Denver Fence Guys: Board Grants One-Lot Fence Variance

COMMERCE CITY, CO – October 22, 2026 – PRESSADVANTAGE –

A Denver Board of Adjustment decision finalized October 13 grants a height variance for a 10-foot residential fence where six feet ordinarily applies. For Denver Fence Guys’ residential-fencing market, the case shows why a taller neighbor’s fence is not a blanket permission to build one, and why a variance still leaves final permits to be secured.

The ruling in case 41-2026 concerns a replacement fence, not a new citywide standard. The board heard the application September 29 and approved a plan for a section of fence to rise to 10 feet along a backyard boundary before tapering to six feet. Its written findings, adopted October 13, rely on the code’s neighborhood-compatibility criteria and the unusual layout of this particular property. The board did not change the normal limit for other Denver lots.

The home has three public street frontages, and its front door faces a different street from its mailing address. According to the board decision, city staff used the ten homes sharing one street frontage as the comparison group. The other nine already had 10-foot fences. That pattern helped explain why the proposed replacement could be more compatible with the immediate block than another six-foot fence, but it did not create a right for every owner on the street to build at the same height.

The existing fence at the property is six feet high and, according to the applicants’ testimony in the decision, is approaching replacement. The proposed taller section would follow the northern property line, with its final length stepping down to six feet. The board approved the plans submitted in this case, not every possible layout, material or future alteration at the address. City staff told the board that granting this variance would not set a neighborhood precedent.

Denver’s fence-and-wall guidance lists a four-foot front-yard limit and a six-foot backyard limit outside industrial areas. The city’s explanation of the primary street-facing facade matters here: it is the wall facing the primary street, often the wall with the front door, and a proposed fence’s position relative to it affects the ordinary height allowance. Denver also says greater height can be allowed in certain circumstances under the zoning code. That possibility calls for an applicable approval, not an assumption based on fences already standing.

The October ruling carries an explicit warning about what comes next. The board says its variance is not approval to proceed with development. The board-approved plans must be submitted to Development Services when the owners seek final construction permits, and construction remains prohibited until the required zoning and permit reviews are complete. A favorable hearing outcome therefore settles only the question the board was asked to decide.

The city’s general guidance distinguishes zoning and building permits as well. It says fences over four feet require a zoning permit; post-hole-dug fences require a building permit if taller than eight feet, while other fence and wall types require one above four feet. Proposed materials, height, placement and construction method can change what must be submitted. The city asks for a site plan locating structures, lot lines, streets and alleys, plus the proposed fence’s dimensions and materials; an over-height proposal also calls for elevations. The final requirements must be checked for the actual design and property.

Nothing in this variance changes pool-barrier requirements, historic-property review or masonry-wall engineering. Those issues were not before the board. Nor does the record name Denver Fence Guys as the applicant or builder. The company’s website describes its existing residential and commercial fence installation, repair and maintenance work across the metro area, which is the limited connection between the public ruling and its service.

For an owner considering a replacement, the practical sequence is to identify the property and street-facing facade, draw the proposed line and height, then check the city’s permit guidance against that specific plan. The October decision offers an example of how a board can evaluate an exception, but the approved plans and remaining permits govern that one site. Denver Fence Guys’ website provides information about the company’s existing fencing services; the city’s linked records provide the controlling account of the ruling.

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For more information about Denver Fence Guys, contact the company here:

Denver Fence Guys – Denver
Barrett Pribyl
+17206153238
barrett@denverfenceguys.com
5455 Dahlia St unit b, Commerce City, CO 80022, United States

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