Picket Fence Can Stand for Now, Glendale Council Says

Though it is currently illegal, Daniel Trevor can keep his fence--at least for another month.

And in more good news for Glendale fence lovers, the City Council agreed Tuesday night to look into the fence issue to determine if a change in the city’s laws is in order.

Trevor, who ran afoul of city zoning laws last year when he erected a 3 1/2-foot-tall white picket fence in front of his house, appeared with his wife and lawyer to plead his case before the City Council.

Much to his surprise, the council voted 3 to 1 to take the fence matter under consideration, temporarily suspending any enforcement action against Trevor until a hearing Feb. 10 on his request for a variance--an exemption from the code.

Councilwoman Ginger Bremberg cast the dissenting vote. Councilman Sheldon Baker was absent.

“I am surprised,” Trevor said after the vote. “I didn’t expect this. But I am very happy.”

Trevor moved to Glendale about two years ago and found his home surrounded by others that had fences, so he built his own. But the city’s zoning code does not allow fences taller than 18 inches. If a fence in violation of the code stands for at least a year before the city cites it, however, the fence is allowed to remain, said Sam Engle, director of Glendale’s Neighborhood Services, which enforces the zoning law.

The city’s fence law has been on the books since 1922 and was created to preserve the open views that were once commonplace throughout the area, city officials said.

But fences can be found now throughout the city, either because they slipped through the cracks of code enforcement or because a variance was granted--prompting some council members to ask whether the law needs revision.

“I think it’s high time we stopped acting like an ostrich with our heads in the sand,” said Councilman David Weaver, who noted the city’s seemingly selective enforcement of the fence code. He said the law has stood virtually unreviewed for 76 years and is due for rethinking.

City administrators were directed to report back to the City Council in one week with a brief history of the issue, as well as possible changes.

It is a highly complex issue with “so many competing needs and interests” that it deserves review, said Councilwoman Eileen Givens.