Oyster Bay, NY Swimming Pools & Spas: Fencing & Safety Requirements (2026)

4 spells out the barrier a pool owner must build. The fencing has to completely enclose either the outer perimeter of the pool itself or the perimeter of the yard the pool sits in, and a building can count as part of that enclosure if it meets state and Town pool-enclosure rules, including self-closing, self-latching, lockable devices on doors that lead into the enclosure. The fence line has to sit at least five feet from the pool edge unless it is attached directly to an aboveground pool, in which case that five-foot buffer does not apply.

Materials are limited to metal, wood, or other similarly durable material, and the fence cannot contain openings or projections a person could climb, a determination the Department of Planning and Development makes case by case. Height is bracketed: at least four feet but never more than six feet above grade. The bottom of the fence can be no more than one inch off the ground at any point, closing off the classic gap kids or pets slip under, and support posts cannot be spaced more than eight feet apart on center.

Every gate must carry a self-closing, self-latching device mounted on the inside of the gate or door, so it cannot be released from outside the enclosure. The code also carves out one narrow substitute: removable or hinged lockable ladders can stand in for fencing, but only on aboveground circular pools. This section was last amended by Local Law No. 7-2003, adopted 7-22-2003, and sits directly after the permit and setback rules in the same swimming pool subsection of the Town Zoning Code.