Cape Coral, FL

Cape Coral makes it a misdemeanor to fly a helicopter or other rotary wing aircraft within 500 feet of a residence, unless a public right-of-way or waterway separates the aircraft from…

Outside Cape Coral's designated entertainment area, city code sets numeric decibel ceilings that presumptively prove a noise violation: 73 dBA or 75 dBC during the day and 65 dBA or 67…

Between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., Cape Coral's Noise Control Ordinance presumes a violation if sound from your property carries at least 100 feet past the property line and is plainly…

Cape Coral bans "unreasonably excessive noise" from any vehicle, defined as sound plainly audible 50 feet or more from the vehicle when it's heard. The rule covers stereos, exhaust…

Cape Coral exempts permitted construction activity from its noise ordinance only between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and only on days that aren't one of seven listed…

In the city's designated Entertainment Area, Cape Coral caps property noise at 75 dBA/77 dBC from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday (midnight Friday-Saturday), dropping to 65…

Lee County does not ban leaf blowers. The Noise Control Ordinance exempts lawn care, domestic power tools, lawn mowers and tree maintenance between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. Outside…

Two rules cover a barking dog in unincorporated Lee County. The animal chapter makes it unlawful for any animal to bark, howl, whine or screech in a way that disturbs a reasonable…

Cape Coral's City Manager can order a citywide ban on all open burning, including campfires, bonfires, barrel burning of trash, and even sparkler sales, whenever the Keetch-Byram…

Cape Coral's Fire Prevention Code, locally amended at § 8-10(b)(7), exempts small recreational fires and cooking fires from needing a burn permit as long as they are on the owner's…

FL §791.08 preempts local bans on consumer fireworks on July 4th, Dec 31, and Jan 1. Cape Coral follows state law. Outside those 3 holidays, aerial/explosive fireworks require a…

Lee County adopts the Florida Building Code by reference in LDC Section 6-111, so the statewide alarm rules apply here. The county adds one of its own: development outside an…

A propane or LNG tank up to 2,001 gallons, installed incidental to a permitted use on the parcel, does not need a Lee County development order, but Section 10-101(a)(3) still requires…

The Florida Forest Service has statewide jurisdiction over wildfire prevention and suppression on non-municipal land under Chapter 590, Florida Statutes.

Cape Coral bans pet stores from selling, trading, or giving away dogs and cats to fight puppy mills and kitten factories. Stores may only host adoption events for animal shelters and…

Cape Coral Code § 4-32 bans keeping, raising or maintaining any wild or exotic animal anywhere in the city, improved or unimproved. Monkeys, raccoons, skunks, foxes, venomous or…

Cape Coral treats veterinary offices as an exempt "animal care business" under City Code Section 4-32(c), letting them keep animals that would otherwise violate the citywide…

Cape Coral bans keeping livestock and poultry citywide under Code § 4-32, except on Residential Estate lots carrying the Low Density Residential II future land use classification. Land…

Cape Coral's Chapter 23 protects bald eagle nests by creating an Eagle Nest Management Zone around every active nest, tracked against the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation…

FL §586.10 preempts local bans on beekeeping. Cape Coral cannot prohibit beekeeping. FDACS annual hive registration required. HOAs may still restrict beekeeping in their communities.

Lee County's animal chapter sets no fixed number of dogs or cats per home. Instead it makes it unlawful to keep animals that are dangerous by number or type, treats keeping animals for…

Any cat four months or older in Lee County must be vaccinated against rabies by a licensed veterinarian and licensed, with the tag on a collar or harness unless the cat carries a…

Lee County requires animals to stay under direct control - a fence, or a leash no longer than eight feet, cord or chain strong enough to restrain them. Letting a dog roam onto streets…

Lee County’s animal chapter names no banned breed. It regulates individual animals by behavior: the animal services director declares an animal dangerous, which triggers confinement…

Lee County will not release an unclaimed dog or cat from a public or private shelter, humane group or animal control facility for adoption unless it has been sterilized. Sec. 4-26 lets…

Lee County bans giving food, tobacco, alcohol or any noxious substance to wild animals anywhere in a County park, and also bans petting them, under Sec. 20-23(d). The same rule bars…

