Florida seawall replacement: scope, sequence and who reviews it

Florida statute exempts seawall restoration from certain state permitting, but the exemption is measured in inches.

• Section 403.813(1)(e) exempts "the restoration of seawalls at their previous locations or upland of, or within 18 inches waterward of, their previous locations."
• Section 403.813(1)(o) exempts the construction of private seawalls in wetlands or other surface waters when the construction is between and adjoins at both ends existing seawalls, follows a continuous and uniform seawall construction line with the existing seawalls, is not more than 150 feet in length, and does not violate existing water quality standards, impede navigation, or affect flood control.
• Neither exemption supersedes permitting requirements under Chapter 161.

Read carefully: An exemption from one agency is not an exemption from all of them. A project can be exempt under 403.813 and still require city, county, water management district or Army Corps authorisation.

Broward County sets a countywide minimum tidal flood barrier elevation of 5.0 feet NAVD88, with a transition provision that runs to 2050.

• Tidal flood barriers shall have a minimum elevation of five (5) feet NAVD88.
• Applications for new or substantially repaired or substantially rehabilitated tidal flood barriers submitted prior to January 1, 2035 may be permitted a minimum elevation of four (4) feet NAVD88, if designed and constructed to accommodate a minimum elevation of five (5) feet NAVD88 by January 1, 2050.
• Adopted by the Broward County Board of County Commissioners on March 31, 2020, as Article XXV of Chapter 39 of the Broward County Code of Ordinances.
• The standard is written to address flood patterns and sea level rise projections through 2070.
• The standard does not apply to oceanfront beaches or shorelines seaward of the Coastal Construction Control Line.

Read carefully: The 4-foot figure is a conditional transition allowance, not an alternative standard. It is only available where the barrier is designed and built to be raised to 5 feet by 2050.

Miami Beach requires a higher seawall elevation than the Broward County standard — 5.7 feet NAVD.

• All new seawalls must be constructed to an elevation of 5.7 feet NAVD, or 4 feet NAVD if designed to support a future elevation of 5.7 feet NAVD.
• In January 2021 the City strengthened a 2016 policy into an ordinance requiring new seawalls at 5.7 feet NAVD and requiring failing seawalls to be rebuilt to that minimum.
• The City updated the Seawall Ordinance on July 23, 2025, changing definitions and construction standards for new and existing seawalls and other tidal flood barriers.

Read carefully: Crossing a municipal line in South Florida can change the required elevation. Miami Beach at 5.7 feet NAVD and Broward at 5.0 feet NAVD88 are different numbers on different data.

Pompano Beach is unusual: its code sets both a floor and a ceiling on tidal flood barrier height.

• Tidal flood barriers shall have a minimum elevation of five feet NAVD88 and shall not exceed an elevation of five feet ten inches NAVD88.
• The requirement sits at § 151.05 of the Pompano Beach Code of Ordinances.

Read carefully: A maximum height matters in practice. A design that satisfies a neighbouring city can be non-compliant here.

Cape Coral changed its seawall alternative permitting requirements for applications dated on or after January 1, 2022.

• Where there is an existing vertical bulkhead seawall immediately adjacent to a proposed alternative seawall slope, signed and sealed plans by a Florida-registered professional engineer must accompany the application, including construction details for retaining walls installed or extended at 90 degrees to the existing seawall and securely attached for erosion control.
• Where there is no adjacent vertical bulkhead, an as-built survey prepared by a Florida-licensed surveyor must be available on site for the inspector, showing the elevation at the property line abutting the waterway and the controlling weir sill elevation, and verifying the installation does not extend past the property line.
• Alternative designs adjacent to a seawall must install a securely attached wing wall for erosion control. Placing fill in the canal to avoid this requirement is not permitted.
• Construction stakes must be on site so inspectors can visually confirm the slope does not extend above the water past the property line into the canal right of way.

Seawall permitting can involve several agencies at once, depending on scope and waterway.

• Depending on the project, review may involve the city or county building department, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the regional water management district, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Read carefully: Which agencies apply is determined by your specific waterway and scope of work, not by your city alone.