A stockade fence as a side fence is what I need so I don't have to watch my "neighbor" work on cars, trucks, and motorcycles every day. Grinding, blowing, banging and starting super loud engines 20 feet away. This whole urban neighborhood is a shit hole.
these stupid fences cause a lot of accidents. They obstruct not just your vision but the vision of cars, police and fire department. The police loath and despise stockade fences and for good reason.
We have a 3 foot high wood picket fence on all 4 sides of our property. It keeps our pets safe and is aesthetically pleasing at the same time. A stockade fence will, of course, keep pets (and kids) safe, but at what cost? I think both pets and kids would feel imprisoned and frustrated by a fence one can neither see through nor over. Our dogs love watching the world go by because they can see it. The 19th century English designer William Morris said, "Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful." A stockade fence is neither beautiful nor practical, but a picket fence has the added advantage of also being a support for clematis vines and roses, something a stockade fence cannot do because there is no air circulation for the plants. It functions as a wall that allows for poor growing conditions for vining plants or flower beds that are up against it.
We planted 12, 5 foot giant arborvitae trees last year across the front of our property. They are now over 10 feet and very wide also..hope to have an entire live privacy fence within the next 2 yrs.
Living on a small lot, where as it is, neighbors can see me when I'm in my backyard, side yards and on back and side porches. I'll take a private 6-foot or higher fence any day. A large lot on a private street may not need a fence, but not everyone is so fortunate or in need of a large lot.
In the second picture, you write "The property owner shows some generosity to the people on the street" which is incorrect. It's dictated by city code, what type, and height are allowed. The owners likely didn't like people camping out on the right side of the gate, since the sidewalk drops away, and it's shaded, a perfect spot to hang out, untill the fence went up that is. 😖
Well the stockade fence may not be the most welcoming edifice but it sure beats what I witnessed in the City of Hartford a few days ago, which was bars in the windows of the first few floors of numerous apartment houses, and on top, on the roof, coils of barbed wire spooked out to presumably keep out invaders. If that doesnt say "High trust society" I dont know what does! Street level businesses -- mostly smoke shops and bodegas -- featured bars on windows and doors, high security locks, cameras and rolltiop steel doors they pulled down when the business day is over (which invariably are covered with grafitti) There you have it, an inviting streetscape. City beautiful.
I agree that stockade fences are generally ugly, and are downright tacky when in a front yard. Just as bad are the white plastic stockade-like fences that seem to be popping up everywhere, especially in some small parcel subdivisions.
Good fences make good neighbors. I put up mine the second year I was here. A rental house next door (the neighborhood was generally very nice/ppl too) housed a weird-ass retarded 'woman' and her ancient mother. She would come up on my porch and start banging on my door until I would answer. She looked like a guy, massive. I tried to be kind, but that fed her weird fetish for coming over. I'd look out and the 'big thing' was out wandering about my yard looking at/ponder everything. Finally, I had it and waited for her/it to come on my porch. Whipped open the door and went off on her in an absolutely furious rage and scared the shit out of her. She waddled home at top speed.
Thought that was the end of it. Ohhh Nooooo. One very hot day, apparently, she was miserably hot and decided to shed her outer layers. I'm sitting on my couch and happened to look out my living room window...there she is in her* totally nakedly flabby splendor, sitting on her bed right next to the window, curtains wide open (scratching things). I got the whole view...AHHHHHH!!!, I was traumatized to the core!!! THAT WAS IT! Called the fencing company and had that fence up w/in 2 weeks. I was so stressed living there, figured that one day she would come over with a knife and break in or something. They finally moved away. Her mother went into assisted living. Thank ya Jesus...then, other dregs of society moved in. Good fences and a weapon make for good neighbors.
(*Well at least I learned that she was a woman - in appearance anyway. Like I needed to know.)
