FENCE RULES – LAFOLLETTE (CITY), TENNESSEE
OVERVIEW
Residential fences are permitted on private property within City of LaFollette, subject to local regulations. For properties located outside City of LaFollette municipal limits, Campbell County regulates fences in unincorporated areas.
Fence-related rules for the City of LaFollette appear in the LaFollette Municipal Code, including Title 12, Building Code, Title 14, Zoning and Land Use Control, and Title 16, Streets and Sidewalks; the Zoning Code and Map of LaFollette; the Municipal Floodplain Zoning Ordinance / Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance; the City Building Permit Application; and Code Enforcement Department building construction planning materials.
This page focuses on typical single-family residential fencing. If the jurisdiction’s adopted code or ordinance materials do not state a specific limit or requirement, this page notes that the code does not specify one. If no local code or ordinance is available in the approved source packet, this page notes that the jurisdiction does not publish the relevant standard in the referenced published materials.
Compiled From the City of LaFollette Municipal Code, Zoning Code and Map of LaFollette, Municipal Floodplain Zoning Ordinance / Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance, City Building Permit Application, City Building Construction Planning / 2018 IRC Design Criteria, City Planning Commission Application, Tennessee State Fire Marshal Residential Jurisdictions & Inspectors, Tennessee State Fire Marshal residential permit and adopted-code materials, 2018 International Residential Code R105.2, and Tennessee 811 utility-notice materials as of July 2026.
GOVERNANCE
The City of LaFollette regulates land use through the Zoning Code and Map of LaFollette, which is incorporated by reference in Title 14 of the LaFollette Municipal Code. The zoning code is administered and enforced by the Building Inspector, who is authorized to inspect buildings or premises as needed to enforce the zoning ordinance.
The City of LaFollette Code Enforcement Department publishes building-permit materials, a building-permit application, permit-fee materials, and 2018 International Residential Code design criteria. The municipal code also adopts the 2018 International Building Code by reference for building-code administration.
The Tennessee State Fire Marshal Residential Jurisdictions & Inspectors list identifies City of LaFollette as SRBP for Tennessee residential building-code administration. For this page, that status is treated as building-code permit context and is separate from local zoning, floodplain, grading, right-of-way, drainage, pool-barrier, utility, and private-restriction requirements.
The zoning code does not contain a single consolidated residential fence article. Fence-related rules instead appear through the zoning-code definition of structures, swimming-pool barrier provisions, intersection-visibility limits, floodplain development-permit provisions, public right-of-way and drainage provisions, and the statewide utility-notice framework.
PERMIT AND APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS
• Building-Code Permit Context: City of LaFollette is listed as SRBP for Tennessee residential building-code enforcement. 2018 IRC R105.2 includes a building-permit exemption for fences not over 7 feet high. City of LaFollette does not publish a separate local fence permit requirement for standard residential fences.
• General Building-Permit Context: The City Building Permit Application covers building, accessory-structure, zoning-review, floodplain, and grading information, but the referenced published materials do not explicitly state that standard residential fences require that building-permit application.
• Zoning Compliance: Building-code permit exemptions, Tennessee residential building-code status, and State Residential Building Permit status are separate from zoning, setback, subdivision, floodplain, stormwater, drainage, historic, right-of-way, easement, utility, and plat requirements. Confirm any applicable zoning conditions, setbacks, plat requirements, and site-specific limitations with the City of LaFollette Code Enforcement Department before construction.
• Swimming Pool Barriers: A swimming pool area must be walled or fenced to prevent uncontrolled access by children and pets from the street or adjacent properties. The fence or wall must be at least 5 feet high and maintained in good condition.
• Floodplain and Land-Disturbance Review: The Municipal Floodplain Zoning Ordinance requires a development permit before development activities within the ordinance framework. Development includes buildings or other structures, filling, grading, paving, excavating, drilling operations, and storage of equipment or materials. The City Building Permit Application also states that a grading permit must be issued before any land-disturbing activity, requests a site plan for land disturbance of at least one-tenth (0.1) acre and less than one (1) acre, and states that a Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation stormwater construction permit may be required for sites of one (1) acre or more.
• Right-of-Way and Excavation Permits: A fence, gate, post, wall, or related work that would occupy or disturb a city street right-of-way, sidewalk, unpaved parkway, underground utility easement, street, curb, or alley may require review under the City right-of-way, encroachment, driveway-cut, and excavation provisions administered through the Director of Public Works.
FENCE PLACEMENT RULES
• Property Lines: The zoning code does not state a setback requirement for standard residential fences from property lines; however, fences must be located entirely on the owner’s property and must not encroach into rights-of-way or easements.
• Required Yards: The zoning district yard standards regulate principal buildings and accessory buildings. The code does not apply those accessory-building setbacks as a stated setback rule for standard residential fences.
• Street Rights-of-Way: The municipal code prohibits constructing, placing, affixing, or occupying any portion of the city street right-of-way, including sidewalks, unpaved parkways, and underground utility easements, with any appurtenance, fixture, structure, or object unless allowed by permit.
• Gates and Sidewalks: Gates and doors may not swing open upon or over any street, alley, or sidewalk.
• Drainage Ditches: The municipal code prohibits obstruction of any drainage ditch in a public right-of-way. Driveway work across a public right-of-way drainage ditch is handled through the city drainage-tile process.
• Floodplain Areas: Fence-related work that involves fill, grading, paving, excavating, drilling, storage of materials, or other development in a mapped special flood hazard area must be evaluated under the Municipal Floodplain Zoning Ordinance. In regulatory floodways, encroachments are prohibited unless the ordinance’s engineering demonstration and certification standard is met.
