Oyster Bay, NY Fire Regulations: Propane Storage (2026)

Beyond the Housing Standards chapter's 15-foot building setback for barbecue grill tanks, the Zoning Code separately regulates where larger residential propane storage tanks may sit relative to property lines and yard setbacks. 5, within the zoning chapter's encroachment provisions for R1 Residence Districts, the RO Residence-Office District and the HD-III Hicksville Downtown Residential Subdistrict, permits propane tanks screened with dense evergreen plantings and/or solid fencing extending at least one foot above the top of the tank to project a maximum of eight feet into a side or rear yard only, but in any case not nearer than eight feet from any property line.

The section does not stop at a placement rule; it layers on outside regulatory compliance by adding that propane tanks must also conform to the requirements of the New York State Uniform Building and Fire Protection Code, the Nassau County Fire Marshal and the National Fire Protection Association. That three-part cross-reference means a homeowner installing a residential propane tank in Oyster Bay has to satisfy the Town's own yard-encroachment and screening rule and separately clear state fire code, county fire marshal inspection, and NFPA siting standards before the installation is compliant.

The screening requirement mirrors how the same subsection treats other yard encroachments, such as generators and oil tanks, which face similar planting or fencing screens and comparable eight-foot yard-projection limits, reflecting the Town's broader approach of tucking utility equipment into side and rear yards rather than front yards.