Before Lee County Animal Services releases any dog, cat or ferret from its shelter, Sec. 4-44(h) requires the animal be microchipped and the chip registered to the pet owner. A…

Cape Coral prohibits abandoned vehicles and watercraft, unregistered, wrecked, dismantled, or valueless, from being parked or stored anywhere in the city, including driveways…

Cape Coral's § 12-127.1 bars parking commercial vehicles and trailers in public rights-of-way citywide, with narrow carve-outs: a marked space between 8 a.m. and 2 a.m., a city…

Cape Coral bars parking a trailer or commercial vehicle on the pavement or swale of any public street next to R-1, RE, RML, or RMM residential property, and bars parking one on any…

Large Cape Coral developments must install electric vehicle charging stations under Land Development Code Section 6.1.7.C. Any site of 200,000 square feet of gross floor area or more…

In the South Cape Zoning District's city-owned parking lots, Cape Coral bans overnight trailer parking between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. and commercial vehicle parking between 3 a.m. and 6…

Cape Coral's Land Development Code requires "appropriate and adequate loading facilities" for any business that receives regular deliveries. Section 6.1.4 sets design and location…

Cape Coral bans parking a boat or empty boat trailer in the front or side yard of a residence, or on a vacant residential lot, under § 12-127.9. Up to two boats on trailers may sit in…

Cape Coral bans parking on pervious surfaces, grass, sod, shell, rocks, dirt, or stones, on residential property in the R-1, RE, RML, and RMM zoning districts under § 12-127.6(b)…

Gasparilla Island's residential parking zones run on a County decal system: A permits for residents, B placards for hotel guests, C decals for island employees, and D placards for…

Florida caps the drop fee a tower can charge at half the posted rate if the owner shows up mid-tow, requires a signed itemized receipt, and forces storage lots within 10 to 15 highway…

Land Development Code § 5.2.15.B requires every residential swimming pool, spa or hot tub in Cape Coral to be enclosed by a fence or a screened enclosure before it can be filled with…

No swimming pool, spa or hot tub can be built, installed, enlarged or altered in Cape Coral without a building permit from the Department of Community Development under Code § 5-20…

Cape Coral's Land Development Code lets the power company trim or remove any canopy tree branch or palm frond that grows within ten feet of an overhead transmission or distribution…

Cape Coral lets homeowners swap sod for permeable synthetic turf, but only up to 20% of the yard area that isn't already covered by structures or hardscape, and never in a front yard…

Cape Coral assigns every address a fixed two-day watering window based on the last digit of its street number, running year-round under § 19-90, and can tighten that further into a…

Cape Coral bans letting weeds, grass, vines, palmetto scrub or other noxious vegetation grow past 12 inches on private property under City Code of Ordinances § 9-16. The Cape Coral…

Cape Coral does not ban catching rainwater for the yard, but it does not treat it as unregulated either. Any irrigation system pulling from a rainwater collection or harvesting setup…

Cape Coral requires a Land Clearing and Fill permit before clearing trees and vegetation on a site, under Land Development Code Section 5.3.2. The permit applies whenever tree and…

Lee County's Land Development Code sets a hard native-species share for code-required landscaping: at least 75 percent of trees and 50 percent of shrubs must be native Florida species…

A Cape Coral home-based business gets no special sign allowance; Section 5.11.10(E) sends it to Article 7's ordinary residential sign table. For a single-family lot that means one…

A Family Day Care Home serving five or fewer children is a by-right permitted use across Cape Coral's R-1, RML, RMM, RE, and Agricultural districts under LDC Table 4.1.6, unlike larger…

Cape Coral allows home-based businesses only as an accessory use to a residential home, capping on-site help at two non-resident employees and barring walk-in retail transactions and…

Lee County's code does not set cottage food standards, but it does govern the business side: home occupations are allowed by right in every district permitting dwellings, and the…

Cape Coral bars homeowners from converting a required garage or storage area into living space unless a replacement garage is built first, under Land Development Code Section…

Cape Coral counts a permitted, approved accessory dwelling unit as its own "residential dwelling unit" for impact fee purposes. That triggers the city's full public safety impact fee…

