(A) Any person desiring to build or cause to be built a fence upon property within the Village of Manchester shall first apply to the Zoning Administrator for a permit. Application for the permit shall contain any and all information, including site plan and opacity, which are required and necessary for the determination of whether the erection of the fence would be contrary to the provisions of this chapter. The fee for the permit shall be set by Council resolution.
(B) Except as otherwise required by this chapter, the following regulations shall apply.
(1) In a residential district, fences shall not exceed 6 feet in height. However, fences in the required front yard shall not exceed 4 feet in height and 50% opacity. Opacity is the degree to which a fence is impervious to rays of light. This condition shall be measured by the observation of any 2 square yard area of fence between 1 foot above the ground level and the top of the fence. The observation shall be from a direction perpendicular to the place of the fence.
(a) Residential fences shall only be constructed of the following materials:
1. Treated wood, cedar, or redwood.
2. Simulated wood, including vinyl covered and synthetic wood composite or equivalent.
3. Decorative brick or stone.
4. Chain link.
5. Any other material which the Zoning Administrator determines to be equivalent to the above in terms of quality and appearance.
(b) The use of barbed wire, snow fence, chicken wire, and electric is prohibited as a residential fence.
(c) Welded wire farm fencing and similar is prohibited as a residential fence except within the R1A and AG Districts. All fence supports shall be uniform in height and style.
(d) The Zoning Administrator shall evaluate the fence type to determine which side of the fence shall face outward with the rule being that the finished side faces the neighbor.
(2) In a commercial, industrial, or office district, no fence, wall, or other screening structure shall exceed 12 feet in height.
(3) The use of barbed wire, spikes, nails, or any other sharp point or instrument of any kind on top or on the sides of any fence is prohibited. Barbed wire cradles may be placed on top of fences enclosing public utility buildings or wherever deemed necessary in the interests of public safety.
(4) No fence shall be constructed or maintained which is charged or connected with an electrical current.
(5) Retaining walls shall be designed and constructed in accordance with applicable building code requirements.
(6) Temporary construction fences and fences required for protection around excavations shall comply with Article 18 of the Basic Building Code. The fences shall not remain in place for a period greater than a year.
(7) Clear vision requirements.
(a) No fence, wall, screen, hedge, sign, or other structure or planting shall obstruct visibility between the heights of 30 inches and 10 feet above the sidewalk grade within 25 feet of the intersection of 2 or more streets.
(b) On any interior lot, no fence, wall, screen, hedge, sign, or other structure or planting shall obstruct the visibility of a driveway, either on a parcel or on an adjacent parcel, between the height of 30 inches and 10 feet measured a distance of 20 feet back from the point where the driveway intersects the street.
(Ord. 239, passed 3-5-2001, § 6.3; Am. Ord. 296, passed 12-19-2016) Penalty, see §
151.999