St. Lucie County, FL Ordinances (2026)

St. Lucie County's noise chapter has no dog-specific decibel figure, but a barking dog is a 'sound source' subject to the § 28-110 limits (60/55 dBA residential) and the § 28-108 definition of noise as any sound that annoys or disturbs. Animal Control handles chronic barking.

Leaf blowers and other lawn equipment are exempt from St. Lucie County noise limits during normal landscape maintenance from sunrise to sunset (Code § 28-111(12)). Port St. Lucie allows the same maintenance noise from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. (Sec. 94.05(j)). No blower ban exists.

Industrial property in unincorporated St. Lucie County may not exceed 70 dBA at all times at the receiving property line (Sec. 28-110). Low-frequency octave bands against residential property are capped at 65 dB. Port St. Lucie's Chapter 94 industrial limits run 75/70/65 (L1/L10/L50).

Unincorporated St. Lucie County caps residential sound at 60 dBA from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and 55 dBA from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. at the receiving property line (Code § 28-110). Port St. Lucie separately bars amplified sound in residential areas from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.

St. Lucie County Sec. 28-110 sets receiving-property dBA limits: residential 60 (day) / 55 (night), commercial 65 at all times, industrial 70 at all times, measured at the property line. Multifamily units are held to 50 dBA day / 40 dBA night from a neighbor's unit.

Port St. Lucie's Sec. 94.06(b)(4) bans a vehicle sound system 'plainly audible at a distance of 25 feet,' and Sec. 94.06(a) bars honking over 30 seconds except as a warning. Roadway vehicle/muffler noise is otherwise governed by Florida law (F.S. § 316.293), which the county noise chapter defers to.

In unincorporated St. Lucie County, permitted construction noise is exempt only from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday (permits issued on/after Dec. 6, 2006). Work outside those hours needs a special permit under § 28-112.

St. Lucie County exempts noise from any type of aircraft, except scale model aircraft, from its noise limits (Sec. 28-111(4)); Port St. Lucie does the same, excluding powered model vehicles (Sec. 94.05(d)). Full-scale aircraft noise is federally preempted under FAA authority.

Port St. Lucie's Sec. 94.06(c) prohibits loudspeakers and sound amplifiers within or adjacent to residential areas from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. weekdays and 10 p.m. to 10 a.m. weekends/holidays when plainly audible across the property line. Unincorporated county caps amplified sound at the § 28-110 dB limits.

Outdoor music in unincorporated St. Lucie County must stay within the § 28-110 dB limits; relief requires a special permit from the county commission (§ 28-112). Port St. Lucie exempts permitted public performances, gatherings and park events from its amplified-sound curfew (Sec. 94.06(c)).

In unincorporated St. Lucie County, maximum lot coverage is set by zoning district in LDC Table 7-10 (LDC 7.04.01.A). Accessory structures in a residential district may not occupy more than 35% of the maximum permitted building area of the entire lot.

In unincorporated St. Lucie County, minimum front, side and rear yard setbacks are set by zoning district in LDC Table 7-10 (LDC 7.04.01.B). Setbacks are measured from the base building line. Port St. Lucie sets corner-lot side setbacks of 15 to 25 feet by lot width.

In unincorporated St. Lucie County, maximum building height is set by zoning district in LDC Table 7-10 (LDC 7.04.01.A). Detached residential garages, carports and storage buildings may exceed the house height but are capped at 20 feet (25 feet in agricultural districts).

Any St. Lucie County vacation rental must hold a Florida DBPR vacation-rental license before advertising or renting. Local governments cannot ban rentals, but every operator needs the state license plus a St. Lucie County tourist-tax account.

St. Lucie County and its cities cannot set minimum-night stays or cap how many nights per year you rent. Florida Statute 509.032(7)(b) preempts any local rule regulating the duration or frequency of vacation rentals.

St. Lucie County levies a 5% Tourist Development (bed) tax on rentals of six months or less, collected and remitted to the County Tax Collector. That is on top of Florida's 7% state sales tax and the state DBPR license fees.

St. Lucie County and its cities cannot restrict vacation rentals to a host's primary residence. Florida Statute 509.032(7)(b) bars local rules that prohibit rentals or regulate their duration or frequency, so investment/non-owner-occupied STRs are allowed.