Cape Coral caps accessory sheds and greenhouses at 15 feet in overall height and 200 square feet of floor area under Land Development Code Section 5.2.13. The rule limits every lot to…

Cape Coral does not currently permit traditional accessory dwelling units (ADUs) with full kitchens. Under Land Development Code Section 5.2.11, only detached 'guest houses' are…

The Land Development Code has no tiny-home category. A small second unit behind a house is an accessory dwelling unit under Section 34-1177, limited to one per single-family residence…

Every fence or wall built in Cape Coral needs a City permit before construction starts, under Land Development Code Section 5.2.7(B)(10), covering the height, type, design, and…

Cape Coral limits residential fences and walls to six feet, rising to eight feet along a side that abuts a commercial or professional use, under Land Development Code Section 5.2.7(C)…

Cape Coral treats most retaining walls as walls under Land Development Code Section 5.2.7, meaning no retaining wall can be built on any lot without written approval and a permit…

Cape Coral bans barbed wire, spire tips, sharp objects, and electrically charged fencing on residential property under Land Development Code Section 5.2.7(B)(2), with an exception for…

Lee County's fence rules govern where a fence goes rather than who pays for it. No fence may sit in a street right-of-way or easement, or within five feet of the mean high-water line…

Cape Coral short-term rentals must follow the same parking standards as other dwellings in the Land Development Code Article 6, which requires off-street parking on an improved…

All residential rental properties with 4 or fewer units in Cape Coral must register with the city under a 2021 ordinance. One-time registration fee of $35 per property. All STRs also…

Unincorporated Lee County's code does not require a short-term rental to be your primary residence. The one owner-occupancy rule in the Land Development Code applies to bed and…

Most of unincorporated Lee County's code sets no cap on how many nights you may rent. Captiva Island is the exception: on RSC-2 lots, Section 33-1626 bars renting or leasing for…

Florida imposes a 6% state sales tax, plus county discretionary surtaxes of 0.5 to 1.5%, on rentals of living accommodations for six months or less, applying universally to short-term…

Cape Coral's Code Enforcement Division will not open a case from an anonymous tip. Under Code of Ordinances § 2-99, anyone reporting a suspected code violation must give the City their…

Section 2-104 of the Cape Coral Code lists the exact civil penalty for every code violation the City's code enforcement officers cite, from nuisance grass and unpermitted construction…

Bars and nightlife clustered in Cape Coral's designated Entertainment Area near Del Prado Boulevard get a higher decibel ceiling than the rest of the city: up to 75 dBA daytime and 65…

Cape Coral's Noise Control Ordinance carves out a flat exemption for residential air conditioners and residential swimming pool equipment, so a running condenser or pool pump can't be…

Cape Coral's Noise Control Ordinance doesn't need a specific frequency test for booming bass: its "plainly audible" definition expressly states that detecting a rhythmic, reverberating…

In the city's managed mooring fields, City Code § 10-44(a) bars running generators, blowers or other noisy machinery between 8:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. This is the only generator-specific…

Lee County's Noise Control Ordinance caps sound levels by land use and time of day, but Sec. 19-152(6) carves out safety features required by law, including backup alarms and vehicle…

Between collection days, Cape Coral requires refuse carts to be stored in the rear yard, a garage or carport, or a side yard within three feet of the house wall under City Code §…

Cape Coral's franchise hauler picks up horticultural waste, pruned branches, grass clippings, and palm fronds, once a week at curbside, but only if it's cut to 6 feet or less and no…

Every single-family home, multi-family building, and commercial property in Cape Coral must subscribe to refuse service from the city's franchise hauler, which collects garbage, trash…

Cape Coral requires most non-residential and multi-family sites to screen commercial trash receptacles inside an enclosure under Land Development Code Section 5.1.15. The enclosure…

Cape Coral bans dumping or burying refuse, construction debris or hazardous waste on any street, lot, canal or waterway under City Code § 9-70. A violation carries a fine of $40 to…

Cape Coral's franchise hauler picks up unlimited compliant bulky waste once a week at no extra charge under City Code § 9-67(b)(11), covering items over 50 pounds like sofas and…

Cape Coral's franchise hauler collects garbage, trash, horticultural waste and recyclables once per week at curbside under City Code § 9-67. Everything must be out before 5:00 a.m. on…

