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Stewart fence rules: permits and height limits

Do I need a permit to build a fence, and how high can it be?

Stewart, British ColumbiaChecked against official textSources read 2026-11-08

Short answer

In Stewart's residential (R) zones a fence can be up to 1.3 m high in a front yard and 1.8 m elsewhere. The District's Building Permits page does not list fences, but the building bylaw is unreadable, so confirm with the District.

Key facts

PermitNot confirmed. The District's Building Regulation Bylaw No. 843 is a scanned image that could not be read.
Height, front yardIn R zones: not more than 1.3 m in a front yard. In the C1 zone, no fence in a front yard.Zoning Bylaw No. 881, 2014, s. 3.18 · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08
Official wording
No fence in an R zone or C1 zone shall:
Be constructed in a front yard in a C1 zone; and
Exceed 1.3 m in height in a front yard.
Height, side and rear yardsIn R and C1 zones: not more than 1.8 m.Zoning Bylaw No. 881, 2014, s. 3.18 · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08
Official wording
No fence in an R zone or C1 zone shall:
Exceed 1.8 m in height;
Corner lots and sightlinesOn a corner parcel, within the sight triangle 6.0 m from the point where the curb lines intersect, no screening, building or structure may be higher than 1.0 m above the street grade.Zoning Bylaw No. 881, 2014, s. 3.45 Vision Clearance · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08
Official wording
No fence, wall, structure, hedge, bush, shrub, tree or other growth shall be maintained or
to a height greater than 1.0 m above the established grade of the street.
Other rulesNot confirmed. Not found in the official sources that were read.
BylawZoning Bylaw No. 881, 2014 (s. 3.18 to 3.20, 3.45)Building Permits, Building Permits page · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08
Official wording
Zoning Bylaw 881, 2014

How it works

Fence heights are set by the District's Zoning Bylaw No. 881 (sections 3.18 to 3.20 and 3.45). The Building Permits page does not list fences among the work that needs a permit, and the Official Community Plan treats "the erection of a sign or fence" as exempt from development permits in Development Permit Areas 1 and 2. The Building Regulation Bylaw No. 843 is a scanned image, so we could not confirm whether it asks for a permit.

Heights depend on your zone:

  • R zones: not more than 1.3 m in a front yard, and not more than 1.8 m in side and rear yards.
  • C1 zone: no fence in a front yard; not more than 1.8 m elsewhere.
  • C2, C3, C4 and P1 zones: 1.8 m between the front parcel line and the front building line, and 2.5 m outside that area.
  • M and P2 zones: perimeter chain link fences up to 2.5 m.

Steps

  1. Find your zone using the zoning-lookup answer.
  2. Check the height limit for that zone above.
  3. On a corner lot, keep the corner clear (see below).
  4. Ask the District office whether your fence needs a permit before you build.

Good to know

  • On a corner parcel, within the sight triangle 6.0 m from the point where the curb lines intersect, no screening, building or structure may be higher than 1.0 m above the street grade.
  • The zoning bylaw sets no other fence rules that we found beyond height.
  • Fence rules for pools or retaining walls were not found; ask the District.

Official forms and pages

The same question in other places

Hazelton · New Hazelton · Terrace · Prince Rupert · Port Edward · Smithers

Fence height limits in British Columbia, by municipality →

Sources

  1. Zoning Bylaw No. 881, 2014 (PDF) (read 2026-11-08)
  2. Building Permits, District of Stewart (read 2026-11-08)
  3. Official Community Plan Bylaw No. 882, 2014 (PDF) (read 2026-11-08)

Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 4 of 6 facts was matched to the official text; 2 could not be confirmed. How answers are checked.