Fence permit rules in Fremont, Port Clinton and Sandusky

Three cities, three rule books. Each requires a zoning permit before a fence goes up, and each measures the front yard differently. Here is what we could read, and what we could not.

Fremont

Fremont’s rules are in Section 1131.07 of the codified ordinances, adopted in January 2021. No fence may be built, altered or extended inside a front, side or rear setback without approval, either on its own zoning certificate or as part of a bigger application.

The heights run by where the fence sits relative to the house:

• Front yard, and the side yard forward of the front wall of the house: 3 feet above the established front yard grade. Purely decorative fences may extend up to 3 feet into the front yard.
• Side yard between the front and rear walls of the house: 4 feet
• Rear yard, from the rear wall back to the rear lot line: 6 feet
• Industrial districts: 8 feet

So a privacy fence in Fremont starts at the back corner of the house, not the front. There is one exception worth knowing: where the ground floor of the neighbor’s house sits at least 4 feet higher than the lot line, a side or rear fence may rise 6 inches for every foot of difference, up to 8 feet.

The finished side faces the neighbor or the street. Snow fencing, plywood and materials meant for other purposes are prohibited, and barbed wire, electric and spike fences are barred in residential areas. On a corner or through lot, every yard that faces a street counts as a front yard.

Apply to the Engineering and Zoning Department, 323 South Front Street, Fremont OH 43420, on 419-334-8963 or zoning@fremontohio.org. The application makes you responsible for your own property lines, warns that a fence in a utility or ditch easement can be removed at your cost, and gives you one year to finish. The fee is not printed on it, and we could not find it elsewhere, so ask.

Port Clinton

Port Clinton’s fence chapter, Sections 1309.02 and 1309.04, was amended in 2022 by Ordinance 13-22. All heights are above natural grade:

• Front yard: open ornamental fences to 42 inches, parallel to the building line and at least 1 foot off the street right-of-way; hedges and shrubs to 3 feet
• Side and rear yards: open ornamental fences to 5 feet; chain link to 5 feet, rear and side only; privacy fences to 6 feet, rear and side only
• Every fence stays 5 feet back from a public alley, and 3 feet from a utility box or manhole
• Barbed wire, stockade and electrified fences are prohibited

The 2022 amendment put the side yard on that list. Before it, privacy fences were rear yard only, so an older quote or an older neighbor’s memory may be out of date.

The zoning office is at 1868 East Perry Street, Port Clinton OH 43452, on (419) 734-5522, extension 250, or pczoning@portclinton-oh.gov. The city’s page says exterior alterations need a permit and lists a fence permit form, but the fee list on that page is an image we could not read and the form link was dead when we tried it. We are not printing a fee we have not read. Call and ask; the page lists the zoning office hours as Monday and Thursday.

Sandusky

Sandusky’s rules are in Section 1145.17. A fence needs a zoning permit before it goes up. The heights:

• Side and rear yards: 6 feet above grade
• A side yard fence next to a front porch or other front entrance feature: 4 feet
• Front yard: fences are limited to a decorative feature, or a fence along a side lot line where the neighbor is a less restrictive use, with Planning Commission approval; hedges along a side lot line in the front yard, 4 feet

That 6 foot side yard is new; until late 2025 it was 4 feet. The city held a public hearing on 13 October 2025, with staff noting that 93 percent of past variance requests for taller fences had been approved, and the commission adopted the first reading of Ordinance 25-252 that night. The city’s ordinance list shows the same ordinance with dates in December 2025, and the code library’s current text already reads 6 feet. We could not open the December meeting records, so confirm with the city that the 6 foot rule is in force before you order.

On a corner lot, landscape features may sit inside the 25 foot sight triangle only if sight lines between about 2.5 and 6 feet above the curb stay clear, and a fence near the street on a corner lot needs the Planning Director’s approval. Barbed wire, spiked tops and electrified fences are banned in residential districts. Pool enclosures must be at least 4 feet.

Apply through the city’s online permit portal, where fence, shed and sign permits share one application. Planning and Zoning is at 240 Columbus Avenue, Sandusky OH 44870, on 419-627-5891, Monday to Friday 08:00 to 16:30. The only fee schedule we could read is the Building Division’s residential schedule, and it has no fence line, so the zoning fee is unconfirmed. Ask.

Call 811 before anyone digs

Ohio law requires notice to the Ohio Utility Protection Service at least two working days before digging. Call 811 or 1-800-362-2764, or file online. A paid contractor has to make that call on every job. There is more on our 811 page.

What a fence costs here

Combined sales tax is 7.25 percent in Sandusky County (Fremont), 7 percent in Ottawa County (Port Clinton) and 6.75 percent in Erie County (Sandusky). Under Ohio rules the fence contractor pays that tax on his materials and quotes you a lump sum, because a fence is an improvement to real property, so there is no tax line on your invoice.

See your price range

Put your fence runs into the estimator and see the installed range for your yard, then request a quote. Tell the installer which city you are in. The same 6 foot privacy fence starts at the back wall of the house in Fremont, runs the side yard in Port Clinton, and in Sandusky depends on an ordinance that passed only months ago.