Madison, WI Fence Regulations: Material Restrictions (2026)

142(11)(e) sets a materials standard that applies specifically to the parts of a lot the public sees from the street. Any fence located in the front yard setback or the street side yard setback 'must be made of materials such as wood, ornamental metal, brick, vinyl-coated chain link or stone', a closed, though illustrative, list built around finished, decorative materials rather than raw utilitarian fencing. The same subsection draws a sharp line between street-facing and interior yards: uncoated chain link, which the front-yard list does not include, is expressly permitted once the fence moves into an interior side yard or a rear yard, where it is out of view from the public right-of-way.

142, the City's landscaping and screening chapter, alongside the height standards of subsection (a), so a front-yard fence has to clear both the four-foot (or six-foot exception) height cap and this materials list at the same time. 202, and through code-enforcement inspections after installation. A fence installed in bare uncoated chain link facing the street does not meet the front-yard standard even if its height is otherwise legal.