Laredo, TX Fence Regulations: Fence Permit Requirements (2026)

Sec. 24-79 sits in Article III, Fencing and Screening, of Chapter 24 (Planning); an editor's note explains the underlying language was originally Sec. 24-79 of the Laredo Land Development Code and was copied into the Code of Ordinances at the city's request by Ordinance No. 93-229. Sec. 2 lists six general construction and maintenance standards that apply to every screening fence built under the article, covering approved materials (brick, stone, masonry, cement, stucco, cinder block, or pressure-treated weather-resistant lumber), a ban on plywood, sheet metal, and corrugated steel fencing, a requirement that fences test plumb and square at installation, and an owner's duty to keep the fence free of trash, advertising, and graffiti.

It then sets the specific trigger for a building permit: under Sec. 2(7), no fence taller than seven feet, and no masonry wall taller than thirty inches, may be constructed anywhere in the city without first obtaining a building permit. A fence at or below those thresholds does not need a permit under this section. The same subsection also caps front-yard fence height at four feet along a collector, arterial, or thoroughfare, and requires an eight-foot setback from the back of curb on those lots to preserve pedestrian circulation.

Fences along side and rear lot lines that adjoin public streets cannot sit in the visibility triangle on a corner lot and must likewise be set back at least eight feet from the curb line. Nonresidential uses that abut residential property, a school, a park, or a church must provide an opaque screening fence or wall at least seven feet tall along the shared property line under Sec. 1, which independently requires a permit because it exceeds the seven-foot threshold.