Bowie, MD Fence Regulations: Fence Permit Requirements (2026)

Section 26-2D of the City Code treats the front yard as off-limits to fencing in the City of Bowie: subsection D(1) prohibits any fence between a residential dwelling's front building line and the abutting street, private street or parking area, unless another part of § 26-2 provides otherwise. The single carve-out sits in D(2): a front yard fence is allowed beyond the front building line only on lots in the Huntington section built before January 1, 1960. Even there the fence cannot exceed four feet, must use wood, cast iron or wire fencing materials, or another material consistent with the City's historic guidelines, which may allow stone or brick accents, and, under D(2)(c), is subject to a City building permit before it goes up.

The identical permit and material condition repeats for side street yard fences on the same historic Huntington lots under § 26-2E(3). Outside those two narrow exceptions, Chapter 26 does not set up a separate fence-specific permit process for ordinary side and rear yard fences; the height and setback limits in § 26-2E and J still apply, and the Board of Appeals can grant a variance from any part of § 26-2 under § 26-15. Community Services' Code Compliance division enforces the front yard fence ban and the Huntington permit condition; building without the required City permit, or placing a fence forward of the building line outside Huntington, is what draws a citation.