Greece, NY Fence Regulations: Fence Permit Requirements (2026)

Town Code § 211-50, General regulations applicable for all districts, opens Article VI, Fences, and applies townwide outside Greece's incorporated villages. Subsection A extends every fence rule in the article to any wall placed on a lot to serve the same purpose as a fence, closing the obvious loophole of calling a fence a wall. Subsection B is the core permit mandate: no fence shall be placed, erected or constructed on a lot without a permit issued by the Building Inspector. That permit requirement applies before height, material or setback rules ever come into play, meaning even a fence that would otherwise comply with the district's height limits still needs sign-off first.

The section, amended by Local Law No. 1-2025 effective August 21, 2025, also fixes how height is measured (from the top of the fence to the ground directly beneath it, except for fences on decks or aboveground pools), caps fences within the clear-visibility triangle at intersections (established in § 211-36) at three feet, and requires the finished or decorative side of a fence to face outward toward adjoining lots under Subsection I. Fences must sit at least two feet from a public sidewalk under Subsection M.

A homeowner who installs a fence without first securing the Building Inspector's permit is out of compliance regardless of whether the finished fence would have met every dimensional standard, because the permit itself is the threshold requirement in Subsection B.