Seawall replacement in Fort Lauderdale

When replacement makes sense

Replacement is the answer when panels are cracked through, the wall leans, repairs would cost more than half of a new wall, or the wall is too low for your city's new standard.

• Panels cracked through or leaning
• Repeated sinkholes despite repairs
• A city notice to raise or rebuild
• Planned dock or lift work that needs a sound wall

5 ft NAVD88, with a path to 2050

New and substantially repaired tidal barriers in Fort Lauderdale must reach 5 ft NAVD88. A wall permitted before 1 January 2035 may be built at 4 ft NAVD88 if it is designed to be raised to 5 ft by 1 January 2050, which is how many owners spread the cost.

A replacement wall is built to the current height from the start, so the panels, piles and cap are sized for it.[1]

River tide and inlet tide

NOAA's South Port Everglades gauge shows a 2.79 ft great diurnal range, while the Andrews Avenue bridge gauge up the New River shows 2.28 ft, with mean higher high water about 0.45 to 0.57 ft above NAVD 88 (1983 to 2001 epoch). Lifts and floating docks near the inlet need more travel than those up the river.

The tide also sets how much of the wall can be worked on dry at low water, which changes crew time.[2][3]

Cap repairs and cap additions, priced

The same City material priced cap spall repair at $60 per cubic foot of epoxy mortar and adding a 12 in cap to an existing wall at $75 to $125 per linear foot (2016 figures). Whether an old wall can carry a taller cap is an engineering question, so a marine or structural engineer checks it first.

Replacement sits at the top of that range when the waterway is deep or the barge access is tight.[4]

What the City's contractor survey found

When Fort Lauderdale surveyed seawall contractors in 2016, quotes ran from $650 to $2,000 per linear foot depending on waterway depth and where the wall sits, plus $2,000 to $5,000 per job for engineering and permitting. The deep finger isle canals sit at the expensive end because panels and piles are longer.

A full replacement needs the complete permit set, so we start on drawings and surveys early.[4]

What makes Fort Lauderdale different

The City treats seawalls as tidal barriers. It presumes a wall is in disrepair if it lets upland soil erode, lets material pass through it, or lets tidal water flow unimpeded onto neighbours or the street, and gives owners 60 days to show progress and 365 days to finish. The City also spends $1.5 million a year on its own seawalls.[1][5]

The county layer

Broward County requires a license before any work in, on, over or under its waters, including repairing or replacing a dock or seawall. Broward's regional policy is a consistent top elevation of 5 ft NAVD for seawalls, banks and berms.[6][1]

Permits in Fort Lauderdale

• Broward County environmental licensing: A county license before any work in, on, over or under Broward County waters, including dock and seawall repair.
• City of Fort Lauderdale: Building permits; waivers of the dock and lift projection limit go to the City Commission with a Marine Advisory Board recommendation.
• Florida DEP or South Florida Water Management District: State permit or exemption for docks and walls on the New River and the Intracoastal, on top of the Broward County license.
• US Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District: Federal authorisation for work in the Intracoastal Waterway and other navigable waters.

What a seawall replacement involves

A Florida engineer designs the wall to the site's soil, water depth and the local top elevation. Most replacements go in front of the old wall, which stays in place as backing, because removing it can undermine the yard.

1. Survey and engineered drawings
2. DERM, city and state approvals
3. Turbidity barrier and manatee watch in the water
4. New panels or sheet piles, tiebacks and cap
5. Backfill, drainage and yard restoration

How far out can the new wall go?

Florida Statute 403.813 exempts restoring a seawall at its previous location, upland of it, or within 18 inches waterward of it. Miami-Dade's short form and the federal SPGP VI use the same 18 inch line, measured wet face to wet face, and need no seagrass survey within it.[12][11][13]

Federal permits

Under SPGP VI, the Florida DEP could verify the federal Army Corps authorisation for qualifying seawall work along with the state decision. That permit's stated expiration date was 27 July 2026, and we have not been able to confirm a replacement, so for each job we confirm the federal route with the agencies before we file.[13][14]

Working around manatees

Permits attach the state's Standard Manatee Conditions: all in-water work stops if a manatee comes within 50 ft, and resumes only once it has moved beyond 50 ft or 30 minutes pass without it reappearing. Turbidity barriers must not entangle or block manatees.[15]

Frequently asked questions