Kirkwood, MO Fence Regulations: Material Restrictions (2026)

Section 5-38(a) bars any fence built in whole or part from paper, cloth, canvas, bamboo, chicken coop wire or similar material anywhere in the city, and separately bars chain link, wire, wire mesh, plastic mesh or wire-tied wooden slats in front of the front building line on any residentially zoned or occupied lot, on every street frontage of a corner or multiple-frontage lot. Framing members and support posts must face the interior of the fence owner's own property. Subsection (b) flatly bans barbed wire, or any similar material, on residentially zoned or occupied lots; nonresidential lots may run barbed wire starting six feet above grade, but never on a fence adjacent to a public street, alley, sidewalk or park right-of-way or easement.

Subsection (c) bans an electric current running through any fence as defined in § 5-37, and extends that ban to any wire other than electric, phone, cable or utility lines, unless the wire meets the National Electric Code, sits inside a secured enclosure, and is set back at least 18 inches from that enclosure and from any property line; underground wire meeting the Building Code and National Electric Code is exempt. A fence built with a prohibited material can be denied a permit or ordered altered or removed by the Building Commissioner, whose decision is appealable to the Board of Adjustment under § 5-45.