Corona, CA Fence Regulations: Fence Permit Requirements (2026)

Corona's amended building code answers the basic question of when a fence needs a permit. § 15.02.090, amending Section 105.2 of the building code, lists 'fences not over three (3) feet high' among the work exempt from a building permit. Because the exemption stops at three feet, any fence, wall or hedge taller than that, including the seven-foot rear and side yard fences and the 60-inch front yard fences authorized under § 17.70.060, needs a building permit before construction, covering plan review for footing depth, post spacing and, for masonry or block walls, structural adequacy.

A second, separate permit applies to a narrower category: the taller 84-inch fence or wall that § 17.70.060(F)(2) allows in the side yard adjacent to a street, from a point even with the front of the house back to the rear property line. Subsection (F)(2)(c) conditions that height on full compliance with all conditions of the fence permit issued by the Director of Community Development, which includes maintaining the required parkway landscaping and sprinkler system next to the taller fence. Failing to maintain that landscaping is itself a violation of Chapter 17.70, punishable under § 17.108.130.

Heritage properties and historic landmarks get a separate track: the Director of Community Development can substitute the Design Guidelines for Historic Buildings for the standard material and design rules under § 17.70.060(M), which can change what a permit application needs to show.