Homestead, FL Fence Regulations: Retaining Walls (2026)

Section 6-316(c) singles out "retaining walls, sidewalks and driveways in regulated floodways" that "involve the placement of fill," and routes them to the general floodway limitation in Section 6-312(d): no development involving fill or regrading is authorized in the regulatory floodway unless the floodway encroachment analysis required by Section 6-306(c)(1) demonstrates it will not result in any increase in the base flood elevation. That floodway encroachment analysis must be "signed and sealed by a Florida licensed engineer" under Section 6-306(c)(1) and submitted with the site plan.

If the analysis instead shows the retaining wall would raise base flood elevations, Section 6-306(c)(1) requires the applicant to submit the analysis to FEMA and obtain a conditional letter of map revision before the floodplain administrator can issue a permit. Outside a mapped regulatory floodway, this fill-based limitation does not apply, and the retaining wall instead follows the general "other development" standards of Section 6-316(a): built to minimize flood damage, anchored against flotation and lateral movement, and constructed of flood damage-resistant materials. A retaining wall project of any kind in Homestead still needs a permit from the building department or floodplain administrator before construction starts, per Sections 6-36 and 6-305.