Tigard, OR Fence Regulations: Retaining Walls (2026)

Section 18.660.070.F, Retaining walls, fences, and street screens, sits in Chapter 18.660, the Tigard Triangle Plan District, so it governs the Tigard Triangle area of the City of Tigard, Washington County, Oregon. The retaining wall limit is one sentence: the maximum height of retaining walls is 4 feet where located within 12 feet of any street property line.

Height is measured under § 18.40.040.B.1, which says retaining walls and fences on top of retaining walls are measured from the ground level on the higher side of the retaining wall.

Fences and walls along street and interior property lines are allowed but not required in the Triangle. Their maximum height is 3 feet where located within 12 feet of any street property line. Chain link fencing and unfinished concrete blocks with any 1 dimension equal to or greater than 15 inches are prohibited within 12 feet of any street property line.

Street screens, which hide off-street parking and loading areas, service areas and some utilities such as waste and recycling areas, transformers, utility vaults and mechanical equipment, follow separate standards. A parking screen must be between four and six feet in height, and a screen for loading, service or utility areas must be between four and eight feet. The maximum length of a street screen is 12 feet where located along, and within 35 feet of, any street property line. A screen must be an opaque and permanent wall, fence, or combination, and chain link and unfinished concrete blocks are prohibited.

River Terrace has its own rule in § 18.640.060.B.5: a fence on top of a retaining wall over three feet in height is not allowed in a setback between apartment, rowhouse or small form residential development and the River Terrace Boulevard right-of-way, unless an adjustment is approved. Tigard Community Development answers questions on which plan district a lot sits in.