On residentially zoned Philadelphia property, a fence between the street and the building may be no more than 4 feet tall and no more than 50% opaque; elsewhere on the lot it may reach 6 feet. Commercial lots allow up to 8 feet behind the building line.
Philadelphia Zoning Code Section 14-706 governs fence height and opacity citywide. Per the Department of Licenses & Inspections residential FAQ (PG_004), fences located between the street and the building on the lot shall be no more than four ft. in height and no more than 50% opaque; if the required front setback of the district is greater than the setback of the actual structure, that limit applies to the full depth of the required setback. In all other portions of the property the fence may be up to six ft. in height. Fence posts and gate posts that serve as architectural features are permitted six inches above the allowable fence height (Section 14-706 also allows integrated architectural posts up to 6.5 ft for side/rear and 4.5 ft for front). Where a fence sits on top of a retaining wall, the combined height of the retaining wall above the higher-level grade plus the fence may not exceed the maximum height permitted for a fence. On commercially zoned property the rear/side limit rises to eight ft. (PG_005). Heights above these limits require a zoning refusal and Zoning Board of Adjustment variance.
A fence at or below code limits needs no zoning permit; exceeding the limits requires a permit application, which triggers a refusal that must be appealed to the Zoning Board of Adjustment. Non-masonry fences over six ft. and masonry fences over two ft. additionally require a building permit. Building without required permits exposes the owner to L&I violation notices and stop-work orders.
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