I am fighting right now. I called code enforcement several times. These big giant fences obstruct sight triangles. They are only supposed to be in back yards or around a deck. These damn things are littering the west. People love them and never ever ever want to replace them. I have no idea what this love affair with these nasty wooden fences is all about. Now people are putting big giant hedges in their front yard so you cannot see the address. I feel bad for law enforcement having to approach a house like that. If you call them, and the police don't want to come in and rescue you, oh well.
Nice post and evidently my local county council agrees with you. They have strict limits on fence height and visibility (3' and 75% if memory serves correct) as the fence approaches 10' of the street or public sidewalk. Our main issue here is the deer, which can and do easily jump such fences, pretty much negating their use altogether, other than as ornamental devices. Which of course means "jerry-rigged" deer fences around young trees and any attempts at flower gardens in the public space out front. In the back I've got a genuine NM style 6' deer fence made from pinon branches. They don't mess with that and I do what I please in the back.
But as other commenters have noted, the reason people are so "fence happy" these days (if indeed they are) is that neighbors don't appear to appreciate that they ARE neighbors anymore and common sense civility is apparently something of days gone by. Sad.
I live in a very old home on a fairly narrow road. My house is quite close to the road. The road was gravel when I moved here and probably a one lane path years ago. It is the only road to the top of the hill. I planted a menage of trees and shrubs years ago that are now mature. Somebody must have complained to the town they had to slow to 55 from 70 driving by so the town with no warning, bush hogged my shrubs. This is after they killed my 2 - 200 yr/o sugar maples with salt. I'd put up a Vatican style wall if I could afford it and get by zoning.
A stockade fence as a side fence is what I need so I don't have to watch my "neighbor" work on cars, trucks, and motorcycles every day. Grinding, blowing, banging and starting super loud engines 20 feet away. This whole urban neighborhood is a shit hole.
I have an identical situation in a rural setting. Love my stockade side fence.
these stupid fences cause a lot of accidents. They obstruct not just your vision but the vision of cars, police and fire department. The police loath and despise stockade fences and for good reason.
I feel like you are ignoring the safety issues of children and pets in favor of aesthetics.
You can have a fence that keeps children and pets in a yard without them being ugly. Wrought iron generally looks great as do picket fences.
We have a 3 foot high wood picket fence on all 4 sides of our property. It keeps our pets safe and is aesthetically pleasing at the same time. A stockade fence will, of course, keep pets (and kids) safe, but at what cost? I think both pets and kids would feel imprisoned and frustrated by a fence one can neither see through nor over. Our dogs love watching the world go by because they can see it. The 19th century English designer William Morris said, "Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful." A stockade fence is neither beautiful nor practical, but a picket fence has the added advantage of also being a support for clematis vines and roses, something a stockade fence cannot do because there is no air circulation for the plants. It functions as a wall that allows for poor growing conditions for vining plants or flower beds that are up against it.
In a high trust society you don't need a fence and your children are safe by default (as long as you raise them right).
We planted 12, 5 foot giant arborvitae trees last year across the front of our property. They are now over 10 feet and very wide also..hope to have an entire live privacy fence within the next 2 yrs.
Much bigger than a stockaded fence, but green. Some interesting tradeoffs there.
Living on a small lot, where as it is, neighbors can see me when I'm in my backyard, side yards and on back and side porches. I'll take a private 6-foot or higher fence any day. A large lot on a private street may not need a fence, but not everyone is so fortunate or in need of a large lot.
In the second picture, you write "The property owner shows some generosity to the people on the street" which is incorrect. It's dictated by city code, what type, and height are allowed. The owners likely didn't like people camping out on the right side of the gate, since the sidewalk drops away, and it's shaded, a perfect spot to hang out, untill the fence went up that is. 😖
Well the stockade fence may not be the most welcoming edifice but it sure beats what I witnessed in the City of Hartford a few days ago, which was bars in the windows of the first few floors of numerous apartment houses, and on top, on the roof, coils of barbed wire spooked out to presumably keep out invaders. If that doesnt say "High trust society" I dont know what does! Street level businesses -- mostly smoke shops and bodegas -- featured bars on windows and doors, high security locks, cameras and rolltiop steel doors they pulled down when the business day is over (which invariably are covered with grafitti) There you have it, an inviting streetscape. City beautiful.
