WallDockDeck
Deerfield Beach · Broward County

Do I need a permit to repair a seawall in Deerfield Beach?

Yes, plus county licensecity permit + county license

Yes. Deerfield Beach's land development code says no seawall or other shoreline structure may be built until the plans have the required approvals, and the city's Building Division, with plan review and inspections run by CAP Government, issues Florida Building Code permits. A substantial repair must meet the city's tidal flood barrier standard, including a cap 18 to 42 inches wide. Broward County also requires its own Environmental Resource License, often a general license for a repair in the same place.

Source: Deerfield Beach LDC Sec. 98-87 (Supp. 87, thru Ord. 2024/011); City Building Services page; Broward County Code Ch. 27 Art. XI Secs. 27-333, 27-336 (Supp. 72); s. 403.813(1)(e), F.S. (2026); 33 CFR 322.3(a) · Verified 2026-10

The detail

CityDocks and shoreline infrastructure, including seawalls and bulkheads, must meet city, county, state and district rules; no construction may occur until plans have the required approvals, and the owner is responsible for all other agencies' permits - LDC Sec. 98-87(d)(1)a. Substantial repair = work along more than 50% of the property's shoreline, or attached structures costing more than 50% of a tidal flood barrier - Sec. 98-87; such barriers need 5.0 ft NAVD88 (4.0 ft for applications before 1 Jan 2035), natural limerock rip-rap at the face, a top no higher than 7 ft NAVD88 or the required finished grade, a cap 18 to 42 inches wide, and no retaining wall on top of the cap - Sec. 98-87. The city says CAP Government handles Florida Building Code permit applications, plan approvals and inspections, with online submittal since 15 Dec 2025, and that through ePermitsOneStop customers can apply for city building permits and associated Broward County permits together - City Building Services page; inspection requests made by 3:00 PM are scheduled for the next business day. Dock decking may rest on a seawall cap only with sealed engineering showing it can carry the load, and then no more than six inches above the cap - Sec. 98-87(d)(1)g.
Broward CountyConstruction in regulated aquatic resources needs a county Environmental Resource License (ERL) - Broward County Code Sec. 27-333(a)(1). Repairing an existing functional seawall no more than 1 ft waterward of its authorized location, or a new wall within 1 ft of the old wet face with the old wall left in place, qualifies for a general license (Sec. 27-336(a)(1)b.), as do refacing, crack filling, seepage holes and other minor repairs (n.) and raising the cap in the same footprint (o.); the code says a general license is issued within 10 days of a complete application - Sec. 27-336(a)(1)
StateRestoring a seawall at its previous location, upland of it, or within 18 inches waterward is exempt from a state environmental resource permit; the exemption does not replace permission to use state-owned submerged land or county and city requirements, and does not cover chapter 161 coastal permits - s. 403.813(1), (1)(e), F.S.
FederalA U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Department of the Army) authorization is required for structures or work in or affecting navigable waters, unless exempt or covered by a nationwide or regional general permit - 33 CFR 322.3(a) (Rivers and Harbors Act s. 10)

Your city's height sheet

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The county rule behind this

What applies across Broward County, and where each city departs from it.

Broward CountySeawall requirements county-wide

The same question, nearby

The rule changes at the city line, not the county line.

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Twelve signs a seawall is failing

What to look for, where to look for it, and what it means when you find it. Walk your wall in twenty minutes.

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