Corvallis, OR Fence Regulations: Height Limits (2026)

Corvallis classifies fences and walls as Accessory Structures under Land Development Code Section 4.3.30(e), capping their overall height at 14 feet unless a more specific limit applies, with height measured from the lowest adjoining finished grade. Any fence or wall within a required yard adjacent to a street drops to a four-foot maximum, though the Planning Commission may grant an outright exception as part of a Special Development approval where the fence provides screening that mitigates a compatibility concern. That same four-foot cap follows a fence within five feet of a sidewalk or multi-use path that is not parallel to a street, such as the pedestrian and bicycle connections between cul-de-sacs, unless the upper portion is built at least 50 percent open.

In a required exterior side yard, fences and walls can reach six feet, but only if the fence sits at least five feet off the property line with a five-foot landscaped buffer on the street side; on residential lots smaller than 5,500 square feet, that six-foot fence may instead run right up to the exterior side property line, dropping to a one-foot setback only where the line meets a curbside sidewalk, and the taller allowance extends 50 feet forward from the rear property line or to the rear of the building, whichever is farther.

Every fence and wall, regardless of height, must maintain vision clearance under Section 4.3.30(e)(2), and Chapter 1.3's building permit review checks compliance before construction begins.