Town approvalNo seawall shall be erected, constructed or repaired until the Town approves its location, design, materials and strength in writing - Bay Harbor Islands Code Sec. 23-12(10)
Building permitPermits are required for listed work that expressly includes seawall repairs; working without a required permit carries a fine of up to $250 a day, $500 a day for a repeat - Sec. 5-6(a),(d)
HeightSeawall cap at 5.50 ft above mean sea level; listed bay-facing lots may go to 6.0 ft - Sec. 23-12(10)(c)
ConstructionReinforced concrete with a cap beam on concrete piles driven to bedrock, at least 2 ft into the soil; rip-rap cannot replace a seawall, and old tie-backs must be removed when a wall is replaced - Sec. 23-12(10)(g)
Lot lineNo part of a seawall may extend past the lot line into the waterway; piles and cap beam may encroach only with town and agency approval - Sec. 23-12(10)(f)
DesignDesigned and certified by a registered engineer, built by a licensed contractor; final acceptance and bond release by the Town - Sec. 23-12(10)(d)-(e)
Existing low wallsNonconforming seawalls may continue to be repaired; raising them is encouraged, not required - Sec. 23-12(10)(h)
Failed wallsLeaving a failed seawall unrepaired, or its rubble in place, is unlawful and a public nuisance - Sec. 23-12(11)
County Class I permitMiami-Dade DERM must issue a Class I permit before any work in, on, over or upon tidal waters anywhere in the county, including inside cities - County Code Sec. 24-48(1)(d) and 24-48.1(1)(a)
Short formRebuilding or repairing a seawall at the mean high water line or no more than 18 inches waterward of the existing wall qualifies for a short-form application. It also qualifies where existing primary support piles stick out no more than 14 inches, if the new wall is no more than 18 inches waterward of those piles - Sec. 24-48.2(I)(A)(1)
Who decidesA short-form application limited to seawalls is decided by the Department with no County Commission hearing. Most standard-form applications are now decided by the Director, apart from listed exceptions such as variances - Sec. 24-48.2(I)(B)(1)(iii)-(iv) and (II)(C)(1), as amended by Ord. 25-73 (1 July 2025)
County clockOrd. 25-73 Sec. 8 directs the County to issue a Completeness Summary within 10 calendar days of submission and a final decision on short-form seawall applications within 90 calendar days after that summary. The applicant may waive these limits in writing. The County Mayor reported the timeframes apply from 1 Dec 2025 (report to the Commission dated 17 Apr 2026)
No Class I neededSealing cracks and spalls on the cap or face, repairing pilasters, backfilling behind the wall, and limited riprap or sand-cement bags at the toe (no more than 2 ft out) - Sec. 24-48(3)(b)-(f)
Quick approval insteadRepairing or replacing the cap or the tieback system gets a written expedited administrative authorization, answered within 10 business days, if the contractor submits structurally approved plans from the building authority - Sec. 24-48(4)(f)-(g)
Not a substituteA county permit does not relieve the applicant from obtaining all required federal, state and local permits - Sec. 24-48.5(1)
State (FDEP)No state environmental permit is needed to restore a seawall at its previous location, upland of it, or within 18 inches waterward of it - Fla. Stat. 403.813(1)(e). The exemption does not cover permission to use state-owned submerged lands or local requirements - 403.813(1)
State-owned bottomWork over sovereign submerged lands still needs Board of Trustees permission even when the seawall work is exempt - Fla. Stat. 403.813(1)
Federal (Army Corps)A Department of the Army permit is required for structures or work in or affecting navigable waters, either under a nationwide or regional general permit or an individual permit - 33 CFR 322.3(a)