help with flat roof replacement with railing

Looking for guidance. We purchased a 1925 colonial over the summer. It has a side porch that was enclosed in 1967 which has a flat roof and a metal railing around the edge which is 26 inches high. There is an egress door onto the roof so the contractor and the town both say the replacement rail needs to be 39 inch tall which sounds awful aesthetically. What are my options? Could I keep the current rail and replace the roof under it? (not ideal because we were hoping to do a wooden rail but better than a 39 inch rail). Or am I worrying too much and the 39 inch rail will be fine? Roof is currently leaking and has 4 layers so it needs to be completely torn off. In upstate NY if that makes a difference. It is not in a historical preservation area.