WallDockDeck
Lauderdale-by-the-Sea · Broward County

What are the deck setback and railing rules in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea?

0 ftdecks may extend to the waterway plot line

Lauderdale-By-The-Sea allows a deck on a waterway lot to run to the waterway, with a gap to the dock allowed if secured. The catch: any part of a deck within 5 ft of the seawall cannot be higher than the seawall. Pool decks and patios otherwise keep 2.5 ft from lot lines.

Source: Town of Lauderdale-By-The-Sea Code Sec. 30-313 (p), (q) (Supp. 51); Florida Building Code, Residential, 8th Ed. (2023) R312.1.1-R312.1.3 (ICC Digital Codes) · Verified 2026-10

The detail

Decks on the waterDecks that abut a plot line that is a waterway may be allowed, but are not required, to extend to the waterway. Code Sec. 30-313(q)(1).
Height near the seawallDecks need not be flush with a dock or seawall, but any portion of a deck within 5 ft of the seawall cannot be constructed higher than the seawall. A gap between deck and dock is allowed if properly secured. Sec. 30-313(q)(2)-(3).
Pool decks, patios, terracesSide or rear yard only (or the front yard of a corner lot with a front-yard pool), at least 2.5 ft from lot lines, outside utility easements. Sec. 30-313(p)(1)d.
PoolsWater-bearing walls 5 ft from property lines; pools need a 5 ft fence, wall or mesh screen enclosure, but no enclosure is required along a waterway. Sec. 30-313(p).
Seawall designSeawalls must be sloping high energy-absorbing or vertical with a rubble mound on the water side, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers must approve any encroachment into the Atlantic or a navigable waterway. Sec. 30-313(w).
Guards (state rule)Florida Building Code, Residential, 8th Edition (2023), Sec. R312.1.1-R312.1.3: a guard is required on open sides of a walking surface located more than 30 inches above the floor or grade below at any point within 24 inches of the open edge; it must be at least 36 inches high; openings must not let a 4-inch sphere pass. No local guard amendment was found in this city's code.

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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

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