Cape Coral requires recyclable waste to go out in a city-provided cart once a week under City Code § 9-67(b)(2). Once it's in the cart at the curb, § 9-74 declares the material city…

Cape Coral's Fire Prevention Code exempts backyard cooking fires and small recreational fires from a burn permit, but bans charcoal or wood barbecues and barbecue pits within 600 yards…

Lee County's code does not set a separate rule for backyard gas or charcoal grills. What it does regulate is fire during a declared drought emergency, fires in county parks, and…

Cape Coral does not write its own plumbing rulebook; it adopts the 2020 Florida Building Code family by reference and applies it to every plumbing installation, alteration and repair…

Cape Coral enforces the 2020 Florida Building Code for all construction citywide, but locally amends it so flood load and flood resistance requirements can never be waived through an…

Cape Coral governs electrical work under the National Electrical Code, 2017 Edition, adopted by reference alongside the 2020 Florida Building Code. Work performed contrary to the…

Cape Coral scales its local business tax for a child care facility to the maximum number of children the Lee County Health Department authorizes: $22.00 for six to ten children, $44.00…

Every elevator in Cape Coral must comply with the Florida Elevator Safety Act, the state elevator code, and the Florida Building and Fire Prevention Codes, and every car needs a…

Cape Coral requires new construction that can't deliver adequate fire flow to install automatic sprinklers meeting NFPA 13, 13R, or 13D, but exempts single-family homes, duplexes, and…

Unincorporated Lee County's own amendment to the Florida Building Code sets a hard pace for every building permit: the foundation inspection is the "first inspection," and it must be…

Cape Coral bans audio and video recording inside city buildings except during noticed public meetings or with the City Manager's approval, and separately requires consent from everyone…

Cape Coral bans camping or sleeping overnight on any city property, including sidewalks, streets, alleyways, and building entrances, under §§ 12-144 and 12-145. Police must first order…

Cape Coral requires every owner of long-term or short-term residential rental property to register with the City Clerk and pay an annual fee, updating contact information within 30…

Cape Coral adopts the International Property Maintenance Code, 2021 Edition, with local revisions, to set minimum upkeep standards that apply to rental housing citywide. The Code…

Cape Coral has no rent control ordinance. Florida preempts all local rent control under Fla. Stat. Sec. 125.0103, and the 2023 Live Local Act (SB 102) eliminated the housing-emergency…

Fla. Stat. § 83.56 requires a 3-day notice to pay rent or vacate for nonpayment, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays from the count. For lease violations, the landlord…

Florida's Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, Chapter 83 Part II, exclusively defines lawful eviction grounds and procedures statewide, preempting cities from adding just-cause…

Under Fla. Stat. § 83.53, a Florida landlord must give at least 24 hours' notice to enter for repairs and may enter only at reasonable times, defined as between 7:30 a.m. and 8:00 p.m…

For a month-to-month tenancy, Fla. Stat. § 83.57 now requires 30 days' written notice (raised from 15 days by 2023's HB 1417). Breaking a fixed-term lease triggers landlord remedies…

Florida has no rent control and no statute setting a maximum rent increase or a dedicated advance-notice period. On a month-to-month tenancy, a new rent takes effect only through the…

Florida places no dollar limit on residential security deposits, but it enforces tight deadlines. If the landlord makes no claim, the deposit must be returned within 15 days of…

Adverse possession in Florida requires 7 years of actual, continued, exclusive possession plus paying all taxes within a year and filing a return with the property appraiser (Fla…

Reserving a Cape Coral park pavilion, ballfield or gathering space for a picnic or group activity requires a permit or reservation from the Parks and Recreation Director before the…

Restaurants, hotels, bars, and fraternal organizations in Cape Coral may run outdoor dining as an accessory use under LDC Section 5.1.16, but seating on the public right-of-way is…

Any parade, march or procession that closes a Cape Coral street or reroutes traffic counts as a Special Event under City Code, and holding one without a permit from the Parks and…

Lee County doesn't require a film permit for ordinary shoots, but Sec. 19-185(a)(4) pulls filming into the special event permitting law the moment a production uses pyrotechnics…

