Of any official municipal post, perhaps the Fence Viewer is among Massachusetts’ most charmingly named. The Fence Viewer, an appointment required in all state localities by Massachusetts General Law, must, among other duties, impound stray cows.
According to University of Massachusetts research, that’s the origin. In 1647, “Massachusetts Bay colonial government recognized that corn crops had to be protected from cattle by good fences,” the Handbook on Fence Viewers states. “...Procedures were established by which Fence Viewers were to deal with landowners, to determine who paid the costs for construction and repairs, and how to handle complaints about cattle that caused damage because they were not properly constrained.”
Just this month, a wandering cow did have to be wrangled in Marshfield — but has not yet happened in Lexington, said David Burns, the town’s appointed volunteer Fence Viewer.
“There are not many cows roaming around Lexington,” he said.
But one enduring function of the role remains persistently relevant: settling neighborly disputes about fences. Even good fences don’t guarantee how a neighbor may respond, and their installation may set off disputes about their size, materials, and placement.
It’s a universal issue even wealth and superstardom can’t avoid. This fall, it was reported that neighbors to Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce railed against a proposed privacy fence outside the couple’s Ohio mansion.
Here in Massachusetts, when Lexington neighbors find their fence plans make them the neighborhood anti-hero, Burns mediates.
“I listen to you, and then I’ll go talk to the other guy,” he said.
Burns is a retired builder and a town volunteer. When the previous Fence Viewer left the position, Burns applied and has been appointed every year for the past six years.
Most disputes are settled through mediation. If the discourse grows hostile, he escalates the dispute to the building commissioner. Some, left unresolved, may graduate into costly and complex legal battles. To avoid that path, one step right out of the gate can spare later complications.
“I do recommend that people spend a couple thousand [dollars], whatever it might be, to get a professional survey right from the get-go,” said Christine, a Rutland resident who asked that her last name be withheld in order to not reactivate a now-settled dispute with her neighbor. In 2020, she and her husband found themselves unexpectedly feuding over their property line.
Professional surveyors can remove some ambiguity by offering an “opinion” about where those lines lie, said Shaine Bonin, a professional land surveyor. Three types of boundary definitions help build that picture: the first one is occupation-based, defined by existing fences, stone walls, or landforms such as rivers and mountains to establish a perimeter; another criterion is recorded boundaries, as indicated by documentation such as deeds; and finally property boundaries, affected by factors you can’t see or survey, said Bonin, such as easements, adverse possession, and other legally determined conditions. Surveyors gather evidence to support the first two distinctions, occupation and records.
“No two surveyors should really have a very differing opinion on the location of the boundary, but it does happen,” said Bonin.
That’s because surveyors are qualified through a common training and certification program — but sometimes the aged histories of New England properties can introduce confusion, such as markings that have long since disappeared. In those cases, the two surveyors meet, compare notes, and come to agreement before escalating. From there, attorneys and courts may determine property boundaries.
Sometimes, a fence installation can illuminate a property line dispute. In a case where one party claims adverse possession of an area, a legal distinction in which use or occupation of land determines ownership, a case may head to court. Bonin said he cautions clients to understand the potential costs of proceeding to legal action.
“That generally costs like $40,000 to litigate,” he said.
In his experience, Bonin said that for homeowners considering erecting fences near boundary lines, start with a survey.
“I’ve surveyed so many fences after the fact that either were just put in, or were not surveyed and put it in a long time ago, and I’ve only ever seen it cause issues,” he said. “... Not only could you end up having to remove the fence if it’s not the right fence or in the right location, you’re now creating a line of occupation. You’re creating elements that may … ripen into an adverse possession case.”
In Amesbury, Fence Viewer is a paid position that’s part of Inspectional Services.
“While the title Fence Viewer may sound antiquated, the responsibilities associated with the role remain an important part of Inspectional Services,” said Jim Wilson, the town’s director of Inspectional Services and official Fence Viewer. “The position oversees the review and approval of fence permits, including fence location, height, and materials, to ensure compliance with Massachusetts law and Amesbury ordinances.” According to local regulation, that position also oversees dispute mediation, which sometimes advances to formal hearings.
“During my tenure, however, we have always been able to resolve these matters before reaching that stage,” he said.
Adam Dash, a Somerville-based attorney, often works with property dispute cases. Most of what he sees looks like this: a homeowner seeks to replace a rotting fence, for example, but a neighbor is encroaching on a strip of land, and they need to resolve it.
“Most people I find tend to be reasonable and can work things out, and then a lawyer can draft the documents,” he said. “A surveyor will do an easement plan, let’s say, that will lay out the borders of this disputed area, label it, and that can get recorded at the registry of deeds with the easement document that the attorney drafts.”
Choosing a fence
Then, it is time to pick a fence. According to Michael Theriault, owner of Woburn-based fence company Reliable the Fence People, four types lead the market. Cedar is a classic, and one of the best looking types, he said.
“It fits a lot of our New England neighborhoods,” he said.
Cedar lasts about 20 years. If that isn’t long enough, some choose vinyl, with limited lifetime warranties, at a lower price point. Aluminum, made to look like wrought iron, typically is installed near pools. And least aesthetic — but least expensive — chain link fence is often used in residences with big yards or dogs.
To get ready for installation, Theriault said after completing a land survey, clear areas that pass through woods or bushes in advance, and avoid planning along irrigation lines. And, take note of local ordinances. For instance in Newton, he said, solid fences may only reach 4 feet tall if installed along a street.
Sightlines are just one reason for fencing, but sound can also be remediated by them as well. Fences built for sound require a different approach than those built for decorative purposes, said Michael Bahtiarian, a principal at Acentech, a Cambridge-based acoustics, noise, and vibration consulting firm.
Bahatarian said that his team commonly fields calls from homeowners looking to limit road noise and air conditioner units.
“The typical acoustics problem is broken into three parts,” he said. “It’s the source, the path, and the receiver.”
Containing air conditioner noise is one common complaint — but Bahtarian said that in some cases, it may be more cost-efficient and effective to build a sound-limiting container around the unit, as opposed to installing an entire fence at ground level.
“If you can see light through it, then sound can get through it,” he said. A fence must block sightlines in order to block sound as well. And weight matters: as a rule, 1 to 2 pounds per square foot of weight can help remediate the sound. Typically, a noise wall can limit about 20 decibels of sound reduction, he said, often seen in industrial projects — a homeowner might expect to limit about 5 to 10 decibels — usually still perceptible, but reduced.
In Rutland, two years passed before Christine and Brian found resolution. They finally erected a permanent fence following the resolution of a legal dispute that ended two years of unsettling behavior from next door, including the destruction of a previous fence on the property.
“It scared our son,” she recalled.
The détente — and the new structure — brought harmony.
“The fence really made me feel better in my own backyard,” she said. Except for one thing.
While the neighbors respect the new agreement, their cats do not, and continue to visit Christine’s unfenced vegetable garden for periodic relief.
Not everything knows how to respect a boundary.