Wayne County, NC Fence Regulations: Retaining Walls (2026)

Wayne County's flood damage prevention ordinance addresses retaining walls only where they sit inside a regulated floodway or nonencroachment area (NEA), the narrow channel FEMA maps as carrying the fastest, most dangerous floodwaters. Sec. 38-62(10)b classifies retaining walls, along with sidewalks and driveways, as 'other development' and requires that any such wall involving placement of fill in a regulated floodway meet the limitations of Sec. 38-66. That section bars any encroachment, including fill for a retaining wall's footing or backfill, in a floodway or NEA unless one of two things happens: a registered professional engineer certifies, using standard hydrologic and hydraulic analysis, that the encroachment will not raise flood levels during the base flood, and that certification goes to the floodplain administrator before a permit issues; or FEMA approves a conditional letter of map revision (CLOMR), followed by an actual letter of map revision (LOMR) within six months of finishing the work.

A retaining wall meeting either test must still satisfy the general flood hazard reduction standards of Sec. 38-61, including flood-damage-resistant materials and secure anchoring against flotation and lateral movement. The ordinance does not set a general height cap, setback, or permit requirement for retaining walls built outside a mapped floodway or nonencroachment area; those walls fall outside Chapter 38 entirely.