Ramapo, NY Fence Regulations: Retaining Walls (2026)

Ramapo folds retaining walls into its general definition of 'fence': § 376-5 defines a 'FENCE' as 'an unroofed barrier or unroofed enclosing structure, including retaining walls,' so the height and setback limits in § 376-52C that govern fences and walls apply equally to a retaining wall. Under that subsection, a fence or retaining wall up to four feet is allowed on any lot line, and up to six feet is allowed on any part of a lot line behind the required front yard. Anything taller than six feet is still permitted, but only if it is pulled back from the lot line by a distance equal to two-thirds of its own height, so an eight-foot wall must sit at least five feet four inches inside the property line. Every fence or wall must also be built with its outer face at least one foot from the property line, unless the neighbors on both sides agree in writing to share a common fence directly on the line, and the better-finished face has to point toward the abutting property or street rather than toward the owner's own yard.

A separate corner-lot rule in § 376-51C caps any fence, wall, hedge or other natural growth at three feet above the street center-line grade within the sight-triangle areas at a street intersection, so a taller retaining wall cannot be built in that visibility zone even if it would otherwise meet the four- or six-foot limit elsewhere on the lot. Site development plan approval and the Building Inspector's permit process apply to a retaining wall the same way they apply to any other structure covered by Chapter 376, and the Zoning Board of Appeals can grant relief from these height and setback numbers through its variance process.