Ridgefield, CT Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Encroachment Permits (2026)

Section 310-4, amended June 26, 2002, prohibits placing or constructing any fence, wall, stone, step, building or other structure, or planting any tree, shrub or other vegetation, in the Town right-of-way or in any way that encroaches upon a street or sidewalk. Unlike the excavation permits available under Article II of the same chapter, which the Director of Public Services issues for road openings and driveway connections under Section 310-7, Article I contains no application process, fee or approval path for an encroachment: the text is an outright prohibition, not a permit scheme.

A resident who wants a fence, retaining wall or landscaping near the road line has to keep it off the right-of-way entirely rather than apply for permission to build within it. Section 310-5 delegates the Board of Selectmen's permitting authority under Articles II through V to the Director of Public Services, but that delegation covers excavations, sidewalk maintenance, snow removal and sidewalk construction standards, none of which authorize an encroachment under Section 310-4. Because the Town right-of-way frequently extends several feet behind the visible curb or sidewalk edge, a landowner should confirm the right-of-way line with the Department of Public Services before installing a mailbox post, fence or plantings near the street, since the survey line, not the edge of pavement, controls under this section.