Closing a residential street in unincorporated Lee County for a block party requires a special event permit under Sec. 19-185(a)(2) because the street is County property. The completed…

Peddlers and solicitors who go house to house or street to street in Cape Coral need a permit before selling anything, per City Code. Applicants submit a photo, background statement…

Cape Coral respects residents' right to post 'No Soliciting' or 'No Trespassing' signs. Solicitors who ignore these signs may be cited for trespassing or violation of the solicitation…

Cape Coral's loitering ban is narrow and park-specific: § 12½-4(g)(9) bars any person or group from loitering in the parking area or parking lot of a city park. It doesn't reach…

Cape Coral bans smoking in every enclosed park facility and, outdoors, in bleachers and dugouts around ballfields under § 12½-4(v). Open-air smoking elsewhere in a park, on a walking…

Cape Coral Code § 3-8 makes it unlawful to drink or consume any alcoholic beverage, including liquor, beer or wine, on any public street, in any public park, or in any other public…

Cape Coral doesn't single out aggressive panhandling: § 12½-4(g)(15) bans begging outright inside any city park. No person shall beg or solicit alms in any manner in any park, full…

Cape Coral confines park skateboarding to hard surfaces: § 12½-4(i) bars using a skateboard on any park surface except asphalt or concrete walkways and trails, or in areas the city…

Cape Coral runs a dedicated Stormwater Management Utility under Chapter 22 of the Code of Ordinances, first enacted by Ordinance 18-90 in 1990 and rewritten by Ordinance 68-02 in 2002…

When FEMA's maps place a Cape Coral parcel in a flood hazard area but list no base flood elevation, Section 9.4.2 puts the Floodplain Administrator in charge of setting one: certified…

Cape Coral requires a building permit before any dock, wharf, mooring pile, or boat canopy is built on a waterfront lot, under Land Development Code Section 5.4.1. City rules then cap…

Any development in a Cape Coral flood hazard area, filling, grading, utility work, or placing a manufactured home, tank, pool, or RV, needs a floodplain development permit from the…

Cape Coral requires erosion control devices in the roadside swale on both sides of any lot undergoing construction or reconstruction, per Land Development Code Section 5.1.10. The…

Florida regulates construction seaward of the Coastal Construction Control Line through state permits, with uniform standards administered by the Department of Environmental Protection.

Cape Coral closes its parks at sunset by default: § 12½-4(s) deems city parks and recreation facilities open only between sunrise and sunset, unless the Parks and Recreation Director…

Cape Coral enforces a juvenile curfew under Chapter 12 of its Code of Ordinances. Minors are restricted from being in public places during late-night and early-morning hours without a…

Cape Coral charges a pawnbroker a $110.00 annual local business tax, well above the $33-$55 charged for most personal-service trades, and requires proof of state-law compliance before…

Cape Coral confines sexually oriented businesses to the Industrial (I-1) and Thoroughfare Commercial (C-3) zoning districts under § 12-65, then layers on spacing rules: no closer than…

Cape Coral caps what tow operators can charge for nonconsensual private towing and requires signed property-owner agreements plus posted warning signs before any vehicle can be towed…

Cape Coral taxes a massage establishment at $33.00 a year and a self-employed massage therapist at $55.00, with the therapist classification expressly requiring a state license. Before…

Cape Coral has no standalone tax classification for tattooing: the business tax schedule directs tattoo services to be taxed under Physician/Surgeon ($110.00) or Dentist ($77.00)…

Cape Coral requires anyone buying old, used, or secondhand gold, silver, or platinum to keep a police-approved register of every seller and item, hold purchased items five days before…

Florida Statute 569.315 expressly preempts the regulation of the marketing, sale, and delivery of nicotine products and dispensing devices to the state, voiding most municipal…

Cape Coral sorts every business, profession, and occupation into one of roughly 200 named categories in the City Code's business tax schedule, each carrying a flat or size-tiered fee…

R-1 and RML lots in Cape Coral are capped at 60% impervious lot coverage under LDC Table 4.1.3.B, calculated using the Impervious Surface Calculation Sheet in Section 1.15.M. Owners…

