Hanford, CA Fence Regulations: Retaining Walls (2026)

Hanford Municipal Code § 15.02.030 amends the state-adopted Section 105.2 (Work exempt from permit) of both the California Building Code, Part 2, and the California Residential Code, Part 2.5. Item 4 of the amended exemption list says retaining walls are exempt from a permit only if they are 16 inches or less, measured from the grade elevation on the low side of the wall to the top of the wall, and only if the wall does not support a surcharge. A wall that exceeds 16 inches, or that carries any surcharge load regardless of height, requires a full building permit application through the City Building Division, including plan review and inspection before backfill.

The city paired this threshold with a minimum reinforcing and footing standard for concrete and masonry walls through Express Finding No. 1 (Hanford Municipal Code § 15.02.090(A)), which explains that the Central Valley's varying soil conditions create a risk of instability and cracking without engineered footings, so any permitted retaining wall must show adequate reinforcing and footing design on its plans. The identical 16-inch/surcharge test applies to both the CBC amendment, § 15.02.030(A)(1)(b), and the parallel CRC amendment, § 15.02.030(B)(1)(b), so the rule reaches both commercial and residential retaining walls citywide.

Because this is a building-permit exemption, not a zoning setback, it governs whether a permit is required at all rather than where on the lot the wall can sit; district setback standards elsewhere in the code still apply once a wall crosses the 16-inch threshold.