De Pere, WI Local Ordinances Guide

De Pere, Wisconsin may not be the biggest city in the state, but it has its own set of local rules that residents need to follow. With 93 tracked ordinances across 32 categories, there is more here than you might expect.

Parking Rules

Abandoned Vehicles: De Pere bars leaving a junked motor vehicle on any street or public property, and caps how long one can sit on private property in plain public view at three days under City Code section 78-5. A vehicle left unattended long enough to look abandoned is treated the same way, with the chief of police empowered to designate it as not abandoned..

Also covered: Driveway Rules (moderate), Street Parking Limits (moderate), Overnight Parking (moderate). See the full parking rules guide for De Pere for details.

Fire Regulations

Outdoor Burning: De Pere bans all open burning within city limits under Code § 58-9(a), except for the narrow exemptions the section itself carves out for recreational fires, approved cooking grills, and fire department training burns. The fire chief can also declare a citywide burning ban during high fire-danger conditions and prohibit even exempted fires..

Also covered: Fire Pits & Backyard Fires (moderate), Smoke Detectors (moderate). See the full fire regulations guide for De Pere for details.

Building Safety

Building Permits: De Pere requires a building permit before any one- or two-family dwelling is built, enlarged, altered or repaired, plus for accessory structures like garages, sheds, gazebos and fences. City Code Sec.

Also covered: Electrical Permits (moderate), Plumbing Permits (moderate). See the full building safety guide for De Pere for details.

Fence Regulations

Height Limits: De Pere caps residential fence height at three feet in the front or street-side yard setback, four feet if it is a see-through design, six feet along every other lot line, and eight feet where the fence abuts nonresidential zoned property. Sec.

Also covered: Neighbor Fence Rules (moderate), Retaining Walls (limited), Material Restrictions (moderate). See the full fence regulations guide for De Pere for details.

Swimming Pools & Spas

Pool Permits: De Pere requires a building permit before any swimming pool, hot tub, spa or backyard pond is built or installed. Sec.

Also covered: Fencing & Safety Requirements (moderate). See the full swimming pools & spas guide for De Pere for details.

Property Maintenance

Property Blight: Under City Code section 94-16, De Pere's building inspector can condemn any building, dwelling or dwelling unit so old, damaged, decayed, dilapidated, unsanitary or unsafe that it endangers the owner, occupants or public, ordering the property repaired or vacated within a reasonable time set by the inspector..

Also covered: Snow & Sidewalk Clearing (moderate). See the full property maintenance guide for De Pere for details.

Environmental Rules

Stormwater Management: De Pere bans putting anything but stormwater into its municipal storm sewer system (MS4) under City Code Sec. 29-4(a)(1), and bars illicit connections outright.

Also covered: Erosion Control (moderate), Vehicle Idling Restrictions (limited). See the full environmental rules guide for De Pere for details.

Curfew Laws

Juvenile Curfew: De Pere bars anyone under 17 from public places or business premises between 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.

Also covered: Park Curfew (moderate). See the full curfew laws guide for De Pere for details.

Special Events & Permits

Parade Permits: De Pere requires a permit from the chief of police before anyone may form or take part in a parade on city streets, parks or public places, filed 30 to 45 days ahead, with no permit fee charged under Chapter 138 of the city code..

Also covered: Park Event Permits (moderate), Block Party Permits (moderate), Sidewalk Dining & Cafés (moderate). See the full special events & permits guide for De Pere for details.

Accessory Structures

ADU Rules: De Pere allows one backyard cottage, a detached accessory dwelling unit, per lot occupied by a detached house under Zoning Ordinance Section 14-27. The cottage can't be used as a short-term rental, requires a recorded deed restriction before a permit issues, and either the house or the cottage must stay owner-occupied at least six months a year..

Also covered: Shed & Carport Rules (moderate). See the full accessory structures guide for De Pere for details.

Noise Ordinances

Vehicle Noise: De Pere prohibits engaging a truck's compression brake, commonly called a Jake brake, anywhere within city limits except to avoid imminent danger. City Code § 150-25 defines a compression brake as a device that converts a truck engine into an air compressor for braking and exempts only fire trucks and fire equipment from the ban..

