Greenwood County, SC Fence Regulations: Retaining Walls (2026)

Greenwood County Code § 6-3-107 lists five structures that may project into a lot's required yard setbacks despite the general rule that no structure may sit in a required yard: buttresses and chimneys up to 12 inches, roof overhangs, open fire escapes, unenclosed entry steps, protective doorway hoods, and retaining walls. Unlike the other listed projections, a retaining wall carries no maximum height limit under this section; the code allows it to reach 'any necessary height' to hold back a graded slope. The only limit is horizontal: the wall cannot come closer than 18 inches to a street right-of-way line or an alley line, mirroring the clearance the code gives unenclosed steps near a street line.

This yard-projection exception exists because a retaining wall functions differently than a fence, deck or accessory building: it stabilizes earth rather than enclosing space, so the county lets it break the ordinary front, side and rear yard setbacks that apply to buildings and other structures in every zoning district. A homeowner grading a sloped lot in unincorporated Greenwood County, including lakefront property near Lake Greenwood where retaining walls are common on graded shoreline lots, can build the wall right up to that 18-inch buffer from the road or alley without seeking a separate yard variance from the joint board of zoning appeals, so long as the wall does not double as a fence or otherwise impede the visual clearance the code requires at street intersections.