Lee County, FL Ordinances (2026)

Keeping exotic or wild animals in Lee County is governed by the state, not the county. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) classifies wildlife as Class I, II…

Lee County's animal ordinance does not set a fixed maximum number of dogs or cats per household. It regulates by outcome—requiring direct control, humane care, and no nuisance—and…

Lee County's animal ordinance defines livestock (including domesticated poultry) but does not itself permit or ban backyard chickens or roosters. Whether you may keep them depends on…

In unincorporated Lee County, dogs must be under "direct control" at all times. Off your own property that means a leash no longer than 8 feet, a fence, or a cord/chain strong enough…

Lee County's animal ordinance defines livestock (cattle, horses, goats, sheep, hogs, poultry and similar) using state law but regulates cruelty and restraint, not where livestock may…

Lee County has no breed-specific dog ban, and it cannot enact one. Florida Statute 767.14 lets local governments regulate dangerous dogs but bars any regulation "specific to breed."…

Lee County cannot regulate managed honeybee colonies. Florida Statute 586.10 preempts colony registration, inspection, permitting, and placement to the state (FDACS). Register your…

In Lee County, any cat four months or older must be vaccinated against rabies and licensed, and wear its County license/rabies tag (microchipped cats and ferrets are exempt from the…

Lee County residents may not intentionally feed certain wildlife. Florida's FWC rule (F.A.C. 68A-4.001) bans intentionally feeding bears and prohibits leaving food or garbage that…

Lee County has no separate "hoarding" ordinance, but hoarding is reached through its cruelty and care standards. Every animal must have adequate food, water, shelter, and veterinary…

Lee County does not ban leaf blowers. The Noise Control Ordinance expressly exempts lawn care, mowers, domestic power tools and tree trimming when used between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m., so…

Lee County's Noise Control Ordinance covers vehicle-related noise through its general sound-level limits and noise-disturbance standard, but exempts safety alarms (backup and…

Outdoor music in unincorporated Lee County must meet the Table 1 limits (66 dBA day / 55 dBA night in residential areas) and can be cited as a noise disturbance. Events exceeding…

In unincorporated Lee County, residential noise may not exceed 66 dBA from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., dropping to 55 dBA from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m., measured at the receiving property line…

Lee County requires mufflers on power construction equipment and limits noise to the Table 1 land-use cap. 24-hour equipment (pumps, generators) near homes must be shielded from 6 p.m…

The Lee County Noise Control Ordinance treats persistent barking as a prohibited 'noise disturbance' judged by volume, duration and proximity to sleeping areas. Sustained barking that…

Amplified music, including low-frequency bass, is covered by the Lee County Noise Control Ordinance. It must stay within the Table 1 dBA limits (55 dBA at night in residential areas)…

Lee County sets numeric dBA caps: residential 66 dBA day / 55 dBA night; commercial 72 day / 65 night; industrial 75 at all times. Measured at the receiving property line, at least 5…

Manufacturing and industrial land in unincorporated Lee County is capped at 75 dBA at all times at the receiving property line. Where industry predates encroaching homes, the higher…

Lee County's noise ordinance expressly exempts noise from operation of all Lee County airports. Aircraft-in-flight noise is regulated by the federal FAA, not the county. Complaints go…

Retaining walls in unincorporated Lee County are permitted through the same Residential Fence or Wall process. Walls need a building permit, and if the wall exceeds 6 feet (excluding…

LDC section 34-1742 requires a Lee County building permit for any fence or wall over 25 inches tall (bona fide agricultural and government conservation fences are exempt). Permits are…

Lee County requires conventional fence materials and prohibits non-traditional ones. Barbed wire, spire-tip, sharp-object, or electrified fences may not be within 100 feet of a…

In unincorporated Lee County, LDC section 34-1744 caps a residential fence in the front (street) yard at 3 feet, allowing 4 feet if open-mesh, while a fence between the side or rear…

