New Fence Installation in Cherry Hills Village, CO

Cherry Hills Village takes a stricter approach to fences than most nearby cities: every fence and wall in the City requires a permit, with no height exemption. The City’s Residential Fence and Wall Requirements handout pairs that permit rule with a detailed table of height and opacity limits that change depending on where the fence sits on the lot — inside the building envelope, along the front yard, against a setback, or next to a state highway. We work through that table before drawing a layout, not after.

Every Fence and Wall Needs a Permit

The City’s own language leaves no exemption: “All fences and walls constructed within the City of Cherry Hills Village require a permit.” Every fence, regardless of height, also has to meet the zoning standards in Municipal Code Section 16-3-120. Review takes up to 10 business days per cycle whether or not the fence triggers Building Code or South Metro Fire Rescue Authority review, so the timeline does not shrink much for a shorter fence — only the review path changes.

We submit fence permits with a scaled site plan showing the property boundary, the fence location relative to other site improvements, and elevation drawings showing overall height, height above natural grade, and material dimensions, since that is what the City’s online submittal requires.

Height and Opacity Depend on Where the Fence Sits

The City’s table sets a 6-foot maximum height at 100% opacity inside the building envelope and behind the front façade line. Between the front lot line and the front façade line, the limit drops to 4 feet at 50% opacity in most zone districts, and fences are not allowed at all in that front-yard strip in the R-4 and R-5 districts.

Rear and interior side setbacks generally allow 6 feet, with opacity varying by district. Along a street-side setback, height stays at 6 feet but the allowed opacity depends on the fence’s height and its orientation to the street — a fence under 4 feet parallel to the street can be more solid than one over 4 feet in the same location. A fence backing onto a state highway can go up to 8 feet, and a fence next to a public trail, park, or open space is capped at 6 feet and 40% opacity.

Setback, Landscaping, and the Sight Triangle

Fences in several of those higher-opacity areas can qualify for reduced setback distance if they meet one of three landscaping options in the Municipal Code: a 4-foot setback with trees or evergreen shrubs planted along the street side, an offset layout with planted breaks every 15 to 25 feet, or a combination of setback distance and tree-planting density. We work out which option fits the lot before finalizing the layout, since the choice affects both the fence line and the planting plan.

Corner lots carry an additional requirement: the site plan submitted with the permit has to show a 50-foot sight triangle measured from the road edge, so a fence does not block visibility at the intersection.

Gates and Recreational Enclosures

Front-yard gates, including driveway gates, can exceed the otherwise-applicable height limit by up to 4 feet if each gate is no more than 18 feet wide and no more than 25% opaque, and driveway gates need a clear 9-by-18-foot apron in front of them. One other gate serving a non-front yard can exceed the height limit by up to 2 feet if it is no more than 4 feet wide. Any access gate also needs a South Metro Fire Rescue Authority approval letter as part of the permit submittal.

Enclosures around recreational features other than a pool — a tennis or volleyball court, for example — can go up to 10 feet tall at 25% opacity, with wind screens excluded from that opacity count.

Pool Barriers and Retaining Wall Combinations

Swimming pools are held to a separate, stricter standard: barrier requirements follow Section 305 of the 2018 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code, and the City’s handout states plainly that variances to this requirement are not allowed. A fence built on or combined with a retaining wall has to meet the height table measured from the higher-grade side of the wall, and where a building-code guardrail is also required, the stricter of the two standards controls.

How We Sequence a Cherry Hills Village Fence Project

We start with the property survey and the zoning table, matching each run of fence to the area of the lot it sits in — building envelope, front yard, rear setback, street-side setback, or trail/open-space edge — since each carries a different height and opacity limit. Corner lots get the sight-triangle check, and any gate gets checked against the width and opacity limits for the height bonus it is claiming.

Before digging, we request a utility locate through Colorado 811 and confirm any recorded easements along the planned line. Once the permit is issued, posts and framing follow the approved layout, gates are set with the required fire-authority clearance, and the project closes out with the City’s final inspection against the same plan that was submitted.

Common Questions

Does a short fence still need a permit in Cherry Hills Village?
Yes. Unlike many nearby cities, Cherry Hills Village requires a permit for every fence and wall built in the City, with no minimum-height exemption. Every fence also has to meet the height and opacity table in the City’s zoning code.

How tall can a backyard fence be?
Inside the building envelope and behind the front façade line, the City allows up to 6 feet at full opacity. Rear and interior side setbacks generally allow the same 6-foot height, though opacity limits can vary by zone district and by exactly where the fence falls relative to the setback lines.

Can my front-yard fence be solid?
Generally no. Between the front lot line and the front façade line, most zone districts cap height at 4 feet and opacity at 50%, and front-yard fences are not allowed at all in the R-4 and R-5 districts.

What rules apply to a pool fence?
Pool barriers are held to Section 305 of the 2018 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code rather than the general fence height table, and the City states that variances to that pool barrier requirement are not allowed.

Talk to Us About Your Project

Tell us the fence’s purpose, approximate run and height, and whether it touches a front yard, a corner lot, a state highway or trail edge, or a pool. We match the layout to Cherry Hills Village’s height and opacity table before the permit is filed.