Sherman, TX Fire Regulations: Fire Pits & Backyard Fires (2026)

Sherman adopts the 2021 International Fire Code in § 3.04.001(a) and replaces Section 307.4.2 with a single distance rule for recreational fires: they shall not be conducted within 100 feet of a structure or combustible material. The rule names two things to stay clear of, a structure and combustible material, so a fire pit has to clear both by the full distance. The second sentence adds a duty before the match is struck: conditions which could cause a fire to spread to within 100 feet of a structure shall be eliminated prior to ignition.

The amended Section 307.4.2 prints no exception for a container or ring, and no separate smaller distance. The open burning location section next to it, Section 307.4, does carry a 15 foot exception for fires in approved containers and a 25 foot distance for a small pile, but that section governs open burning, not recreational fires, and the two are separate paragraphs of the code. Section 307.4.1 prohibits bonfires, and Section 307.2 requires a permit from the fire code official for a bonfire and for land management burns.

The fire code official in the City of Sherman is the fire marshal, whose office was created in § 103.1 as the Sherman Fire Marshal's Office, and the fire chief appoints the fire marshal under § 103.2. A person who disagrees with a fire marshal decision can appeal in writing to the building code board of adjustments within five days of notice under § 5.01.002. The amendments took effect through Ordinance 6691 adopted 2/5/2024.