Shawnee County, KS Fence Regulations: Material Restrictions (2026)

Shawnee County's Zoning Regulations control fence materials through Sec. ' Outside industrial and substation perimeters, barbed wire is not authorized anywhere else in the fence article. Front-yard fencing in the residential and rural districts is restricted by style rather than material composition alone: Sec. 04(b)(2) allows only an 'open fence (such as, chain-link, split rail, picket, or wrought iron)' up to four feet tall in the required front yard of the 'RA-1,' 'RR-1,' 'R' and 'M' districts, and it 'specifically excluded[s]' privacy fences, meaning solid-material fencing such as solid wood or vinyl privacy panels cannot go in that front-yard zone regardless of height.

That front-yard restriction does not apply to fencing dedicated to an on-site agricultural use, which is exempt. A separate design standard in Sec. 04(d)(1) applies to every fence in the county regardless of material or district: 'No fence shall be constructed in such a manner or design as to be hazardous or dangerous to persons or animals,' which reaches sharp-topped, electrified, or otherwise dangerous fencing beyond the specific barbed-wire and privacy-fence rules. Height-measurement rules in Sec. 04(b)(3) apply uniformly across materials: measurement runs from the ground to the fence top, with a one-inch mowing allowance and up to three inches of tolerance for sloped terrain, and a fence post is only counted toward height if it rises more than one foot above the fence line. R. Resolution 2011-2, Sec. R. Resolution 2012-8, Sec. 2, effective October 8, 2012.