Village permitAnyone undertaking development in a flood hazard area must first obtain the required permits from the floodplain administrator and building official - Palmetto Bay Code Sec. 30-100.6(j)
Building permit ruleThe village's Building Permits page quotes Florida Building Code Sec. 105.1 (permit required to construct, alter or repair a structure) - Building & Permitting Department
ContractorsAll contractors must register with the Village before applying for a permit; the department answers whether a specific project needs one - Building Permits page
Under $7,500The village says Florida's HB 803 (effective 1 July 2026) exempts some projects under $7,500 from building permits, but not structural work or any work in a flood hazard area, which covers much of the village; claiming the exemption takes a written request to the Building Official - Projects Under $7,500 page
Other agenciesFloodplain and building permits carry a condition that all other applicable state or federal permits be obtained before work starts - Sec. 30-100.6(q)
Coastal zone VBulkheads and seawalls allowed only if authorised by the appropriate federal, state or local authority and a design professional shows no harmful diversion of floodwater - Sec. 30-100.6(bb)(7)
Agency committeeThe village coordinates development petitions for docks, shoreline stabilization and dredging with a multi-agency technical review committee of the Army Corps, DEP, DERM and the South Florida Water Management District - Sec. 30-100.5(1)
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)