Boca Raton, FL Hurricane Preparedness: Hurricane Shutters (2026)

Section 19-96 sets a cost-and-value trigger for permanent opening protection: any permitted improvement to a detached 1- or 2-family home costing $50,000 or more requires impact-rated openings under the Florida Building Code, Residential, but only when the home sits in the wind-borne debris region and carries an insured value of $750,000 or more, or, absent insurance documentation, a taxable just valuation of $750,000 or more. Existing 1- and 2-family homes that were already permitted and built to the Florida Building Code are grandfathered and don't have to retrofit to meet this section.

Sec. 2 may put up temporary wood structural panels over those openings without first getting a building permit. That relief is time-limited. Within 10 days after the hurricane warning expires, the owner must take the panels back down and restore the ventilation, light, and means of egress the Florida Building Code and Florida Fire Prevention Code require, since boarded windows can block a required exit or make a room unfit for occupancy. The temporary-panel exemption doesn't authorize any other work that would otherwise violate the building code or city ordinances, so a homeowner still can't use the hurricane-panel exception to add framing or change an opening's size without a permit.