Florida bars local governments from banning vacation rentals, but they may require registration. Port St. Lucie has no STR registry; Fort Pierce and St. Lucie Village require every rental under six months to register locally, plus a countywide tourist-tax account.

St. Lucie County and Port St. Lucie set no special STR occupancy cap; Florida bars localities from regulating rental duration or frequency. Fort Pierce's local ordinance imposes an occupancy formula. State law defines a rental as transient when let more than three times yearly for under 30 days.

Neither unincorporated St. Lucie County nor Port St. Lucie sets STR-specific parking rules. General zoning and residential parking codes apply equally to rentals, and any locality-wide standard adopted for all homes governs guest vehicles.

There is no STR-specific noise ordinance in Port St. Lucie or unincorporated St. Lucie County. Rental guests must obey the same general noise/disturbance ordinances as all residents, enforced by the Sheriff or city police.

Port St. Lucie and unincorporated St. Lucie County do not require an on-site host. Fort Pierce's registration ordinance requires a local responsible party reachable and able to respond to the rental quickly, typically within one hour of a call.

No St. Lucie County, Port St. Lucie, or Florida state law mandates a specific short-term-rental insurance policy. Owners are strongly advised to carry commercial/STR liability coverage, and platforms like Airbnb add host protection, but coverage is not a licensing condition.

Under the Florida Fire Prevention Code enforced in St. Lucie County, gas and charcoal grills cannot be used or stored on the balconies of apartments and condos, or within 10 feet of any multifamily structure. Single-family homeowners are not restricted this way.

St. Lucie County has no ordinance targeting backyard smokers. Detached-home residents may use charcoal, wood, or pellet smokers with normal safety spacing. At apartments and condos, the Florida Fire Prevention Code's 10-foot balcony rule bars fuel-burning smokers.

St. Lucie County and Port St. Lucie have no ordinance banning home EV chargers; installing one at a house needs an electrical permit. Florida Statute 718.113(8) bars a condominium declaration from prohibiting a unit owner's charging station in their designated parking area.

In Port St. Lucie, parking is prohibited in the front yard except on a surface specifically designed and built for it, and blocking a public or private driveway is barred. You also may not park on private property or in a driveway without the owner's consent.

In Port St. Lucie, RVs, boats, and boat trailers may not sit in a residential area unless stored in a garage, on a paved driveway, or beside or behind the home with a ten-foot rear setback. Unincorporated St. Lucie County requires front-yard RVs and boats on a paved pad.

Port St. Lucie's property maintenance code bars keeping any inoperative motor vehicle on a property unless inside an enclosed structure, and prohibits vehicles in major disassembly. Unincorporated St. Lucie County treats junk, wrecked, or unregistered vehicles left outside as a code violation.

In Port St. Lucie, freight curb loading zones may be used only for expeditious loading and unloading of materials, and no such stop may exceed 30 minutes. Passenger curb loading zones are limited to five minutes. Zoning also requires off-street loading for larger developments.

Port St. Lucie, tracking Florida law, prohibits stopping or parking on sidewalks, in intersections and crosswalks, in front of any public or private driveway, and within 15 feet of a fire hydrant. Parking in a residential swale without the owner's permission is also barred.

Neither Port St. Lucie nor unincorporated St. Lucie County imposes a blanket overnight on-street parking ban. However, Port St. Lucie prohibits parking on any public right-of-way for the purpose of abandonment for more than 24 hours, and swale and posted restrictions still apply.

Port St. Lucie makes it unlawful to park any commercial vehicle, bus, or heavy equipment in a residential zone or on abutting streets. A commercial vehicle means one with a gross vehicle weight of 10,000 pounds or more, or certain trucks and vans storing equipment.

Port St. Lucie regulates large vehicles by type: commercial vehicles of 10,000 pounds GVW or more are banned from residential zones, and only one enclosed and one open utility trailer may be kept on a residential parcel, on a paved driveway or to the side or rear.

Residents may not paint public curbs or create their own parking restrictions in St. Lucie County. In Port St. Lucie, the city manager is the designated authority for establishing restricted and no-parking areas; only official signs and markings are enforceable.

The Florida Fire Prevention Code, enforced by the St. Lucie County Fire District, limits LP-gas (propane) cylinder storage in residential buildings and bars storing propane grills on the balconies of apartments and condos.

