Business Licensing & Operations in Coral Gables, FL (2026)
7 verified business licensing & operations rules for Coral Gables, Florida, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Adult Entertainment
Coral Gables confines adult bookstores, adult theaters, and massage salons to the Design District and bars them within 1,000 feet of each other, residential districts, schools, or religious institutions.
Coral Gables Adult Bookstore & Theater Spacing
Significant RestrictionsZoning Code § 3-503
No adult bookstore or adult theater or massage salon shall be established or located within a distance of one thousand (1,000) feet from any other adult bookstore, or adult theater or massage salon. Such distance shall be measured and computed by following a straight line between the main entrances of the places of business. No adult bookstore, or adult theater or massage salon shall be locate...
Massage Establishments
Coral Gables zoning confines massage establishments to an accessory use inside a beauty salon, medical clinic, or health club, capped at 40 percent of the host facility's floor area: there's no zoning slot for a standalone massage parlor.
Coral Gables Massage Establishment Accessory Rule
Significant RestrictionsZoning Code § 3-314 (Massage establishment)
A massage establishment shall be permitted as accessory to a beauty salon, medical clinic, or health club. For the purposes of such accessory use, the massage establishment portion shall not exceed 40 (forty) percent of the floor area of the main facility.
Tattoo & Body Modification
Tattoo parlors and body piercing shops are confined to the Design District and must sit at least 1,000 feet from homes, schools, churches, or another shop like them.
Coral Gables Tattoo Parlor Zoning Rules
Significant RestrictionsZoning Code Sec. 3-504 (Unusual Uses)
No day labor, tattoo parlors, body piercing, pawn shops, check cashing centers, blood plasma centers or similar uses shall be established or located within a distance of one thousand (1,000) feet from any of these uses to ensure compatibility with the surrounding district and uses. No day labor, tattoo parlors, body piercing, pawn shops, check cashing centers, blood plasma centers, or similar ...
Tobacco Retail License
Coral Gables bars vape shops and vape-product retailers from operating within 500 feet of any school, with no variances allowed under the zoning code.
Coral Gables Vape Shop 500-Foot School Buffer
Significant RestrictionsZoning Code § 3-505
No Vape Shop or any retail business engaged in the sale of vape-related products shall be permitted upon premises closer than five hundred (500) feet from any school. The distance shall be measured by following a straight line from the main entrance of the proposed establishment to the nearest point of the school grounds. There shall be no variances of the above distance requirements granted fo...
Secondhand Dealers
Coral Gables requires secondhand dealers in jewelry, precious metals, and coins, including pawnshops, to obtain a written police department permit, log every transaction, and hold goods before resale.
Coral Gables Secondhand Dealer Permit Requirements
Significant RestrictionsSec. 14-22
No person shall engage in, manage, conduct or carry on the business of a secondhand dealer in jewelry, metals and coins without obtaining a written permit from the police department and the payment of a fee established in section 1-8. The permit shall contain the name and home address of the permittee and the address of the business being permitted and shall be signed by the police chief or his...
Pawnbrokers
Coral Gables regulates pawnshops as secondhand dealers, requiring a police department permit before buying or trading pawned jewelry, metals, or coins.
Coral Gables Pawnbroker Licensing Rules
Significant RestrictionsSec. 14-21; Sec. 14-22
Secondhand dealer means a person engaging in, conducting, managing or carrying on the business of buying, selling, or otherwise dealing in secondhand jewelry, precious and semiprecious stones, metals containing gold or silver and imitations thereof, watches, rings, bracelets, coins and other similar goods, wares and merchandise. This definition includes pawnshops conducting, managing or carryin...
Towing Companies
Wrecker companies that tow vehicles from private property without the owner's consent must hold a city regulatory license, meet wrecker-class equipment standards, and follow strict service and rate rules.
Coral Gables Nonconsensual Towing Company License
Significant RestrictionsSec. 74-277(a)-(b)
(a)The issuance of this license pursuant to this article is separate and apart from and supplemental to any county or municipal o business tax receipt. This license shall be characterized as a regulatory license and not a revenue license.(b)Nothing in this section shall be construed to mean that a natural person cannot work or a business enterprise cannot operate without the license required fo...
Looking for Miami-Dade County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Coral Gables city rules.
Business Licensing & Operations in Miami-Dade County →