Lee County sets no boundary-fence cost-sharing rule; that is a private matter under Florida law. The LDC does require fences to sit out of street rights-of-way and at least 5 feet from…

LDC section 34-1742 requires all fences and fence walls on a property to be of uniform materials, design and color, constructed and maintained so they do not detract from the…

Lee County requires fences and walls of conventional building materials: concrete block, brick, wood, decorative aluminum, iron or steel, chain link, or fence-grade composite. The…

There is no Lee County vacation-rental registration ordinance; the state preempts it. Instead you register the vacation rental for a state DBPR license, obtain a Florida sales-tax…

Unincorporated Lee County sets no post-2011 vacation-rental-specific occupancy cap; Florida preemption blocks new local rules based on a rental's classification, use, or occupancy…

Lee County cannot impose vacation-rental-only noise rules, but its generally-applicable noise ordinance applies fully to rental guests. Loud parties, amplified music, and disturbances…

Unincorporated Lee County requires no county short-term-rental permit. Florida preempts vacation-rental licensing to the state: a vacation rental must hold a state license from the…

Lee County levies a 5% Tourist Development Tax on rentals of six months or less. The dealer collects it from every transient guest and remits it to the Lee County Clerk. This 5% bed…

Lee County has no vacation-rental-specific parking ordinance. Because state law preempts new local STR rules, guest parking is governed by the same generally-applicable Land…

Lee County cannot require a vacation rental to be the owner's primary residence. Florida preempts local rules restricting vacation rentals based on use or occupancy (FS 509.032(7)(b))…

Lee County cannot cap how many nights or how often a vacation rental operates. FS 509.032(7)(b) expressly bars local ordinances adopted after June 1, 2011 from regulating the duration…

Lee County does not require a host or on-site manager to be present during a vacation rental. State preemption blocks such use-based local rules. Un-hosted, remotely managed whole-home…

Lee County imposes no vacation-rental insurance requirement, and Florida does not set a statutory minimum liability policy for vacation rentals. Coverage is left to the host and any…

Lee County allows backyard fire rings and recreational fire pits burning clean wood, subject to Florida Forest Service setbacks. When the county enacts a drought burn ban, campfires…

Lee County does not impose a fixed defensible-space or brush-clearance distance on private homeowners the way western wildfire states do. Clearing is voluntary and follows Florida…

In Lee County, Florida law lets you use consumer fireworks only on New Year's Day, July 4, and New Year's Eve. On any other day, using them is unlawful statewide. Local rules and HOA…

You may burn yard waste in Lee County without a Florida Forest Service authorization if the pile fits an 8-foot diameter, is your own vegetative debris, and is lit after 9 a.m. and out…

Small recreational backyard fires (fire ring, chiminea, clean-wood campfire) are allowed in Lee County when no burn ban is in effect and Florida Forest Service safety rules are met…

Lee County does not set its own residential propane-storage limits. Home LP-gas storage follows the Florida Fire Prevention Code, which adopts NFPA 58, and Florida's LP Gas program…

Florida law (FS 553.883), enforced through the Florida Building Code in Lee County, requires smoke alarms in homes. Any newly installed or replacement battery-powered smoke alarm must…

Lee County has no adopted wildfire-hazard overlay zone that imposes special building or vegetation rules on homeowners. Wildfire risk in the wildland-urban interface (Lehigh Acres…

Backyard smokers and pellet/charcoal cookers are treated as food grills in Lee County, not as open burning, so they need no permit and remain allowed even during a burn ban…

Lee County sets no special residential rule on gas or charcoal barbecue grills, and food grills are expressly excluded from the county's outdoor burn ban. Multifamily/condo grill use…

In unincorporated Lee County, you may not stop, stand, or park on sidewalks, crosswalks, intersections, bike paths, bridges, or anywhere official signs prohibit it. Parking is also…

Lee County's LDC does not cap RVs, boats, or non-commercial recreational trailers parked at a home, but trailers over a 15,000-lb combined GVWR are restricted in residential zones…