Also covered: Barking Dogs (moderate), Quiet Hours (moderate), Decibel Limits (moderate). See the full noise ordinances guide for De Pere for details.

Trash & Recycling

Illegal Dumping: De Pere bans depositing, throwing, placing or leaving solid waste anywhere in the city except a place the code sets aside for collection, under section 82-7(b). The rule covers streets, alleys, vacant lots, yards and the Fox River, and it also bars taking solid waste that has already been set out for someone else's collection..

Also covered: Bin Placement Rules (moderate), Bulk Item Disposal (moderate), Yard Waste Collection (moderate). See the full trash & recycling guide for De Pere for details.

Animal Ordinances

Exotic Pets: De Pere bans keeping, breeding or selling wild animals as pets under Code § 86-4(a): monkeys and other primates, raccoons, skunks, foxes, wolves (including wolf-dog hybrids), and any other animal normally found in the wild are all prohibited, along with venomous reptiles, arachnids and non-native or oversized snakes..

Also covered: Pet Limits (moderate), Chickens & Livestock (moderate), Beekeeping (moderate). See the full animal ordinances guide for De Pere for details.

Rental Property Rules

Repairs & Habitability: De Pere's housing code requires every dwelling to be kept clean, sanitary and free of garbage buildup under Code § 94-3, with garbage and rubbish facilities compliant with chapter 82. Section 94-7 sets a hard minimum: heating must reach 70 degrees Fahrenheit in every habitable room even when it's 15 below zero outside..

Public Conduct

Public Alcohol Use: De Pere Code of Ordinances § 7-9 bars drinking or carrying an open container of liquor or fermented malt beverage on any city street, alley, sidewalk, thoroughfare, parking lot or other public way. Bar and restaurant purchases must be finished on the licensed premises.

Also covered: Public Marijuana Use (moderate), Outdoor Smoking Restrictions (moderate), Skateboarding Rules (moderate). See the full public conduct guide for De Pere for details.

Building Setbacks & Zoning

Setback Rules: De Pere's zoning ordinance normally sets minimum front, rear and interior side setbacks by residential district, but Section 14-21(8) overrides those baseline figures whenever a neighborhood is already built up. Once at least half of the residential principal buildings within 300 feet of a lot exist, new construction must match the block's average setback instead of the district minimum..

Also covered: Lot Coverage Limits (moderate). See the full building setbacks & zoning guide for De Pere for details.

Business Licensing & Operations

Auto Repair on Residential Property: De Pere's zoning ordinance flatly bans vehicle repair as a home occupation. Section 14-78(8)(c)5.a lists assembly, cleaning, maintenance or repair of vehicles or equipment with internal combustion engines among the uses expressly prohibited from operating out of a residence, alongside repair of large household appliances..

Also covered: Pawnbrokers (moderate), Secondhand Dealers (moderate), Towing Companies (moderate). See the full business licensing & operations guide for De Pere for details.

Soliciting & Door-to-Door

No-Knock Registry: De Pere bans door-to-door sellers and solicitors from calling at any dwelling between 8:00 p.m. and 9:00 a.m.

Also covered: Solicitor Permits (moderate). See the full soliciting & door-to-door guide for De Pere for details.

Right to Farm

Agricultural Zoning Protection: De Pere zones farmland under a dedicated Agricultural (AG) district, Zoning Ordinance Art. V, § 14-51, meant to keep farming viable on land not yet ready for urban development.

Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors

Vending Zones: De Pere bars mobile food vendors from congested areas that impede public use and from operating on any playground, school, library or other public premises outright. Selling in a city park takes a separate park vending permit from the board of park commissioners, and hours outside the Main Street District's designated zone need board of public works approval..

Also covered: Sidewalk & Mobile Vending (moderate), Food Truck Permits (moderate). See the full food trucks & mobile vendors guide for De Pere for details.

Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules

Sidewalk Repair: De Pere Code § 22-6 puts sidewalk repair on the abutting property owner once the board of public works orders it, with the city billing the cost if the owner does not act. The city itself pays for damage its own terrace trees cause to the sidewalk..

