Miami-Dade Commission approves amended ordinance to speed seawall permits, retains limits and review

The Miami-Dade County Commission on an amended vote approved item 1 G 1, a change to the county's seawall and bulkhead permitting rules that establishes a 90-day review target for short-form applications, allows certain living seawall products, and sets limits on how far new structural piles and reconstructed faces may extend waterward.

The ordinance matters because Miami-Dade's shoreline is largely privately owned and commissioners, industry and environmental groups said long permitting delays leave homes and infrastructure exposed to storm damage and raise costs for property owners. At the same time, speakers raised concerns the changes could affect habitat in the Biscayne Bay Aquatic Preserve and narrow residential canals.

Commissioner Eileen Higgins, sponsor of the item, told the commission the ordinance "recognizes that there's lots of new innovations going on, particularly in living seawalls, which are still concrete." Higgins said the amendments would bring the county's riprap standards into alignment with state and local planning standards, create flexibility for newer products, and institute a 90-day "shot clock" with reporting when the department misses the target.

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