I fully agree with Jim.
Reminded me of this classic Far Side comic...
This is one of the only links I could find: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1939806836878192/
If that doesn't work, search for "And now, Randy, by the use of song, the male sparrow will stake out his territory"
I agree that stockade fences are generally ugly, and are downright tacky when in a front yard. Just as bad are the white plastic stockade-like fences that seem to be popping up everywhere, especially in some small parcel subdivisions.
Perhaps a row of Czech Hedgehogs instead?
Are you angling for a 2nd Seaside Prize🤔🤔
Good fences make good neighbors. I put up mine the second year I was here. A rental house next door (the neighborhood was generally very nice/ppl too) housed a weird-ass retarded 'woman' and her ancient mother. She would come up on my porch and start banging on my door until I would answer. She looked like a guy, massive. I tried to be kind, but that fed her weird fetish for coming over. I'd look out and the 'big thing' was out wandering about my yard looking at/ponder everything. Finally, I had it and waited for her/it to come on my porch. Whipped open the door and went off on her in an absolutely furious rage and scared the shit out of her. She waddled home at top speed.
Thought that was the end of it. Ohhh Nooooo. One very hot day, apparently, she was miserably hot and decided to shed her outer layers. I'm sitting on my couch and happened to look out my living room window...there she is in her* totally nakedly flabby splendor, sitting on her bed right next to the window, curtains wide open (scratching things). I got the whole view...AHHHHHH!!!, I was traumatized to the core!!! THAT WAS IT! Called the fencing company and had that fence up w/in 2 weeks. I was so stressed living there, figured that one day she would come over with a knife and break in or something. They finally moved away. Her mother went into assisted living. Thank ya Jesus...then, other dregs of society moved in. Good fences and a weapon make for good neighbors.
(*Well at least I learned that she was a woman - in appearance anyway. Like I needed to know.)
I am fighting right now. I called code enforcement several times. These big giant fences obstruct sight triangles. They are only supposed to be in back yards or around a deck. These damn things are littering the west. People love them and never ever ever want to replace them. I have no idea what this love affair with these nasty wooden fences is all about. Now people are putting big giant hedges in their front yard so you cannot see the address. I feel bad for law enforcement having to approach a house like that. If you call them, and the police don't want to come in and rescue you, oh well.
Nice post and evidently my local county council agrees with you. They have strict limits on fence height and visibility (3' and 75% if memory serves correct) as the fence approaches 10' of the street or public sidewalk. Our main issue here is the deer, which can and do easily jump such fences, pretty much negating their use altogether, other than as ornamental devices. Which of course means "jerry-rigged" deer fences around young trees and any attempts at flower gardens in the public space out front. In the back I've got a genuine NM style 6' deer fence made from pinon branches. They don't mess with that and I do what I please in the back.
But as other commenters have noted, the reason people are so "fence happy" these days (if indeed they are) is that neighbors don't appear to appreciate that they ARE neighbors anymore and common sense civility is apparently something of days gone by. Sad.
I live in a very old home on a fairly narrow road. My house is quite close to the road. The road was gravel when I moved here and probably a one lane path years ago. It is the only road to the top of the hill. I planted a menage of trees and shrubs years ago that are now mature. Somebody must have complained to the town they had to slow to 55 from 70 driving by so the town with no warning, bush hogged my shrubs. This is after they killed my 2 - 200 yr/o sugar maples with salt. I'd put up a Vatican style wall if I could afford it and get by zoning.
That fence will be covered in graffiti in two years. Think of the lost artistic opportunities with a picket fence!