Boat davits in Boca Raton

Who davits suit

Owners of tenders, small boats and jet skis with a sound seawall or dock and limited room for a lift slip.

The 45 degree side lines

Boca Raton structures must stay inside lines projected waterward at 45 degrees from the side property lines, and the seawall wet face sits on the property line (Sec. 26-146). On a pie-shaped lot at the end of a canal those lines can shrink the space for a lift or davit to a few feet.

Davits count as mooring structures, so the same reach and setback rules apply.[1]

Signed lift drawings with pile details

Palm Beach County classes docks, seawalls, boat lifts and boathouses as Type 8 marine structure permits, and its checklist asks for signed and sealed boat lift drawings with pile details and the manufacturer's specifications. Boca Raton's own Chapter 22 review expects the same level of detail before a lift goes in.

Piling rules apply to every structure we drive into the bottom.[2][3]

Docks that stop 6 to 8 ft out

Single-family freestanding docks in Boca Raton may protrude no more than 6 to 8 ft waterward of the seawall, depending on canal width (City Code 22-58). That is much tighter than the limits in the other cities we serve, so marginal docks along the wall and seawall-mounted lifts are the usual answer.[1]

What makes Boca Raton different

Plan review needs a current-conditions survey showing the seawall wet face or bulkhead line, the property line and piles, section details with the finished cap elevation, and a proposed site plan. Inspections are staged: a location survey before the cap is poured and before the structural cap and piling inspections, a final engineer report on cap elevation with photos, and a final marine structure survey for docks and lifts.[3]

Agencies beyond the City

Palm Beach County's marine structure checklist for unincorporated areas lists the outside approvals agencies expect to see: FDEP, the Florida Inland Navigation District (FIND) and the Army Corps, as applicable. That checklist is dated 2005, so we confirm current requirements for each job. The federal seagrass range used in dock design covers Palm Beach County waters.[2][4]

Permits in Boca Raton

• City of Boca Raton Development Services: Marine structure permits under City Code Chapter 22, with staged survey and engineer inspections.
• Florida Inland Navigation District (FIND): May be involved for work along the Intracoastal Waterway.
• Florida DEP or South Florida Water Management District: State permit or exemption for docks, walls and lifts on Lake Boca Raton and the Intracoastal Waterway.
• US Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District: Federal authorisation along the Intracoastal, which the Palm Beach County checklist expects to see with the building permit.

Before we mount a davit

1. Check the seawall cap or dock framing can carry the load
2. Confirm the reach against the 25% waterway rule
3. Permit with DERM and the city
4. Mount, wire and test

Frequently asked questions