St. Lucie County follows Florida Forest Service rules: recreational fires in a fire pit, outdoor fireplace, or contained device are allowed for vegetative debris and untreated wood, provided the fire stays attended at all times and is fully extinguished before you leave it.

Florida law requires working smoke alarms in dwellings. In St. Lucie County, a newly installed or replacement battery-powered smoke alarm must use a nonremovable, nonreplaceable 10-year battery under F.S. 553.883.

In St. Lucie County, Florida law lets residents use consumer fireworks only on three designated holidays: New Year's Day (Jan 1), Independence Day (July 4), and New Year's Eve (Dec 31). Using them any other day remains restricted under state law.

St. Lucie County does not designate mapped wildfire hazard zones with special building rules the way western states do. Wildfire risk in the rural western county is managed through Florida Forest Service burn bans and voluntary Firewise practices.

Burning yard trash in unincorporated St. Lucie County is governed by Florida Forest Service Rule 5I-2. Piles must be no larger than 8 feet across, set back from buildings and roads, and any pile over 8 feet needs Florida Forest Service authorization.

St. Lucie County has no California-style defensible-space law requiring homeowners to clear brush around structures. Overgrown vegetation is instead handled as a property-maintenance nuisance, and the Florida Forest Service promotes voluntary Firewise clearing near homes.

Backyard recreational fires are legal in St. Lucie County when burning untreated wood or vegetative debris in a contained device, kept attended, and fully extinguished before you leave. During drought, a Florida Forest Service burn ban can suspend all backyard burning.

Florida's FWC bans intentionally feeding many wild animals, including bears, alligators, foxes, and sandhill cranes. Violations start as a civil penalty and can escalate to criminal charges for repeat bear or crocodilian offenses.

Cats four months or older in unincorporated St. Lucie County must be currently registered with a county ID tag and rabies-vaccinated. There is no statewide leash requirement for cats.

Florida has no statewide leash law, so St. Lucie County sets the rule. Dogs must be under the owner's restraint, and any dog classified dangerous must be muzzled and leashed whenever outside its enclosure.

Livestock keeping in St. Lucie County follows agricultural zoning in the Land Development Code, and Florida's Right to Farm Act bars local governments from restricting bona fide farm operations on agricultural land.

St. Lucie County sets no simple numeric limit on household pets, but every dog and cat four months or older in the unincorporated county must be currently registered and rabies-vaccinated.

St. Lucie County has no single 'hoarding' ordinance, but its animal-care standards require adequate food, water, shelter, and veterinary care, and Florida's cruelty statute criminalizes confining animals without proper sustenance.

Unincorporated St. Lucie County permits up to five backyard chickens for personal use through its Backyard Chicken Program on qualifying residential lots. Port St. Lucie does not allow backyard chickens.

St. Lucie County has no breed ban. Florida law bars local governments from regulating dogs by breed, weight, or size, so pit bulls and other breeds cannot be singled out for restrictions.

St. Lucie County cannot ban or zone honeybee colonies. Florida preempts beekeeping regulation to the state; hobbyist and commercial beekeepers register with the Department of Agriculture (FDACS) instead of the county.

Keeping non-native or wild animals is governed by Florida's Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, not St. Lucie County. Class I animals are barred as pets, Class II and III require FWC permits or licenses.

Artificial turf is not banned outright, but Port St. Lucie's landscape code prohibits using synthetic or artificial material, including artificial turf, in place of required landscape plantings. It cannot count toward mandated landscaping, though decorative use may be allowed.

Unincorporated St. Lucie County uses a nuisance standard rather than a fixed number, but Port St. Lucie, the county's largest city, requires owners to keep grass and weeds on improved (built-on) property from exceeding twelve inches in length.

St. Lucie County and its cities have no ordinance banning residential rain barrels or cisterns. Collecting rooftop rainwater for landscape use is legal and encouraged in Florida as a water-conservation practice; check any HOA or building rules for large systems.

Florida law protects your right to plant native, drought-tolerant, Florida-Friendly landscaping: a local ordinance may not prohibit any owner from implementing it. Port St. Lucie's landscape code actually favors native species and drought-tolerant material.

St. Lucie County follows the South Florida Water Management District year-round landscape irrigation rule. Odd-numbered addresses water Wednesday and Saturday; even-numbered addresses water Thursday and Sunday. No landscape irrigation is allowed daily between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

You may prune your own trees, but in Port St. Lucie substantially altering or damaging a protected tree requires a permit. Florida law also lets homeowners trim or remove a residential tree without local approval when a certified arborist documents it as dangerous.

