Before You Build in Fishers, IN: Permit & Rule Checklist (2026)

Fishers regulates fence height by location under Unified Development Ordinance Sec. 6.18.2. A fence in a required primary front yard of a residential district maxes out at 4 feet and must be at least 50% open. Side and rear yards of a one- or two-family lot allow up to 6 feet. Fences enclosing an institutional/industrial use may reach 8 feet.

Fishers does NOT require a building permit to build a fence or wall. UDO Sec. 6.18.1 states plainly that walls and fences do not require a building permit, but they must comply with all standards in Article 6.18. So a fence is permit-free, yet still has to meet height, openness, material, vision-clearance, and waterway-setback rules.

Fishers' UDO sets no separate height table for retaining walls, but carves them out of the waterway rule: a retaining wall that does not obstruct access is exempt from the 15-foot top-of-bank setback that applies to walls and fences (Sec. 6.18.2(F)). Permitting of taller retaining walls is governed by the Indiana Residential Code.

Under Fishers UDO Sec. 6.18.2(C), a fence's non-structural side (posts and beams) must face outward toward the property line — UNLESS the two adjoining owners share the cost. Fences may sit on the line but cannot encroach into easements or the right-of-way. Boundary and cost-sharing disputes fall under Indiana law.

Fishers' UDO does not publish an approved-materials list for fences, so common materials — wood, vinyl, aluminum, ornamental steel, and (in commercial/industrial settings) open mesh — are generally acceptable provided the fence meets the height, openness, finished-side, and safety standards in Sec. 6.18.2. The clear limits are the ban on barbed/electrified wire and the 50%-open requirement in primary front yards.

Fishers regulates residential pools through its Unified Development Ordinance (UDO Sec. 6.2.2). In-ground and most permanent pools need a building/improvement location permit applied for through the city's OpenGov portal, while small above-ground and portable pools are exempt from a building permit under the UDO.

Fishers does not set pool-barrier heights in its own UDO; it defers to the Indiana Residential Code (675 IAC 14-4.4-38, Section R326), which requires a barrier at least 4 feet high with self-closing, self-latching gates around residential pools deeper than 42 inches. Fishers' UDO fence rules (Sec. 6.18.2) govern fence height and materials.

Pool safety for one- and two-family homes in Fishers is governed by the Indiana Residential Code, Section R326 (675 IAC 14-4.4-38), which the city's building official enforces. It mandates a barrier at least 4 feet high, self-closing and self-latching gates that lock, and applies to pools more than 42 inches deep and any indoor pool.

Fishers' UDO (Sec. 6.2.2.D) lists 'above ground pools' among structures that do not require a building permit, but the same article still requires the water perimeter to sit at least 5 feet from rear and side property lines. If the pool exceeds 42 inches deep, the Indiana Residential Code barrier rules (Section R326) still apply.

Fishers' UDO treats hot-tub enclosures and pool houses as residential accessory structures (Sec. 6.2.2) subject to floor-area, height, and setback limits. Safety barrier requirements for spas and hot tubs follow the Indiana Residential Code Section R326, enforced by the city's building official.

Fishers' Unified Development Ordinance does not list an accessory dwelling unit as a permitted accessory use in residential districts. The only accessory residence allowed (a caretaker's residence) is permitted in nonresidential districts only, so a second living unit in a residential yard typically requires a variance.

Converting a garage to living space is a Structural Alteration requiring a building permit and compliance with the Indiana One- and Two-Family Dwelling Code. Because the UDO permits no separate accessory dwelling unit in residential districts, a garage cannot become an independent rental by right, though conversion into the same household's living space is treated as remodeling.

Under UDO Sec. 6.2.2, a detached shed in a residential district must meet the front setback for the zone and a side/rear setback equal to the primary-structure setback or 10 feet (whichever is less). Combined accessory floor area is capped at 1,000 sq ft on lots under one acre, and most R-district structures may not exceed 18 feet tall.

Carports are expressly listed as residential accessory structures in UDO Sec. 6.2.2 and follow the same standards as detached garages: side/rear setback equal to the primary-structure setback or 10 feet (whichever is less), the combined accessory floor-area cap (1,000 sq ft under one acre), and an 18-foot height limit in most residential districts.

Fishers' UDO does not define or separately permit 'tiny homes.' A tiny house used as a residence must meet the UDO's Dwelling Unit definition and the Indiana One- and Two-Family Dwelling Code, and it must occupy a lawfully zoned residential lot - the UDO does not allow a second small dwelling as an accessory use in residential districts.

The Fishers Department of Fire and Emergency Services permits recreational and cooking fires (such as camp fires), but burning must be in a vented noncombustible container, kept at least 50 feet from any structure or right-of-way, attended by an adult, and is prohibited at apartment complexes and mobile home parks.

The Fishers Department of Fire and Emergency Services restricts open burning to wood products only, within set hours and distances, and absolutely prohibits it at apartment complexes and mobile home parks. Indiana's IDEM rules (326 IAC 4-1) generally ban open burning of trash statewide, with limited exemptions.

Fishers requires a Tree Board permit to prune street trees (§ 95.33) and prohibits topping or improper pruning of trees in the right-of-way without approval (§ 95.35). Private property owners must keep their own trees from overhanging the public right-of-way and may trim private-yard trees without a city permit.

Removing a street tree in Fishers requires a Tree Board permit under § 95.33(B), except in an emergency. Trees on private property generally have no city removal permit, but owners must remove dead or unsafe trees that threaten the public right-of-way (§§ 95.02, 95.12). Development sites must protect designated trees under the UDO.

Fishers Code Chapter 52 lets the Mayor declare a water warning or water emergency for the Citizens Water / Indiana American system. Under § 52.05, restrictions then ban lawn sprinkling, car washing, surface washdown, pool filling, and new sod; a water emergency bans nearly all outdoor watering except hand-watered vegetable gardens every other day.