Pacifica, CA Fence Regulations: Height Limits (2026)

2503(a), no fence, hedge, wall, or screen planting in a Pacifica residential district may exceed six feet in height within a required side yard behind the front setback or within a required rear yard, and none may exceed three feet within the required front yard. The same three-foot cap applies on corner lots within 25 feet of the street corner, measured at the property line, which functions as Pacifica's corner visibility rule protecting sightlines for drivers and pedestrians. A three-foot front-yard fence can be raised to four feet if the added portion is 'open work fence material,' subject to Planning Director approval of the design's compatibility with the site and surrounding uses; an open-work fence is defined in subsection (b) as one whose solid components cover no more than 60 percent of the total fence surface.

Subsection (b) also fixes how height is measured on sloped ground: where grade differs on either side of a fence, height is generally measured from the higher ground level, though the Planning Administrator can require any portion above the height limit measured from the lower side to be open-work. Fences within the front setback, running parallel to the front property line, or within 25 feet of a corner are held to the three-foot limit as measured from the street-facing side of the fence, regardless of the grade behind it.