As the property owner, you are responsible for knowing your exact property lines. All fences must be fully assembled within those lines unless your neighbors sign an ownership agreement allowing the fence to be built on the property line. When planning your fence, keep in mind that the fence cannot block traffic visibility, public sidewalks and alleyways, or access to utilities such as fire hydrants or telephone poles.

Northland Fence will help you customize your fence based on both your property layout and individual needs. Our fence planning tool is a great resource during the planning stages.

Unless there is an ownership agreement for a fence being built on a property line, you are under no obligation to inform your neighbors that you are building a fence inside your property lines. To keep the peace with your neighbors, it is always common courtesy to keep communications open during the installation process.

The City of Stillwater, MN requires a zoning permit for any fence less than 7 feet in height. For fences taller than 7 feet, they require a building permit with additional variances to get approval for fences taller than 8 feet. When you submit your permit application, you will need to attach an accurate site plan that shows all aspects of your property.

The installation team will call Gopher State One Call for all Minnesota fencing projects. Northland Fence will find and mark all utility lines before we begin the installation. If you ever decide to install a fence on your own, you should not start digging until after you call the utilities!

In Stillwater, the maximum fence height is 8 feet. However, any fence taller than 7 feet requires a building permit as opposed to a zoning permit. If you plan to build a fence taller than 8 feet, you will be required to obtain additional variances on your building permit. Any fence that is installed on the front setback of your property has a height limit requirement of 4 feet.

It is best to avoid constructing a fence on an easement as they might need access to utility easements at any time. If you find that you need to surround an easement, you will need permission from the Stillwater Planning Department before you begin the installation.

Minnesota has outlawed the construction of electric and barbed wire fences.