Winter Haven, FL Environmental Rules: Stormwater Management (2026)

Section 21-161 of the Winter Haven Unified Land Development Code regulates stormwater to protect both water quantity in the Central Florida lakes and the quality of water discharged to them. Anyone proposing development or redevelopment that is not exempt under subsection (a) must submit a stormwater management plan with the site plan, showing clearing and grading, contour elevations for existing and post-development conditions, drainage calculations, the work sequence for large projects, and the impact on affected waterways; City approval of that plan is a precondition of the Development Approval Certificate and building permit.

The exemptions cover bona fide agricultural or forest operations, minor home gardening or clearing, emergency repairs, routine system maintenance, owner-occupied single-family lots, single-family lots outside the 100-year floodplain, redevelopment under fifty percent demolition with no added square footage, redeveloped parcels under half an acre, lots in the C-1 Commercial-Downtown district, and parcels served by a regional stormwater system. For non-exempt projects, post-development peak runoff cannot exceed the pre-development peak rate for the applicable design storm, a ten-year 24-hour storm for parking and roadway changes and a twenty-five-year 24-hour storm for other land use changes.

Redeveloped parcels between a half-acre and two acres must treat a quarter inch of runoff from impervious areas, and parcels of two acres or more must treat a half inch, with property owners responsible for ongoing maintenance of their stormwater system.