WallDockDeck
Sea Ranch Lakes · Broward County

Do I need a permit to repair a seawall in Sea Ranch Lakes?

Yes, plus county licensevillage permit + county license

Yes. In Sea Ranch Lakes the Village Clerk issues building permits, and the village's land development code requires a substantially repaired seawall to meet its tidal flood barrier height along the entire shoreline. An owner cited for a failing wall must obtain permits and pass final inspection within 365 days if the fix is a substantial repair. Broward County also requires its own Environmental Resource License, often a general license for a repair in the same place.

Source: Sea Ranch Lakes LDC 6.01.06, 9.04.00 (Municode Supp. 18; village PDF Supp. 16); 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

CityThe Village Clerk is the official who issues building permits - LDC 9.04.00. Substantial repair = work along more than 50% of the property's shoreline, or attached structures such as docks costing more than 50% of a tidal flood barrier - LDC 6.01.06(C)(1)g.; such walls need 5.0 ft NAVD88 (4.0 ft for applications before 1 Jan 2035 if built to reach 5.0 ft by 2050) and must run along the entire shoreline - 6.01.06(C)(2)a., f. A cited owner must show progress on the subject violation within sixty days; one whose repair is substantial must design, obtain permits, build and pass final inspection within 365 days - 6.01.06(C)(2)b. No wall may be built on top of a seawall, and on lots on interior waters or the Intracoastal no impervious surface other than the seawall is allowed within 15 ft of the mean water line or property line - 6.01.06(A), (B) (Ord. 2021-02); hedges and fences there are limited to three feet - 6.01.06(A); wall heights are measured from neighboring grades and any question about them is conclusively determined by the Committee - 6.01.06(B). The clerk's permit role is described as ministerial - 9.04.00; the seawall standard traces to the village's original Restrictive Covenants (s. 7) and Ord. 88-1
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

The elevation your city requires, the datum it is measured in, and the section of code that says so. One page.

Available for the cities whose rule we have verified and sourced.

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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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Other questions about Sea Ranch Lakes

Seawall height requirementHow high does a seawall have to be in Sea Ranch Lakes?Flood zone & elevationWhat flood zone is Sea Ranch Lakes in, and what does it require?Boat lift rulesWhat are the boat lift rules in Sea Ranch Lakes?

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.

A screening sheet for owners, not an engineering inspection.

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