Lee County has no blanket overnight street-parking ban, but you may not park any vehicle for more than 24 continuous hours on a public street, lot, or public-access property to display…

Storing inoperative, wrecked, or partly dismantled vehicles on residential property in unincorporated Lee County is a public nuisance subject to immediate abatement. Violations can…

You cannot park tractor-trailers, semi-trucks, two-or-more-rear-axle trucks, or any truck over 15,000-lb GVWR on residentially or agriculturally zoned Lee County property. Limited…

New Lee County duplex and two-family-attached homes need a separate driveway per unit, at least 20 by 20 feet, built of concrete, asphalt, or concrete pavers. Driveways must stay…

Lee County's Land Development Code sets no county-specific rule for home EV chargers; installation follows the Florida Building Code and NEC electrical permitting through Lee County…

Lee County does not set its own residential curb-painting color code; curb and pavement markings follow the Florida MUTCD administered by FDOT and the County DOT. Residents may not…

Oversized commercial vehicles, including trucks with a GVWR over 15,000 pounds, two-or-more-rear-axle trucks, and semis, may not be parked on residentially or agriculturally zoned…

In unincorporated Lee County, you may not use a required off-street parking or loading space for merchandise display or rental-vehicle parking, and stopping to load or unload is barred…

Lee County LDC Table 34-695 sets minimum setbacks for one- and two-family residential districts. In the common RS-1 district the side yard is 7.5 feet and rear yard 20 feet; street…

LDC Table 34-695 caps maximum lot coverage at 40% of total lot area in the common RS-1, RS-2, RS-3, RS-4, and RS-5 single-family districts. Coverage is 45% in RSC-1, RSA, TFC-1, and…

LDC Table 34-695 limits the maximum building height to 35 feet in all one- and two-family residential districts in unincorporated Lee County. Special coastal and conservation areas…

Home childcare in Florida is regulated by the state under FS Chapter 402. A family day care home must be licensed if Lee County requires it by ordinance; otherwise it must register…

Lee County's Land Development Code allows a home occupation as an accessory use in districts that permit dwellings, but it must be clearly incidental and subordinate to residential…

A Lee County home occupation must show no exterior evidence that the dwelling is used for anything but a residence, except one small, non-illuminated nameplate. Larger commercial or…

Lee County allows home occupations by right in districts permitting dwellings, subject to the Land Development Code's Division 18 standards. A Lee County local business tax receipt is…

Florida's cottage food law lets you make and sell certain non-hazardous foods from your Lee County home with no state license and no local permit, as long as annual gross sales stay at…

In unincorporated Lee County, grasses and weeds over 12 inches high on a lot are a declared nuisance under the Lot Mowing Ordinance (No. 14-08). Owners must keep vegetation cut, or the…

Trees required by the Lee County Land Development Code may only be pruned to promote healthy, natural growth using ANSI A300 and ISA standards. Severe pruning, topping, or hat-racking…

The Lee County Lot Mowing Ordinance (No. 14-08) declares grasses and weeds over 12 inches on lots a nuisance in unincorporated areas. The County notices owners, then mows and liens the…

Lee County does not restrict residential rainwater harvesting. Under water Ordinance No. 24-01, rain barrels, cisterns, and other rain-harvesting devices may be used to water plants…

Lee County's Land Development Code does not authorize synthetic turf as a substitute for required living landscaping, so it generally does not count toward development landscape or…

Under Lee County LDC Chapter 14, Article V, a tree protected by the article may be lawfully removed only after a vegetation/tree removal permit is secured from the administrator…

Unincorporated Lee County limits landscape irrigation to set days by address and bans watering from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. year-round under Ordinance No. 24-01, supplementing the SFWMD…

Lee County's development landscape standards require a large share of native Florida trees and shrubs from Appendix E, and Florida law (FS 373.185) bars HOAs from prohibiting…

Backyard composting is allowed in Lee County; no ordinance prohibits a residential compost pile. Yard waste (grass, leaves, brush) is collected separately through the County's curbside…