• Swimming Pools: A pool barrier fence or wall must be placed so that the swimming pool area is walled or fenced against uncontrolled access by children and pets from the street or adjacent properties. Swimming pools, excluding aprons, walks, and equipment rooms, may not protrude into required front or side open space.
• Utility Safety: Tennessee law requires notice through Tennessee 811 before excavation where the Tennessee Underground Utility Damage Prevention Act applies. For fence projects that involve digging, including digging, drilling, augering, boring, grading, or other movement of earth, notice generally must be given at least three full working days before excavation begins. Tennessee 811 is a notification center and does not mark lines itself; member utilities or their locators mark covered facilities, and the excavator must check the positive-response status before beginning work where required. This statewide utility-notice framework is separate from local fence permitting, zoning, development approval, easement limits, right-of-way approvals, floodplain review, stormwater review, drainage review, historic or design review, HOA restrictions, and other applicable requirements.
FENCE HEIGHT AND VISIBILITY RULES
• Standard Residential Fence Height: The zoning code does not specify a maximum height for standard residential fences. The 7 feet threshold in 2018 IRC R105.2 is a building-permit exemption, not a local maximum fence height.
• Pool Barrier Height: A fence or wall enclosing a swimming pool area must be at least 5 feet high and maintained in good condition.
• Corner-Lot Visibility: On a corner lot outside the C-1 Central Business District, the zoning code prohibits obstructions to vision between 3 1/2 feet and 10 feet above the average grade of each street at the center line within the intersection visibility area. The rule states that it does not prohibit a necessary retaining wall.
• Clear View at Intersections: The municipal code also prohibits a property owner or occupant from maintaining a tree, hedge, billboard, or other obstruction that prevents drivers on public streets or alleys from obtaining a clear view of traffic when approaching an intersection.
MATERIAL AND CONSTRUCTION LIMITS
• Standard Residential Materials: The zoning code does not specify permitted or prohibited materials for standard single-family residential fences.
• Finished Side, Opacity, and Orientation: The code does not specify a finished-side, opacity, chain-link, vinyl, wood, masonry, or orientation standard for ordinary residential yard fences.
• Barbed Wire, Razor Wire, and Electric Fences: The code does not publish a residential barbed-wire, razor-wire, or electric-fence standard for standard single-family residential fencing.
• Pool Barrier Construction: A fence or wall used to enclose a swimming pool area must prevent uncontrolled access by children and pets from the street or adjacent properties, must be at least 5 feet high, and must be maintained in good condition.
PRIVATE RESTRICTIONS
Private restrictions may apply independently of the City of LaFollette zoning code, building-code permit context, and public right-of-way rules. These may include HOA covenants, subdivision restrictions, deed restrictions, private easements, architectural-review covenants, conservation easements, agricultural agreements, and private boundary agreements.
The City Building Permit Application states that private deed restrictions or private subdivision restrictions are not enforceable under the permit or building codes. The floodplain ordinance also states that it does not impair existing easements, covenants, or deed restrictions and that the more stringent restriction controls where regulatory instruments overlap.
REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT CONTEXT
Fence issues are typically reviewed during permit or approval review when required, and through complaint-based code enforcement. Examples include:
• Building-Code Permit Context: City of LaFollette is listed as SRBP, and 2018 IRC R105.2 includes a building-permit exemption for fences not over 7 feet high. No separate local fence permit requirement for standard residential fences is published by City of LaFollette.
• Pool-Barrier Review: A fence or wall used to enclose a swimming pool area is reviewed against the local pool-barrier rule requiring a barrier at least 5 feet high and maintained in good condition.
• Visibility and Right-of-Way Issues: Review may involve the 3 1/2-foot to 10-foot intersection-visibility band, the municipal clear-view rule for intersections, gates or doors over streets, alleys, or sidewalks, and encroachments into city rights-of-way, sidewalks, unpaved parkways, underground utility easements, or drainage ditches.
• Floodplain, Grading, and Stormwater Issues: Review may involve development permits in special flood hazard areas, regulatory floodway encroachment limits, grading permits for land-disturbing activity, site-plan information for land disturbance of at least one-tenth (0.1) acre, and possible TDEC stormwater construction permitting for sites of one (1) acre or more.
• Utility Safety: Fence work involving digging, drilling, augering, boring, grading, or other earth movement may require Tennessee 811 notice and positive-response review before excavation begins.
USING THIS INFORMATION
This page provides general orientation on how residential fence rules are structured and applied within City of LaFollette, based on the referenced published materials as of July 2026.
In addition to local fence rules, certain Tennessee laws apply statewide. See Statewide fence laws in Tennessee.
It is not legal advice and does not replace official ordinances, permits, zoning approvals, zoning certifications, development approvals, State Residential Building Permits, adopted building codes, surveys, or professional guidance. Rules and interpretations may change, and application may vary based on zoning district, site conditions, easements, rights-of-way, floodplain status, stormwater requirements, drainage conditions, historic district status, design-review status, rural or agricultural context, livestock or enclosed-land context, residential building-code status, adopted-code status, opt-out status, pool-barrier use, Tennessee 811 utility safety requirements, overhead utility-line safety, and private restrictions such as HOA covenants, deed restrictions, private agreements, or conservation easements. Before purchasing materials or beginning construction, confirm current requirements and any site-specific limitations with the City of LaFollette Code Enforcement Department and any applicable private agreements. If this page conflicts with official ordinances, published guidance, or direction from City of LaFollette staff, the official sources control. For legal advice or legal interpretation, consult a licensed attorney.