Fence Installation Contractors West St Paul, MN

It’s your property, so you can build your fence where you like, but make sure you know where your property lines lie. Fencing must reside inside your surveyed boundaries. If you don’t know where those boundaries are, you will need to hire a surveyor to map them out for you as West St. Paul does not provide the service. You’ll need express written permission from your neighbor if you will be sharing the fence line. Encroaching on your neighbor’s property can cause legal battles, and it’s always prudent to avoid property line conflicts.

The face, considered the finished side of the fence, must face adjoining property. Although you’re not legally bound to tell your neighbor that you’re installing a fence on your property, it’s courteous to do so.

A building permit is required for all fencing, along with either a plat, survey or county aerial view showing where you plan to locate your fence. You also must submit the building plans showing a cross-section of the fence as well as the construction materials to be used. All utilities are required to be marked before the installation of any fence. Call 811 or Gopher State One Call if you plan on DIY. Northland Fence will take care of contacting and getting utilities flagged for you before their experts install your fence.

There are multiple restrictions for fence height in the city. On the rear and side lot lines fencing up to 6-feet may be built. Fencing closer than 5 feet from a principal structure on either side of your property cannot be greater than 4 feet high. Front yard fencing can’t exceed 4-feet in height. Corner lots with sides abutting the street also cannot exceed 4 feet. Rear yard fences, from the front building line to the front lot line of the abutting lot cannot be more than 4 feet high. Inground swimming pool fencing must be at least 5 feet high.

Typical West St. Paul lots will have 5-foot side yard easements, while front and rear easements are 10-feet, including boulevards. Surveys will show all easements. You cannot build a fence on an easement. Residential easements are legal land agreements between homeowners and the city of West St. Paul and must remain accessible. Easements contain drainage and utility lines. Building a fence on an easement may also impede both driver and pedestrian sight lines, especially around corners.

Appearance is important and the city mandates that fences must have good workmanship and materials suited to the fence’s purpose. Barbed wire fencing is prohibited.