Those houses need to be fenced in, because they absolutely would be. Like Phil said bluntly: they are Nimbys. In this case it would be a very literal Not In My Backyard, they want privacy and to keep people from shortcutting through and using their land.
It might seem out of place but the tall oil industry (?) fence would be a stand in for a high security privacy fencing. (Just have to imagine that they cover the inside of it with vines or bamboo)