St. Lucie County and Port St. Lucie have no ordinance banning backyard composting. Home compost piles are allowed but must not become a nuisance by attracting rodents or vermin or creating odors that affect neighboring property.

Removing a protected tree in Port St. Lucie requires a city tree removal permit. But Florida Statute 163.045 overrides local rules: no permit, fee, or mitigation may be required for a residential tree a certified arborist documents as dangerous.

Port St. Lucie forbids owners of unimproved (vacant) property from letting weeds, grass, and undergrowth exceed twenty-four inches within fifteen feet of a road or drainage right-of-way. Improved lots must stay under twelve inches; the county enforces overgrowth as a nuisance.

Port St. Lucie requires a tree removal permit before cutting down, moving, or destroying a protected tree, with replacement often required. Florida Statute 163.045 exempts homeowners who hold arborist documentation that a residential tree is dangerous.

Florida law folds hot tubs and nonportable spas into the definition of a swimming pool. In St. Lucie County a hot tub holding water over 24 inches deep must meet the same permit, barrier, and safety-feature requirements as a pool.

In St. Lucie County an above-ground pool holding water over 24 inches deep is regulated exactly like an in-ground pool. Its own wall can serve as the barrier if it meets FS 515.29, and any ladder or steps must be lockable, securable, or removable.

A building permit is required to build a residential swimming pool anywhere in St. Lucie County. Plans are reviewed against the Florida Building Code Residential and the state Residential Swimming Pool Safety Act (FS Ch. 515) before construction begins.

Florida's Residential Swimming Pool Safety Act sets St. Lucie County's pool-fence rule: a barrier must be at least 4 feet high on the outside, with no gaps a child could crawl under, squeeze through, or climb over.

Under Florida Statute 515.27, every new residential pool in St. Lucie County must have at least one approved safety feature: an isolating barrier, an approved safety cover, exit alarms on home doors, self-closing/self-latching doors, or a certified pool alarm.

Yes, a permit is required before building a fence in unincorporated St. Lucie County and in Port St. Lucie. County LDC 8.00.04.A requires proper permits and Florida Building Code compliance; Port St. Lucie issues a residential fence permit through its Building Department.

In Port St. Lucie all fences must be erected inside the property line as shown on the recorded plat, and the owner is responsible for maintaining both sides of the fence. In the county, a residential fence adjoining a non-residential lot may reach 8 feet.

Port St. Lucie Code 158.216(A) bans chicken wire and barbed wire fences in residential districts. Masonry or stone walls are prohibited in utility and drainage easements on single-family lots without a specific waiver, and easement fences must be easily removable.

In unincorporated St. Lucie County, residential fences, walls or landscape berms max out at 4 feet in a required front yard and 6 feet in any other yard. Port St. Lucie caps residential fences at 6 feet.

St. Lucie County regulates walls alongside fences under LDC 8.00.04: walls must be built of conventional materials such as concrete, stone or brick, in a workmanlike, sound manner, with proper permits and Florida Building Code compliance. Masonry walls are restricted in utility and drainage easements.

St. Lucie County LDC 8.00.04.A sets the baseline: fences must be permitted, meet the Florida Building Code, be built in a workmanlike and sturdy manner, and stay maintained in a safe, sound condition free of graffiti. Cross-visibility at driveways and corners must be preserved.

Port St. Lucie Code 158.216(A) lists the permitted residential fence materials: chain link, wood, masonry or stone, aluminum, vinyl-coated or polyester-powder steel, and ornamental or imitation wood fences. St. Lucie County allows the same conventional materials plus PVC and composites.

A St. Lucie County resident may care for children in their home as a licensed family day care home. Florida law caps a family day care home at a maximum of 10 children, including the operator's own young children present.

St. Lucie County and Port St. Lucie permit home occupations in residential zones as long as the business stays clearly incidental and secondary to the dwelling, with no outward evidence and no display of stock for sale.

Port St. Lucie's home-occupation rule prohibits any exterior evidence of a business, effectively banning signage on the dwelling. The home may not reveal from the outside that it is used for anything other than a residence.