Also covered: Encroachment Permits (moderate). See the full sidewalk & pedestrian rules guide for De Pere for details.

Garage & Yard Sales

Frequency, Duration & Permits: De Pere caps residential garage sales at three per calendar year, with each sale running no more than three consecutive days. The zoning ordinance's definition of "garage sale" folds in rummage sales, lawn sales, yard sales, attic sales and moving sales, treating them all as the same regulated activity for counting purposes..

Outdoor Lighting

Dark Sky Rules: De Pere requires dark sky-compliant fixtures and installation practices for lighting in mixed-use, commercial and employment districts, paired with a 3,000 Kelvin color-temperature cap, fixture height limits and a ban on permanent string lighting..

Also covered: Light Trespass & Shielding (moderate). See the full outdoor lighting guide for De Pere for details.

Home Business

Home Daycare: De Pere's zoning ordinance defines a family day care home as a licensed use for 8 or fewer children under age 7 operating from a residence. Under Section 14-78(8)(c)2, family day care homes are exempt from the home occupation rules entirely and skip the conditional-use review a Type B home occupation requires, but the use must still be one Table 7-1 permits in that zoning district..

Also covered: Zoning & Home Occupation Permits (moderate), Customer Traffic Restrictions (moderate). See the full home business guide for De Pere for details.

Public Health Rules

Rodent Control: De Pere requires every business building to be ratproofed and every business and residential building kept rat-free under City Code § 74-7. Owners get at least 15 days to ratproof after a health officer's notice, and the health officer can close an infested business building until conditions are corrected..

Landscaping Rules

Weed Ordinances: De Pere caps grass and noxious weeds at 12 inches under City Code § 74-8, and the weed commissioner can destroy noncompliant growth at the owner's expense under Wis. Stats.

Also covered: Tree Trimming (moderate), Tree Removal & Heritage Trees (moderate). See the full landscaping rules guide for De Pere for details.

Solar Energy

Panel Permits: De Pere allows accessory solar energy systems on any principal or accessory structure under Section 14-78(14) of the zoning ordinance. Building-mounted panels must meet all setback rules and cannot rise more than 3 feet above the district's height limit or 4 feet above the roofline, whichever is less; owners are on their own for solar access easements..

Short-Term Rentals

Taxes & Fees: De Pere taxes short-term rentals the same 10 percent room tax it charges hotels, due to the city clerk monthly, and adds real money for owners who fall behind: a 25 percent forfeiture, or $5,000, whichever is less, once the tax goes delinquent, plus interest and a notification duty owners must meet..

Also covered: Short-Term Rental Permits (moderate). See the full short-term rentals guide for De Pere for details.

Hotels & Lodging

Transient Occupancy Tax: De Pere charges hotels, motels and other public lodging a ten percent room tax on gross receipts, collected from the guest at checkout and remitted to the city clerk every month under Section 134-1 of the city code, adopted under Wis. Stat.

Sign Regulations

Digital Billboards: De Pere will not let an electronic message sign (EMS) stand alone: it must be built into an already-allowed wall or freestanding sign with no more than a one-foot gap between the two displays. Each message must hold for at least 8 seconds, transitions are capped at 3 seconds, and photosensitive dimmers must hold brightness at or under 5,000 nits by day and 500 nits from dusk to dawn..

Also covered: Window Signs (limited). See the full sign regulations guide for De Pere for details.

Mobility & Curb Rules

Bike Lane Rules: De Pere bicyclists must follow state traffic law, keep their bikes in safe mechanical condition, and follow strict passenger-seat rules under Sec. 130-2.

Outdoor Cooking

BBQ & Propane Rules: De Pere exempts residential cooking grills from its open burning ban under Code § 58-9(c), but multifamily buildings taller than one story cannot use a propane, charcoal, wood or gas cooking device above the first floor, and any ground-floor grill has to stay 15 feet from the building and combustible materials..

What to Do With This Information

Think of this as a map of the regulatory landscape in De Pere. For any rule that directly affects a decision you are making, click through to the full ordinance page for penalty details and exceptions, and confirm with the city if the stakes are high.