Lee County requires a vegetation/tree removal permit before removing protected trees or clearing native vegetation. Permits are issued by the Division of Environmental Sciences under…

Under the Florida Residential Swimming Pool Safety Act, a pool barrier must be at least 4 feet (48 inches) high on the outside, with no gaps a child could crawl under, squeeze through…

Above-ground residential pools in unincorporated Lee County generally require a building permit and must meet the same Florida Residential Swimming Pool Safety Act barrier or…

Yes. A building permit from Lee County Development & Community Services is required to build a residential swimming pool in unincorporated Lee County. Pools over $5,000 also require a…

Before a residential pool passes final inspection, Florida law requires at least one safety feature: a barrier meeting FS 515.29, an approved safety pool cover, exit alarms on…

Residential spas and hot tubs are covered by the Florida Residential Swimming Pool Safety Act. FS 515.29 lets a hot tub satisfy the barrier requirement with an approved, lockable…

Residential '1-1-1' service includes weekly commingled recycling. Lee County also mandates recycling for businesses and multifamily properties in unincorporated areas: every business…

Lee County residential curbside service collects garbage, recyclables, and horticulture waste set out at the curb within about six feet of the roadway. Horticulture must be bundled to…

Lee County residential service includes pickup of bulky waste, white goods (large appliances), and electronic waste. Some bulky items go out with regular garbage collection; larger or…

Dumping litter or waste on public or private land in Lee County is illegal. Under Florida's Litter Law (FS 403.413), dumping up to 15 pounds is a $150 civil fine; over 500 pounds or…

Garbage is collected once or twice weekly depending on your area, with recycling and yard waste weekly. Find your days with the county's Resident Information Lookup or the Recycle…

One accessory apartment or accessory dwelling unit is allowed per single-family residence in unincorporated Lee County. Living area is capped at 60 percent of the principal home's…

A converted garage or accessory building attached to the house must meet all principal-building rules; if detached, it follows accessory-structure setbacks. Converting a garage into…

In unincorporated Lee County, residential accessory buildings such as sheds must be set back at least five feet from any rear property line and no closer to a side line than the…

Carports are accessory structures that must sit on the same lot and zoning as the home and meet accessory setbacks. Related recreational structures like cabanas are limited to…

Lee County has no separate tiny-home category. A permanent tiny home on a foundation is treated as a single-family dwelling or, if secondary to a main house, as an accessory dwelling…

In unincorporated Lee County the property owner must provide approved, covered garbage receptacles adequate to hold all waste from the home, and may not permit an unsanitary nuisance…

In unincorporated Lee County, owners, agents, lessees, and occupants must cut and keep grasses and weeds to a height not exceeding 12 inches. If you don't, the county can mow it and…

In unincorporated Lee County it is illegal to let garbage, trash, rubbish, inoperable vehicles, or abandoned property pile up on private land. Code Enforcement can order abatement; the…

Under the Lee County Lot Mowing Ordinance, grasses and weeds over 12 inches on an unimproved lot covering more than 50% of the lot are a nuisance when within 150 feet of developed…

In unincorporated Lee County no permit is required for a garage or yard sale, but the Land Development Code limits each residence to no more than two garage/yard sales per year, each…

In unincorporated Lee County, a property owner may place political or campaign signs of up to four square feet on their own property. Signs may go up no earlier than 60 days before the…

Lee County has no dedicated garage-sale sign rule, but off-site promotional and special-event signs on others' property require a permit and a security bond from the Building Official…

On unincorporated Gulf-facing beaches, Lee County bans artificial light directly or indirectly visible from the beach during sea-turtle nesting season, defined as 9:00 p.m. to 7:00…

Lee County treats light escaping toward the beach as a violation of its sea-turtle ordinance. A rebuttable presumption of violation exists when artificial light casts a shadow of an…

Lee County parks are open daily with opening and closing hours posted at each park; no one may remain in a closed park or section. Except for authorized campers in designated camping…