Wauwatosa, WI Fence Regulations: Fence Permit Requirements (2026)

28. 020 lists the work that needs no permit at all: a fence in the buildable area of a rear or side yard at six feet or less, a rear-yard fence not abutting a street up to six feet, a side-yard fence not abutting a street at four and a half feet or less, fences set back at least eighteen inches from an alley lot line, and fences enclosing athletic fields, ball diamonds or tennis courts, or approved as part of a special use, conditional use or planned development.

030. In residential districts that includes any front-yard fence (capped at three feet, twenty percent of lot width and specific setbacks), a rear or side yard fence abutting a street built to four and a half feet, and any fence along an alley, nonresidential lot line or a three-or-more-unit multifamily property line built above four and a half feet, up to a six-foot cap. In nonresidential districts, a permit is required for any front or street-side yard fence and for side-yard fences over four and a half feet.

050 requires the applicant to file a written application with the buildings and safety division, accompanied by drawings, sketches, designs, or a survey or plot plan as needed for review, along with the fee set by the city's fee schedule. 040, which can add its own restrictions on height, length, setback, materials, landscaping and color. The chapter was last amended by Ord. O-13-10 in July 2013 and Ord. O-22-37 in November 2022.