Ponte Vedra Beach and Palm Valley seawall planning
Ponte Vedra Beach is in unincorporated St. Johns County. Oceanfront armoring, Intracoastal walls in Palm Valley and Guana marsh edges each follow different rules.
Describe your project on this page ↓
Get to know your waterfront
Ponte Vedra Beach and neighboring Palm Valley sit in unincorporated St. Johns County, between the Atlantic and the Intracoastal Waterway. USGS places Ponte Vedra Beach near the ocean and Palm Valley along the waterway. Permits come from St. Johns County, not the City of Jacksonville. The oceanfront has been reshaped by Matthew, Irma, Ian and Nicole and by the county’s 2024 beach restoration.
USGS GNIS Domestic Names – Florida · Building Permits – Permit Guidelines & General Information · St. Johns County Set to Begin $38.6 Million Ponte Vedra Beach Restoration Project
Know which shoreline you are on
Oceanfront
St. Johns County has 42 miles of Atlantic coast, and the state designates 17.1 miles as critically eroded. After a declared coastal emergency the county can permit temporary protection, but it must be installed within 30 days of the erosion event and removed within 60 days of installation unless extended; temporary walls are limited to wood or cantilever vinyl sheet pile without concrete caps or tiebacks, and the home must be 15 feet or less from the dune escarpment. St. Johns County Set to Begin $38.6 Million Ponte Vedra Beach Restoration Project · Emergency Temporary Coastal Armoring Permit
Intracoastal and marsh
The county code requires a 50-foot natural upland buffer along the Guana and Tolomato rivers and connected tributaries, never less than 25 feet, with a 25-foot minimum for older single-family lots of record. Seawalls must sit at or landward of mean high water. Lots on man-made canals already stabilized under valid permits are treated differently. St. Johns County Land Development Code, Sec. 4.01.06 · St. Johns County Land Development Code, Sec. 4.01.02.E · St. Johns County Land Development Code, Sec. 4.01.11 · St. Johns County Land Development Code, Sec. 4.01.02.F–G
In coastal high-hazard and Coastal A zones, the county allows bulkheads and seawalls only with agency authorization, detached from buildings, and with a professional analysis showing no harmful diversion of flood water or wave reflection onto neighbors. St. Johns County Land Development Code, Sec. 3.03.10
What could the work cost?
Budget for a coastal engineer’s eligibility and wave analysis on oceanfront or Coastal A lots; it is a separate cost from construction.
Published prices are attributed planning context from contractors’ own pages, not a measured Jacksonville average or this website’s quote. Ranges differ about five-fold between publishers; your written, itemized scope decides the real number.
Compare quotes and plan a budget →Find the relevant permits and records
| Starting point | What to resolve | Prepare and look up |
|---|---|---|
St. Johns County Building Department | Building permits countywide outside the cities; most applications need a Clearance Sheet first and a recorded notice of commencement over $5,000. | Parcel ID from the Property Appraiser, survey, engineered drawings. 4040 Lewis Speedway; (904) 827-6800. |
St. Johns County Growth Management | Bulkheads across county oceanfront rights-of-way (Section 40.0) and land development code buffers. | PE-designed wall, FDEP permit and county owner’s authorization. (904) 209-0660. |
Florida DEP Coastal Construction Control Line program | Oceanfront walls and coastal armoring seaward of the control line, including eligibility and emergency rules. | Survey showing the control line, dune and structure; ask a coastal engineer about eligibility. Program line: 850-245-8570. |
Florida DEP Northeast District (Jacksonville) | State environmental resource permit or exemption, and state-lands consent for work at or below the high-water line. DEP handles single-family docks and shore protection not tied to a larger development. | Survey with the existing wall face and high-water line, the proposed alignment and photos. DEP Northeast District: 904-256-1700. |
A Ponte Vedra planning checklist
Gather these before asking anyone to design a wall.
Pull your parcel and flood zone
Use the St. Johns County Property Appraiser parcel search and the county flood zone viewer; the building line is 904-827-6800, option 5 for flood questions.
St. Johns County Property Appraiser home page · Flood Smart brochure
Ask about eligibility before a storm
Permanent oceanfront armoring needs an eligible, vulnerable structure or a qualifying gap of 250 feet or less. Find out now.
Rule 62B-33.0051, F.A.C. – Coastal Armoring and Related Structures
Understand the public beach work
The county’s $38.6 million Ponte Vedra Beach Restoration placed more than two million cubic yards of sand over about nine miles, rebuilding dunes to 13–18 feet. It is not private armoring.
St. Johns County Set to Begin $38.6 Million Ponte Vedra Beach Restoration Project
Check your flood discount
Unincorporated St. Johns County is CRS class 5, a 25% NFIP discount.
Plan your Ponte Vedra Beach seawall project
Tell us where your Ponte Vedra Beach property is, what you have noticed and what you want to decide. We will help you plan the next step.
Local guidance. A clearer plan for your waterfront.
Ponte Vedra Beach project questions
Do I need a City of Jacksonville permit in Ponte Vedra Beach?
No. Ponte Vedra Beach is unincorporated St. Johns County; the county building department issues permits.
Can a seawall go waterward of the high-water line on the Intracoastal?
The county code says seawalls and shoreline modifications shall be at or landward of mean high water, except as Chapter 161 provides.
What happened after Hurricane Irma here?
DEP issued an emergency order covering the St. Johns County coast that waived armoring eligibility rules for vulnerable major structures for a limited time.
Fourth Amended and Restated Emergency Final Order, OGC No. 17-1001
Keep planning
Nearby waterfront guides
Show sourcesHide sources
- USGS GNIS Domestic Names – FloridaSource reviewed 2026-10-24
- Building Permits – Permit Guidelines & General InformationSource reviewed 2026-10-24
- St. Johns County Set to Begin $38.6 Million Ponte Vedra Beach Restoration ProjectSource reviewed 2026-10-24
- Emergency Temporary Coastal Armoring PermitSource reviewed 2026-10-24
- St. Johns County Land Development Code, Sec. 4.01.06Source reviewed 2026-10-24
- Section 40.0 Oceanfront Right-of-Way Bulkhead PermitsSource reviewed 2026-10-24
- Coastal Construction Control Line ProgramSource reviewed 2026-10-24
- Chapter 62B-26, F.A.C. – Coastal Construction Control LinesSource reviewed 2026-10-24
- Rule 62B-33.0051, F.A.C. – Coastal Armoring and Related StructuresSource reviewed 2026-10-24
- Northeast DistrictSource reviewed 2026-10-24
- Operating Agreements ERP Permitting: DEP District Offices and the Water Management District OfficesSource reviewed 2026-10-24
- Operating Agreement Concerning Regulation Under Part IV, Ch. 373, F.S., Between SJRWMD and DEP (eff. 07/01/07)Source reviewed 2026-10-24
- St. Johns County Property Appraiser home pageSource reviewed 2026-10-24
- Flood Smart brochureSource reviewed 2026-10-24
- CRS Eligible Communities, October 1, 2026 Effective DateSource reviewed 2026-10-24
- Fourth Amended and Restated Emergency Final Order, OGC No. 17-1001Source reviewed 2026-10-24