration: Within the platted sight easement, the required dedication prohibits vision obstruction from 24 inches through 10 feet above the top of curb, expressly including fences, buildings, plants, vehicles and other objects. The easement continues until vacated by City Council ordinance and the property replatted. Commercially zoned lots have a narrow exception for one single-pole sign no more than 14 inches in diameter with at least 10 feet of ground clearance. The exception is limited to that sign. These recorded-easement conditions operate separately from the 2-foot/15-foot zoning corner-yard rule.

MATERIAL AND CONSTRUCTION LIMITS

• Wood, vinyl/PVC and chain-link: No general city-specific rule expressly approves or prohibits ordinary wood or vinyl/PVC yard fencing, or ordinary yard chain-link. No general barbed-wire, razor-wire, electric-fence, finished-side, post/cap or opacity specification is published for standard residential fences. Confirm the proposed material for the site with Development Services. The privacy-fence prohibition within utility easements and other site-specific rules remain applicable.

• Channel fences and maintenance: For the specified concrete/gabion-lined drainage channel, the manual allows the City to require a 6-foot chain-link fence or other approved fence on both sides, with maintenance access gates. This requirement applies to the specified channel setting. Keep fences in safe repair: Chapter 93 addresses injurious, offensive or unsanitary premises and rubbish, and city enforcement guidance identifies dilapidated fences as a nuisance concern.

• Retaining-wall construction: Section 155.6.16 requires private maintenance and compliance with the approved grading plan and applicable building code. A wall section may not exceed 4 feet; taller retaining-wall systems must be terraced with at least 4 feet of flat ground between faces for each 4-foot section, sloped no more than 2% for drainage. The engineering and permit thresholds described above apply separately. Fence construction must stay within the engineered wall-load limits and applicable no-build zone.

• Private-home pool classification: For the 2018 ISPSC baseline, a residential pool serves a household and its guests, accessory to a detached one- or two-family dwelling or qualifying townhouse no more than three stories high. Common, association, condominium and public pools have distinct classifications and applicable requirements. Confirm the pool’s use and classification when planning its barrier; Health and Safety Code Chapter 757 governs its specified multiunit/association settings.

• Pool barrier height and gaps: Under ISPSC §305, an outdoor pool/spa or indoor swimming pool ordinarily needs a compliant barrier unless a stated alternative applies. The barrier top must be at least 48 inches above outside grade around its perimeter and for 3 feet horizontally outside. Bottom gaps may not exceed 2 inches over nonsolid ground such as grass/gravel or 4 inches over a solid surface; a barrier mounted atop a pool/spa structure has a maximum 4-inch gap to that structure. Openings must not pass a 4-inch sphere. A permanent barrier cannot be removed, lifted or relocated without a tool; solid surfaces cannot provide handholds/footholds apart from normal construction tolerances and tooled masonry joints.

• Pool fence spacing and clearances: If horizontal-member tops are less than 45 inches apart, place the members on the pool side and limit vertical spacing and decorative cutouts to 1¾ inches. At 45 inches or more, vertical spacing may be up to 4 inches, but cutouts remain limited to 1¾ inches. Chain-link openings, including openings reduced by slats fastened at top and bottom, may not exceed 1¾ inches. Diagonal openings are limited to 1¾ inches, with members no more than 45 degrees from vertical. Keep climbable permanent structures/equipment at least 36 inches outside the barrier and the pool-side barrier at least 20 inches from the water’s edge.

• Mesh pool fencing: Install according to manufacturer instructions, with bottom no more than 1 inch above the deck/surface/grade. It must not lift more than 4 inches, permit a 4-inch sphere beneath a panel, or leave more than 4 inches of solid-surface clearance. Section attachments must be at least 45 inches above grade with the required secure device. Hinged gates follow the gate rules; patio sleeves/post receptacles must be nonconductive. Mesh fencing must not be installed atop an onground residential pool.

• Pool gates and latches: Access gates must accommodate a lock. Pedestrian gates open outward away from the water, self-close and self-latch. Utility/service gates remain locked when unused. For double/multiple gates, secure at least one leaf and self-latch the adjacent leaf; openings within 18 inches of the latch release cannot exceed ½ inch. If the release is below 54 inches above grade, locate it on the pool side at least 3 inches below the gate top, with no opening over ½ inch within 18 inches of the release.