St. Lucie County and its cities require a home-based business to obtain a local Business Tax Receipt (occupational license) and meet zoning home-occupation standards before operating. Port St. Lucie issues its receipt under the zoning code.

Florida's Cottage Food Law lets St. Lucie County residents sell certain non-hazardous homemade foods from their home kitchen without a Department of Agriculture permit, as long as annual gross sales stay at or below $250,000.

In Port St. Lucie, residential garbage and recycling carts must be kept indoors or screened from street view in a rear or side yard, and carts may only be placed curbside for collection.

St. Lucie County sets no countywide garage-sale rule, but Port St. Lucie requires a free permit and limits each residence to three garage sales per calendar year, each lasting no more than three consecutive days.

In unincorporated St. Lucie County, accumulated trash, junk, debris, stagnant water, overgrowth, and unsanitary conditions are declared a nuisance under the lot-cleanup ordinance and must be abated by the owner.

St. Lucie County's lot-cleanup ordinance applies to unimproved parcels, and mortgagees must register abandoned real property with the county within ten days of a foreclosure filing and keep it maintained.

In unincorporated St. Lucie County, grass, weeds, brush and overgrowth taller than 12 inches are prohibited and must be trimmed below 12 inches, including the adjoining right-of-way.

In unincorporated St. Lucie County a carport is an accessory structure. LDC 8.00.02(C) lets a residential carport exceed the house height but caps it at 20 feet and requires it to sit at least 5 feet behind the home's front facade.

St. Lucie County has no tiny-home ordinance. A site-built tiny house on a foundation is a dwelling under the Florida Building Code and zoning; a tiny house on wheels is recreational equipment that LDC 8.00.03 says may not be used for living or sleeping.

In unincorporated St. Lucie County, a storage shed is an accessory structure. Under LDC 8.00.02(B) all accessory structures together may not cover more than 35% of the lot's permitted building area, and a Florida Building Code permit is generally required.

Converting a garage to living space in unincorporated St. Lucie County is a Florida Building Code change-of-use needing a permit. The new area must meet zoning, and required off-street parking removed from the garage must be replaced elsewhere on the lot.

The St. Lucie County Land Development Code has no separate ADU or guest-house use; a second living unit is treated as an accessory structure and is capped in size. Florida law (F.S. 163.31771) lets counties choose to allow ADUs in single-family zones.

Homes in St. Lucie County's urban unincorporated area must use the county's regulated garbage contractor, and owners are responsible for the service fee. Port St. Lucie residents use the city franchise hauler.

In Port St. Lucie, garbage and recycling carts may not be set curbside before 6:00 p.m. the day before pickup, and empty carts may not be left at the curb after midnight of collection day.

In Port St. Lucie, bulk items may only be placed curbside on the scheduled collection day or 24 hours before, capped at two cubic yards; appliances must have doors removed and yard waste kept separate.

Dumping garbage, trash, junk or debris on private or public property in unincorporated St. Lucie County is prohibited, and Florida's Litter Law adds fines from $150 up to third-degree felony charges for large or commercial dumping.

St. Lucie County requires yard trash to be separated from other solid waste, and recyclable materials to go to authorized recycling. Port St. Lucie provides curbside recycling carts collected by the franchise hauler.

In unincorporated St. Lucie County, campaign signs are content-neutral non-commercial temporary signs. They must sit wholly on private property, and in single-family districts may not exceed 6 square feet each (32 cumulative), removed within 10 days of the event.

In unincorporated St. Lucie County, garage or yard sale signs are exempt from a permit under LDC 9.04.00 as long as they are removed by sunset of the last day of the sale and are kept out of the public right-of-way.

Along St. Lucie County's coast, the sea-turtle ordinance (LDC 6.04.02) is the strongest light-trespass rule: exterior lights visible from the beach or illuminating seaward of the dune must be turned off after 11:00 P.M., and beachfront windows need blackout treatments.

St. Lucie County's Treasure Coast beaches are protected by a sea-turtle lighting ordinance (LDC 6.04.02). Between the coastal control line and the Atlantic, no artificial light may directly illuminate the beach seaward of the primary dune during nesting season, March 1 to November 15.

St. Lucie County does not set a numeric park curfew in its general code. County parks, beaches, and natural preserves are open during daylight hours only, from dawn to dusk, and visitors are expected to leave by sunset unless a facility posts different hours.