Cape Coral caps building height by zoning district in Table 4.1.3.B of the Land Development Code: single-family R-1 lots top out at 38 feet, Institutional (INST) buildings at 60 feet…

Cape Coral sets minimum yard setbacks by zoning district in Table 4.1.3.B of the Land Development Code. A single-family R-1 lot needs a 25-foot front setback, 7.5 feet on each side…

Cape Coral requires a building permit before installing solar equipment. Code § 5-5 requires a Department of Community Development permit for solar heater construction, issued only to…

Florida's Solar Rights Act (F.S. §163.04) strongly protects homeowners' right to install solar energy devices. HOAs in Cape Coral cannot prohibit solar panels, though they may impose…

Cape Coral bars any construction, fill, or object placement in a city right-of-way or swale unless it fits a narrow no-permit list, such as mailboxes and existing landscaping, under…

Cape Coral places maintenance of the city right-of-way strip between a property line and the street pavement, including the swale, on the abutting property owner under LDC Section…

Once a deputy has issued a warning, or where a 'no loitering' sign is posted, Sec. 19-1(c) makes it unlawful to loiter, stand, sit or lie on any public sidewalk, street, curb…

Mobile food vendors in Cape Coral cannot sell from sidewalks, street rights-of-way, or right-of-way easements under LDC Section 5.11.15.B.3. Only licensed ice cream vehicles get a…

Cape Coral confines mobile food vendors to commercial and mixed-use zoning districts, bars them from residential and agricultural zones except at approved public sites, and requires…

Cape Coral limits mobile food vendors to specific zoning districts under LDC Section 5.11.15.B. MFVs may operate in the P, C, I, INST, NC, CC, MXB, MX7, and SC districts, but are…

Buildings in Cape Coral's SC (South Cape downtown) and MXB mixed-use districts must orient an entrance to the street and glaze at least half of the ground-floor wall facing it. Section…

Unincorporated Lee County lets developers exceed a parcel's standard density range through the Bonus Density Program: one dwelling unit added on parcels an acre or smaller, or one unit…

Cape Coral exempts window and door signs from a permit only while they stay under a hard coverage cap. Section 7.4.2's Window/Door Signs standard bars more than 50% of the total glazed…

Cape Coral folds garage-sale sign permission into the sale permit itself: § 12-146(B) authorizes on-site and off-site signs as part of that permit, but bans attaching any garage-sale…

Cape Coral regulates digital signage through its Electronic Message Center (EMC) standard in Section 7.4.3.B. EMCs are capped at 0.3 foot-candles above ambient light, limited to one…

Cape Coral lets residents post up to three no-permit temporary signs per single-family lot under Land Development Code Section 7.3.1.F, capped at 4 square feet and 6 feet tall with a…

Freeway-facing signs near I-75 interchanges in Lee County can rise as high as 100 feet and 750 square feet, but only one structure per quadrant, only for on-site auto and traveler…

Lee County lets homes and businesses put up Christmas and Hanukkah decorations without a sign permit, but only within a fixed window: no more than 45 days before the holiday and no…

After a declared local emergency, Cape Coral's City Manager can order collection of hurricane debris from public and private land, including vacant lots and gated communities, under…

Lee County lets hurricane shutters encroach one foot into a required setback, so an attached accordion or roll-down shutter never needs a variance to install. Every shutter and every…

Before building in a Lee County flood hazard area, Section 6-433 requires a floodplain development permit from the Floodplain Administrator. Manufactured and replacement manufactured…

Lee County's own Wind-Borne Debris Region and Basic Wind Speed Map, adopted under Section 6-112, sets local wind-speed zones tied to Florida Building Code Figures 1609A-C that decide…

Cape Coral forces private well owners off groundwater once a reclaimed water main reaches their property in areas hit by Mid-Hawthorn Aquifer overuse. Connection and use of reclaimed…

Lee County's Landscape Code makes water conservation an explicit design goal, and backs it with a number: LDC § 10-416(b) caps turfgrass at ten percent of the required landscape area…

Cape Coral bans grasses and weeds over 12 inches tall on any vacant lot or other private property, treating overgrowth as a public nuisance the Director of Community Development can…

