Washington County, UT Fence Regulations: Retaining Walls (2026)

Chapter 15, Article A of the Washington County Code, adopted by Ordinance 2024-1271-O on September 17, 2024, governs rockery and segmental block retaining walls: stacked-rock or interlocking modular concrete block systems built to retain soil. Section 10-15A-2 requires a building permit and/or excavation permit from the Community Development Department before construction or alteration, with review fees assessed and collected when the permit is issued, unless the wall already appears on approved, unexpired subdivision construction drawings. Two narrow exemptions exist: a single, non-tiered wall under four feet in exposed height with front and back slopes no steeper than 10H:1V within ten feet of the wall, or a double-tiered wall meeting the same four-foot and slope limits with at least 2h of separation between tiers, where h is the taller wall's exposed height.

10 under seismic loading, with the engineer specifying an inspection frequency on the drawings. Section 10-15A-4 requires a dimensioned site plan, cross-sectional drawings, and site-specific geotechnical recommendations at the time of application, and § 10-15A-8 sets height limits within utility or drainage easements at three feet. Construction of a wall requiring a permit must be supervised by a qualified geotechnical engineer, who submits a final compliance report to the county upon completion under § 10-15A-11.