Pinellas County, FL Landscaping Rules: Rainwater Harvesting (2026)
Key Facts
- Applies to
- RM Multi-Family district, unincorporated county
- LID credit cap
- Up to 50% of open space requirement
- Qualifying feature
- Rainwater harvesting systems
- Nature of rule
- Voluntary open-space credit
Summary
Unincorporated Pinellas County lets multi-family developments count rainwater harvesting systems toward up to half of their required common open space, if the systems follow LID stormwater standards.
Up to 50 percent of the common open space requirement may be satisfied by stormwater management systems that utilize LID stormwater management principles, including but not limited to bio/vegetated swales, buffers and landscape strips; bioretention and biofiltration; rainwater harvesting systems and rain gardens.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 124).
Full Breakdown
Sec. 138-390.2(b)(3) governs common open space for RM Multi-Family Residential development. It allows up to 50 percent of the required common open space to be satisfied by low-impact-development stormwater features, and rainwater harvesting systems are named alongside bioswales, bioretention areas and rain gardens as qualifying LID measures. The rule is an open-space credit mechanism, not a mandate to install harvesting systems.
Violations & Fines
There is no penalty provision here; a developer who over-relies on rainwater harvesting for open-space credit simply has that portion of their site plan rejected if it exceeds the 50 percent LID cap or fails LID design standards.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is rainwater harvesting required for new development in Pinellas County?
How much open space credit can a rainwater harvesting system earn?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Pinellas County
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Pinellas County to another location·View the Florida landscaping rules overview
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