Cape Coral makes it illegal for owners to let a building fall into visible disrepair. Section 12-25 bars five specific defects, exposed exterior wall material, discolored paint, cracks…

Cape Coral designates historic and cultural resources only through City Council under Code of Ordinances § 2-120.19: anyone can nominate a building, site, or structure, but Council…

Cape Coral's Land Development Code bans 20 named invasive exotic species, from Brazilian pepper to melaleuca and Australian pine, on every development site under Section 5.5.9. Any of…

Cape Coral does not run a separate right-to-farm ordinance; instead its noise control code exempts bona fide farm operations from the city's nuisance-noise rules under § 12-22(g)(7)…

Cape Coral's Agricultural (A) zoning district, LDC Section 4.2.5, requires five acres minimum for non-residential uses and allows farm buildings by right, while the city's own noise…

Cape Coral caps light spilling onto residential property at 0.1 foot-candle, measured right at the residential property line with a light meter aimed at the source. The cap reaches any…

Every permanent outdoor light fixture on nonresidential property in Cape Coral must be shielded so the bulb itself isn't visible off-site, and parking lot lights can't throw light…

Unincorporated Lee County lets billboards along I-75, Alico Road and Metro Parkway carry external floodlights or gooseneck reflectors, but the light source must aim only at the sign…

Cape Coral bars drivers from stopping, standing, or parking any motor vehicle on a sidewalk, bike path, or bike lane, and bars driving on them except to cross onto adjacent property…

Florida flips the usual assumption: a golf cart is barred from public roads unless a county, a municipality, or a water control district has affirmatively designated that road for cart…

Planting a tree or shrub in the parkway strip between the sidewalk and the street in Cape Coral requires a city registration certificate, not a building permit. Utility clearances…

Cape Coral defines a Heritage Tree as any Florida native canopy tree with a 20-inch caliper DBH or larger. On any development site other than a single-family or duplex lot, removing or…

Unincorporated Lee County protects only the tree species named in the Land Development Code's Appendix E; those trees cannot be cut, injured or removed without a County permit, while…

Home cultivation of cannabis is prohibited in Cape Coral. Florida law allows only medical marijuana through licensed dispensaries, and personal cultivation is not authorized under…

Florida preempts local regulation of medical marijuana dispensaries: cities must either treat them like pharmacies or ban them outright.

Cape Coral limits garage sales at a residence to three days per sale, capped at three sales per calendar year, with at least 30 days between them under City Code § 12-146(A). A city…

Lee County parks don't impose their own drone rule; Sec. 20-27(h) simply requires unmanned aircraft use in County parks to comply with federal and state law. That's a lighter standard…

Lee County Port Authority rules bar anyone from flying a model aircraft, drone, rocket, kite, balloon or parachute at or on Southwest Florida International, Page Field or the county's…

Commercial drone operations in Florida are regulated by federal FAA Part 107 and state law; local governments cannot impose additional commercial operation restrictions.

Florida expressly preempts local regulation of drones, reserving authority to the state and federal government, with limited surveillance and trespass exceptions.

Florida Statute 218.077 prohibits local governments from establishing a minimum wage other than the state or federal rate, preempting city and county living-wage ordinances except for…

Florida Statute 509.032(7) and broader employment preemption framework prevent local governments from requiring private employers to follow predictive or fair-scheduling rules beyond…

Florida allows permitless concealed carry of firearms by law-abiding adults under FS 790.01 and continues to issue concealed weapon licenses through FS 790.06, with both regimes…

Florida Statute 790.33 expressly preempts the entire field of firearm and ammunition regulation to the state, voiding all local ordinances and imposing personal civil penalties on…

Florida's open carry ban (FS 790.053) was struck down by the First District Court of Appeal in McDaniels v. State on September 10, 2025. The Florida Attorney General issued guidance on…

Florida Statute 790.25(5) allows any law-abiding person 18 or older to possess a concealed firearm in a private vehicle for self-defense, provided the firearm is securely encased or…

Florida cardrooms operate only inside licensed pari-mutuel facilities, dog tracks, horse tracks, and jai alai frontons, under a license from the Florida Gaming Control Commission. Fla…

Florida lets charitable, nonprofit, and veterans' organizations run bingo without applying for any state gaming license: the statute itself sets the eligibility bar and the limits. A…