• Safety covers and building walls: A spa/hot tub with a lockable ASTM F1346 safety cover, or swimming pool with a powered ASTM F1346 safety cover, qualifies for §305.1’s stated barrier alternative. Where a dwelling/structure wall forms part of the barrier and doors or windows give direct access, §305.4 offers alternatives: listed/labeled UL 2017 water-hazard entrance alarms for doors and operable windows with sills below 48 inches above the indoor floor; a listed/labeled ASTM F1346 safety cover; or an approved means such as self-closing/self-latching doors providing equivalent protection. Alarm deactivation switches are at least 54 inches above the floor in ordinary units; accessible/Type A/Type B units use 48–54 inches. Use a cover meeting the applicable listing and certification conditions.

• Onground pool-wall alternative: An onground pool wall can serve as the barrier when its bottom is on grade, its top is at least 48 inches above grade around the perimeter, it meets §305.2 and the manufacturer allows that use. A barrier mounted on the wall must likewise reach 48 inches and satisfy the applicable wall/barrier rules. Access ladders/steps must be secured, locked or removed, unless enclosed by a compliant barrier; resulting openings cannot pass a 4-inch sphere. Install a top-mounted barrier according to manufacturer instructions.

• Natural pool-barrier alternatives: At a lake or other natural body of water, §305.6 permits the shoreline-side exception only where public shoreline access is not permitted and the required barriers extend to and beyond the water’s edge at least 18 inches. Natural topography that prevents direct access, such as mountains/rock formations, must be accepted by the governing body with protection equivalent to §§305.2–305.5. Obtain the required acceptance for the actual natural-barrier condition.

• Pet containment and dangerous dogs: Animal-control definitions require substantial fencing sufficient in strength and height to prevent escape, or proper restraint. Dogs/cats outside the owner’s building, fence or vehicle must be restrained. For a dog determined dangerous, the secure enclosure must prevent escape and entry by the public, including children, and be locked and marked as required. Under §90.44, within 5 days after learning the dog is dangerous, the owner must restrain it at all times on a leash in a person’s immediate control or in a secure enclosure. Provide the required enclosure proof to Animal Control under §90.45; the enclosure must be at least 100 feet from another residence or occupied building.

• Livestock at a residence: Subject to qualifying agricultural protections, §90.56 generally places enclosures for horses, cows/cattle, sheep, donkeys/burros, llamas, poultry and goats at least 200 feet from another residence or occupied building; swine require 500 feet. Horse, mule, donkey, burro or cow requires ½ acre (21,780 square feet) for each animal; goat, sheep or swine requires ¼ acre (10,890 square feet) each; poultry requires 100 square feet each. Provide adequate shelter and keep fences/gates in good repair and strong enough to contain the animals. A qualifying school/4-H sheep/goat project may use the stated 100-foot separation exception for no more than two sheep/goats combined during the project. Other exceptions require the prescribed application to the Council’s Public Health and Safety Committee.

• Agricultural fences and operations: For a rural residence with agricultural acreage, determine the actual agricultural use and applicable stock-law area and species. Agriculture Code §143.001’s cultivated-cleared-land fence standard is at least 5 feet and hog-resistant, subject to its adopted-stock-law qualification. Section 143.002 addresses more than 3 lineal miles of fence in the same general direction around cleared cultivated land and requires an unlocked gate at least 10 feet wide. Apply these agricultural standards and any sufficient-fence requirements to their specified land-use and stock-law conditions.

• Within-city agricultural protections: For a qualifying agricultural operation, Agriculture Code §251.0055 limits city requirements. The City must have clear and convincing evidence that a requirement is necessary to protect nearby residents or persons on nearby public property against a specified imminent danger, such as flooding, physical injury or loss of support, and that less restrictive means cannot address the purpose. The required health-officer/consultant report and Council resolution must support the requirement, which must also comply with the statute’s further protections for agricultural practices. Determine operation status, actual use and relevant requirement dates for the property.

• Agricultural exceptions and limits: Section 251.006 protects qualifying agricultural improvements, including fences designed for animal shelter, containment or feeding, or storage of feed, produce or agricultural equipment. Protection depends on whether construction was expressly prohibited by statute or a qualifying governmental requirement in effect when built; state and federal enforcement remains applicable. Section 251.0055(e) exempts a livestock-protection dog actively working on property controlled by the owner from the city restraint requirement it describes. Wildlife-management status may require the specified written management plan. Agricultural zoning or tax treatment alone does not establish these protections; confirm the actual operation and fence use before relying on them.

