Dixmont, ME Fence Regulations: Retaining Walls (2026)

Section 15(B)(6) of the Dixmont Shoreland Zoning Ordinance is the retaining wall rule. A retaining wall that is not necessary for erosion control must meet the structure setback, which Section 15(B)(1) fixes at 100 feet from the normal high-water line of great ponds and 75 feet from other water bodies, tributary streams or the upland edge of a wetland, and at 250 feet in the Resource Protection District. Section 15(B)(1)(a) separately says the water body, tributary stream or wetland setback does not apply to structures that require direct access to the water as an operational necessity, and it names piers, docks and retaining walls as examples.

The exception for low walls requires all seven conditions. The site has been previously altered and has no effective vegetated buffer. The wall is at least 25 feet from the normal high-water line or wetland edge. The site is legally existing lawn, or is eroding from lack of naturally occurring vegetation and cannot be stabilized with vegetative plantings. The total height of the walls, in the aggregate, is no more than 24 inches. The walls sit outside the 100-year floodplain designated on FEMA maps, or the flood of record. The area behind the wall is revegetated, with no further structural development, including patios and decks, in the setback area. A vegetated buffer is established within 25 feet of the water when no natural buffer exists.

That buffer must include shrubs and other woody and herbaceous vegetation, use only native species, be planted in quantities sufficient to retard erosion, and be at least 15 feet wide, measured perpendicularly to the water. A footpath within the Section 15(P)(2)(a) standard, six feet in width, can cross it. Section 16 adds that no one starts regulated work without first obtaining the required permit, and the permit holder keeps a copy on site while the work is performed. New permanent structures projecting into or over water also need a Department of Environmental Protection permit under 38 M.R.S.A. section 480-C.