New Haven County has no operational government (abolished 1960), so fence height limits are set by each town under the state zoning enabling act, Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 8-2. Typical New Haven County rules cap fences at 4 feet in front yards and 6 feet in side and rear yards, with corner-lot sight-line setbacks. New Haven Zoning Ordinance Sec. 32, Waterbury Zoning Regs Sec. 4.05, Meriden Zoning Regs Sec. 213-39, Milford Zoning Regs Sec. 6.1.5, and Hamden Zoning Regs Sec. 600 each codify these standards. Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 47-43 governs civil 'spite fence' actions.
Connecticut delegated all zoning power to municipalities through the zoning enabling act, Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 8-2. Counties have no operational government and no zoning authority. Each New Haven County town's planning and zoning commission adopts fence-height regulations as part of its zoning regulations. Common patterns: New Haven's Zoning Ordinance limits residential front-yard fences to 4 feet and side/rear fences to 6 feet, with corner-lot sight triangles. Waterbury Zoning Regulations follow the same 4-foot front / 6-foot rear convention, with permit requirements above 6 feet. Meriden Zoning Regulations Sec. 213-39 cap residential front fences at 4 feet and rear/side at 6 feet. Milford and Hamden mirror those limits. Most New Haven County towns require a building permit for any fence over 6 feet, in line with State Building Code adoption under Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 29-252. Connecticut has a 'spite fence' civil cause of action under Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 47-43, which lets a neighbor sue when a structure over 6 feet is maliciously erected to annoy. Boundary-fence cost-sharing is governed by Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 47-41 through 47-49 (civil law, not ordinance). Sight-distance triangles at intersections are typically enforced under each town's subdivision and zoning regulations.
Town-level fence violations are enforced by the local zoning enforcement officer under Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 8-12, which authorizes orders to comply, daily fines, and injunctive relief in Superior Court. Building a fence over 6 feet without a State Building Code permit can result in a stop-work order and after-the-fact permit fees from the local building official. Civil 'spite fence' actions under Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 47-43 allow damages and injunctive relief.
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