Pinellas County, FL Drone Rules: Park Drone Restrictions (2026)

Section 90-7(q) of the Pinellas County Code groups drones with airplanes, helicopters, gliders, hang gliders, hot air balloons, dirigibles and parachutes under one "Aircraft" rule: none of them may take off from or land in or on any county-owned or managed land. The prohibition reaches radio-controlled and otherwise unmanned aircraft specifically, so recreational and commercial drones are both covered the same way manned aircraft are. There are only two ways around the ban: the operation is for purposes of public safety, or the operator has obtained written permission from the county administrator or a designee before flying.

There is no separate drone permit application; because section 90-9(a) requires a department permit for enumerated activities such as scientific research, commercial photography, camping, bounce houses, special events, large groups and commercial activity, an operator who wants a park drone flight tied to one of those uses (aerial photography of a special event, for example) applies through that same permit process rather than through section 90-7. The rule sits inside article I of chapter 90, "Parks and Conservation Resources," and applies only to land the county owns or manages: Brooker Creek Preserve, Weedon Island Preserve, Fort De Soto and the other county parks and environmental lands, not municipal parks, beaches, or private property, and it does not purport to regulate airspace, which is federally preempted. Enforcement personnel are any authorized law enforcement officer or department staff authorized by the administrator or designee under section 90-13(b).