Georgetown Township asks its planners when a 6-foot security fence can go up in a front yard

JENISON, Mich. — Georgetown Township’s zoning administrator has asked the Planning Commission to decide what the township’s fence ordinance means when it allows a “security fence,” after a contractor argued that a 6-foot fence on the lot next door had already settled the question.

The issue was on the commission’s Oct. 7 agenda as a discussion item, according to a staff memo posted with the agenda. Minutes of that meeting had not been posted as of Thursday morning.

Section 3.8 of the zoning ordinance generally limits fences to 3 feet in a front yard and 6 feet elsewhere. The zoning administrator may allow 4 feet in front if the fence will not block the view of traffic or pedestrians along the street. The section also says a security fence in a non-residential zone, or one protecting public utility buildings, may carry a barbed arm that raises it to 7 feet.

The question came up when a property owner on Port Sheldon Court applied to build a 6-foot fence in a front yard, the memo says. The administrator first told the applicant it was too tall.

The applicant answered that the neighboring property had recently put up a 6-foot security fence in its own front yard. A former zoning administrator had approved that fence as part of a building permit for the interior remodel of a commercial building and site work, including fuel tanks, charging stations, lighting and perimeter fencing, according to the memo.

The applicant’s contractor then argued that the security-fence language allows a fence of up to 7 feet with barbed wire in a front yard, as long as it is there for security. That matches the reading the earlier administrator applied next door, the memo says.

The current administrator decided to stay consistent with the neighboring approval, the memo says, but told the applicant the rule would go to the commission for an interpretation going forward.

Staff asked commissioners to answer several questions: whether a 6-foot security fence is ever allowed in a front yard without a variance; whether a private business asking for one is reason enough; and whether security fences should be reserved for public utility buildings.

The same agenda carried zoning amendments the commission had already started, including rules for planned unit developments. Staff offered stricter wording under which any new deviation added at the final-plan stage would send a project back for preliminary review and another public hearing. The staff notes said the township attorney considered the earlier proposed wording, which turned on whether a final plan is in “substantial” conformance, legally defensible.

The township board met Monday, Oct. 12. The Planning Commission’s Oct. 21 regular meeting has been canceled because there are no agenda items, according to a notice Zoning Administrator Ryan Schab posted Thursday, Oct. 15. The commission still plans a public hearing on proposed amendments to the township master plan Nov. 4 at 7 p.m. at the township office, 1515 Baldwin St.

Updated Oct. 13, 2026: Changed the Oct. 12 township board meeting to the past tense. As of Tuesday morning, minutes of the Oct. 7 Planning Commission meeting still had not been posted on the township’s agenda center, so the commission’s answer on the fence question is not yet public.

Updated Oct. 15, 2026: The township canceled the Planning Commission’s Oct. 21 meeting, saying it had no agenda items, so the schedule paragraph now reflects that. The Nov. 4 master plan hearing is unchanged, and minutes of the Oct. 7 meeting were still not posted as of Thursday afternoon.

Sources:
Georgetown Charter Township, Planning Commission agenda, Oct. 7, 2026, https://www.gtwp.com/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=465
Georgetown Charter Township, staff memo, “Ordinance Discussion Regarding Sec. 3.8 Fences,” Oct. 7, 2026 meeting, https://www.gtwp.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Item/15785?fileID=98504
Georgetown Charter Township, “Explanations of Tweaks to Ordinances Already Initiated,” Oct. 7, 2026 meeting, https://www.gtwp.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Item/15783?fileID=98499
Georgetown Charter Township, “Notice of Public Hearing for the Master Plan,” Sept. 2, 2026, https://www.gtwp.com/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=454
Georgetown Charter Township, home page meeting calendar, accessed Oct. 8, 2026, https://www.gtwp.com/
Georgetown Charter Township, “Public Notice” canceling the Oct. 21, 2026 Planning Commission meeting, posted Oct. 15, 2026, https://www.gtwp.com/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_10212026-1717
Photo: Ildar Sagdejev (Specious), “2008-07-30 Fence along Commerce Blvd at RDU,” July 30, 2008, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), cropped and color-corrected; derivative under the same ShareAlike license, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2008-07-30_Fence_along_Commerce_Blvd_at_RDU.jpg

Georgetown Township

Tags: Georgetown Township · News · Planning and Zoning · Township Board · Water and Utilities