• Home antenna equipment: Under §154.74C(15), a ground-accessible radiating antenna portion needs adequate fencing or RF-exposure/burn-hazard warning signage. For large satellite receive-only antennas—greater than 1 meter in residential districts or 2 meters in nonresidential districts—the stated screening rule permits fencing or evergreen plants; an existing surrounding yard fence counts. Apply the screening condition to the stated antenna category.

PRIVATE RESTRICTIONS

Recorded deed restrictions, HOA/subdivision architectural rules, private easements, conservation restrictions and written boundary, maintenance or cost agreements may impose independent conditions, subject to Texas law. Obtain the actual instruments for the property. Resolve covenant compliance, ownership and cost allocation separately through the applicable instruments and agreements.

• Perimeter security fencing: Property Code §202.023 limits an association’s ability to prevent security measures, including perimeter fencing, but does not apply to Chapter 81/82 condominiums or Chapter 215 master mixed-use associations. An association may regulate fence type and prohibit obstruction of license areas, public/community sidewalks and drainage easements/areas. It may require a driveway gate at least 10 feet from the right-of-way where the driveway intersects a legally defined laned roadway, and may enforce a covenant prohibiting fencing ahead of the dwelling’s front-most building line. These are the association’s retained powers under the statute.

• 2025 maintenance and security exceptions: Notwithstanding §202.023(c), an owner may maintain perimeter or front-building-line fencing installed or constructed before September 1, 2025. The protection addresses maintenance of the qualifying existing fencing. Notwithstanding the front-building-line covenant provision, an association cannot prohibit the qualifying perimeter/front-line installation where the owner’s residential address is exempt from public disclosure or the owner supplies law-enforcement documentation of a need for enhanced security. Other retained fence-type, access and drainage controls remain applicable within their statutory limits.

• Protected water-feature enclosures: Property Code §202.022 protects a nonclimbable enclosure surrounding a pool, spa or other water feature, using transparent mesh or clear panels in metal frames, no more than 6 feet high, and conforming to state/local safety law. Associations may regulate appearance/colors within the statute but cannot prohibit the protected black transparent-mesh/metal-frame form. The 6-foot threshold defines the enclosure eligible for this statutory protection.

REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT CONTEXT

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

• City project review: Building Official permit determinations; utility-easement written approval; retaining-wall engineering and permits; pool permit and barrier design; and property-specific development or plat conditions.

• Visibility and access: The separate corner-yard and recorded sight-easement rules, fences interfering with City systems or easement access, and applicable alley or right-of-way conditions.

• Drainage and safety: Runoff obstruction, flume placement, floodplain development or floodway engineering, retaining-wall loads, pool gates/covers and deteriorated fences.

• Animals, agriculture and statutory duties: Livestock permits and enclosures, dangerous-dog containment, applicable agricultural-operation protections, and joint/attached-fence notice obligations. Utility-locate and pipeline construction duties remain separate from city approval.

Private association architectural review and private boundary, ownership or cost disputes are handled separately from municipal enforcement.

USING THIS INFORMATION

This page provides general orientation on how residential fence rules are structured and applied within the City of Stephenville, Texas. Updated November 2026.

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

It is not legal advice and does not replace official statutes, ordinances, orders, permits, certificates, development approvals, applicable building-code requirements, surveys, recorded documents or professional guidance. Rules and interpretations may change, and application may vary with municipal or unincorporated location, applicable extraterritorial authority, zoning or special-area status, code adoption and amendments, site conditions, subdivision or plat conditions, easements, rights-of-way, drainage and floodplain requirements, historic or design districts, pool use, agricultural operations and stock laws, fence ownership or attachment, coastal or public-access conditions, utility and pipeline excavation requirements, and private restrictions subject to Texas law. Before purchasing materials or beginning construction, confirm current requirements and site-specific limitations with Development Services and the responsible office for each applicable issue, and review applicable private agreements. If this page conflicts with controlling law, adopted regulations or official requirements, the controlling authorities govern. For legal advice or legal interpretation, consult a licensed attorney.