WallDockDeck
Gulf Stream · Palm Beach County

How big a dock can I build in Gulf Stream?

5 ft wide, inside a lot-by-lot docking zonemax dock and boat 70 ft on lots with 100 ft frontage or less

Gulf Stream allows one wooden dock per single-family lot, no wider than 5 ft, parallel to the seawall, and only after site plan review. Everything - dock, lift and boat - must stay inside a docking zone offset from the lot's setback centerlines: at least 15 ft on each side, with total setbacks of at least 30% of the frontage, on lots with 100 ft or more of water. Exhibit B in the code lists the maximum dock and boat length for each waterfront lot.

Source: Town of Gulf Stream Code Ch. 66 (Zoning) Sec. 66-369 and Exhibit B (through Ord. 22-4, 4-8-22); Fla. Stat. 403.813(1)(b) (2026); 33 CFR 322.3(a) · Verified 2026-10

The detail

ReviewAll new docks and significant alterations need site plan review and approval; one dock per lot of record in the single-family district - Town Code 66-369, 66-369(1)
Width and orientationNo dock wider than 5 ft; boats, docks and lifts parallel to the seawall - 66-369(4), (6)b-c
HeightNo higher than the abutting seawall or 5.5 ft above mean sea level, whichever is greater; handrails, steps and lights no more than 4 ft above the dock - 66-369(6)d
Docking zoneNeither dock, lift nor any part of the boat may extend past the docking zone. Lots with 100 ft or more of water frontage: 15 ft minimum offset from each setback centerline and total setbacks at least 30% of the frontage. Lots under 100 ft and cove-end lots: 5 ft minimum offset. Cove-end lots and lots with 100 ft or less: dock and boat each no longer than 70 ft - 66-369(6)e
Lot-by-lot tableExhibit B lists water frontage, maximum dock length at 5 ft wide and maximum boat length for each lot in Gulfstream Cove and the H.V. Pope and unplatted lots - 66-369 Exhibit B
LiftsUp to four dolphins; low-profile piling lifts no more than 5 ft above the seawall for boats up to 34 ft; a lifted boat may have no flybridge or tower and no part more than 10 ft above the seawall - 66-369(5), (6)a
Floating platformOne in place of a boat lift, black, no more than 8 ft by 16 ft and 12 inches out of the water, for up to two craft of 14 ft - 66-369(6)h
MaterialsAll docks must be wood; no concrete docks - 66-369(7)
ProhibitedBoathouses, fixed covers, fuel pumps, diving boards, commercial vessels and dock rentals - 66-369(3),(5)
State exemptionA private, non-commercial dock on pilings with 1,000 sq ft or less of over-water surface (500 sq ft in Outstanding Florida Waters), and the only exempt dock along 65 ft of shoreline (or one per lot if the lot is narrower), needs no state environmental permit - Fla. Stat. 403.813(1)(b). The exemption does not grant permission to use state-owned submerged lands and does not override city or county rules - 403.813(1)
FederalStructures in navigable waters need a Department of the Army permit, general or individual - 33 CFR 322.3(a)

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Palm Beach CountySeawall requirements county-wide

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