Florida law exempts small-stakes card and tile games from gambling crimes under Fla. Stat. § 849.085, but only under strict conditions: winnings per hand can't exceed $10, the game…

Sports wagering is legal in Florida only through the Seminole Tribe's Hard Rock Bet platform, authorized under the state's gaming compact codified at Fla. Stat. § 285.710(13)(b)7…

Under Fla. Stat. § 720.3085, unpaid assessments become a lien on a parcel, and the homeowners' association may foreclose like a mortgage. Before recording the lien the association must…

Under Fla. Stat. § 720.303(2), Florida HOA board meetings must be open to members with notice posted at least 48 hours ahead. Section 720.306 governs member meetings and elections, §…

Under Fla. Stat. §§ 720.303 and 720.3035, a Florida HOA enforces its recorded covenants and architectural standards, but only where authority is stated or reasonably inferred in the…

Florida Statute 163.04 bars homeowner association deed restrictions and local ordinances from prohibiting clotheslines, solar collectors, or other renewable-resource energy devices in…

Florida law bars HOA declarations, articles, and bylaws from prohibiting Florida-friendly landscaping, defined by statute as drought-tolerant, water-conserving design. Section…

Florida law bars homeowners associations from stopping owners from flying up to two flags, each no larger than 4 1/2 by 6 feet, including the U.S. flag, Florida's state flag, military…

Under Fla. Stat. § 720.305, a Florida HOA may fine up to $100 per violation and $1,000 in the aggregate unless the governing documents allow more. The association must give at least 14…

A Florida association can foreclose an assessment lien in the same manner a mortgage is foreclosed, but only after two separate 45-day notices, and fines are largely off limits: a…

Florida limits how homeowners' associations can restrict renting out a home, but only in communities governed by Chapter 720, not condos or co-ops. Under Fla. Stat. § 720.306(1)(h), a…

Florida allows sobriety checkpoints, and the discretion of the individual trooper is what gets constrained. Fla. Stat. § 321.05(1) gives Florida Highway Patrol officers the power to…

Florida is an all-party consent state, but that rule reaches less far than it sounds. Fla. Stat. § 934.03(2)(d) makes interception lawful only when every party consents, while §…

Florida has no general stop-and-identify statute. The Florida Stop and Frisk Law, Fla. Stat. § 901.151(2), lets an officer temporarily detain you to ascertain your identity when…

Florida wrote the automobile exception into its statutes in 1927. Fla. Stat. § 933.19 adopts the United States Supreme Court's decision of March 2, 1925 in the Carroll case, reported…

Florida Statute 403.7033 preempts the regulation of disposable plastic bags by local governments, prohibiting cities and counties from enacting bans or fees on retailers pending a…

Florida Statute 500.90 preempts the regulation of polystyrene products by local governments, blocking cities and counties from banning expanded polystyrene foam food containers, cups…

Florida Statute 569.101 prohibits the sale or delivery of tobacco and nicotine products to persons under 21, aligning with federal law and applying uniformly statewide under the…

Florida is one of the states that says yes to underbody lighting in so many words. Fla. Stat. § 316.235(3) provides that any motor vehicle may be equipped with one or more lamps or…

Florida does not give dash cameras a windshield carve-out. Fla. Stat. § 316.2952(2) is written as a closed list of exactly four things that may be attached to, or located in or upon, a…

Florida bans lane splitting in so many words. Fla. Stat. section 316.209(3) states that no person shall operate a motorcycle between lanes of traffic or between adjacent lines or rows…

Florida treats an obscured plate as a crime, not a ticket. Fla. Stat. section 320.061(1) makes it unlawful to apply or attach any substance, reflective matter, illuminated device…

A driver of a private passenger vehicle may use a radar detector in Florida. No section of the Florida Statutes prohibits owning, carrying or operating one, and chapter 316, which…

Florida does not ban studded tires and does not restrict them to a winter season. The one wheel-surface provision in the traffic code, Fla. Stat. section 316.299, prohibits driving on…

Florida sets a separate light transmittance floor for each piece of glass rather than one statewide number. Side wings and side windows forward of or next to the driver must pass at…