Sedona, AZ Fence Regulations: Retaining Walls (2026)

Section 5.6.E(8), Retaining Walls, sits inside the Land Development Code's fences-and-walls standards and applies to any retaining wall built to support a cut or a fill condition. The height cap is straightforward: 16 feet, measured vertically from the lowest point at natural grade to the highest point of the wall, with no separate allowance for stepped grade.

Height alone doesn't clear the wall through review. Any retaining wall taller than eight feet triggers a terracing requirement meant to cut the visual impact on neighbors and the public realm: no more than three tiers, each capped at eight feet, with a minimum five-foot planted terrace between tiers, a maximum slope of 3:1, and at least four shrubs planted per 100 square feet of terrace area. The Director can approve a reduced terrace depth or a different planting plan where the lot is too tight to fit the standard dimensions.

Long or tall walls also need visual breaks: a wall over three feet high and longer than 40 feet has to include a recession or projection with at least a two-foot change in the wall plane, or a direction change of more than 30 degrees, so a continuous blank wall face isn't allowed regardless of height.

Stacking a fence on top of a retaining wall comes with its own cap. The combined height of a solid fence or wall on top of a retaining wall cannot exceed eight feet measured from the low side of the finished grade. If a homeowner wants more height than that, the fence has to be set back at least five feet from the top of the retaining wall to create a planted buffer, landscaped with at least four shrubs for every 20 linear feet.