Ocean City, FL

Unincorporated Okaloosa County caps single-family residential noise at 60 dBA daytime and 55 dBA from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. under Land Development Code Chapter 9. Destin and Fort…

Okaloosa County sets no leaf-blower-specific rules. Household tools and equipment meeting the manufacturer's sound specifications are exempt from the county sound-level limits, so…

Between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., Okaloosa County bars playing any radio, music player, TV, sound system, or instrument, including live bands, loudly enough to disturb reasonable…

Okaloosa County exempts construction activity under an active development permit from its noise ordinance only between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m., or if the work produces less than 86…

Okaloosa County caps outdoor sound at fixed decibel levels tied to zoning and time of day. Code of Ordinances Sec. 11-104 sets 60 dBA as the daytime limit and 55 dBA overnight at…

In unincorporated Okaloosa County, an animal that makes continuing or intermittent noise for more than 30 consecutive minutes, clearly heard across the property line, is a prohibited…

In unincorporated Okaloosa County, fences may reach eight feet in any zoning district and can sit on the property line. On Okaloosa Island, fences within the street-front setback are…

Okaloosa County requires fences in every zoning district to use customary materials such as wood, metal, wire, or masonry, and bans barbed wire, razor wire, and chicken wire outright…

Any bulkhead or retaining wall built in unincorporated Okaloosa County must be designed by a professional engineer under LDC § 6.06.106, the same drainage-standards section that…

Standard wood, chain-link, vinyl, and wrought-iron fences up to eight feet need no building permit in unincorporated Okaloosa County. Any other material, or a solid wall with footers…

Okaloosa County makes it unlawful to keep chickens except in zoning districts where the Land Development Code specifically authorizes them. Farm animals such as cattle, horses, goats…

Okaloosa County prohibits any dog or cat from running at large off the owner's premises. Off the property, acceptable restraint is a leash held by a competent person, a secure…

Beekeeping in unincorporated Okaloosa County runs on state law, not county rule. Fla. Stat. § 586.10 preempts local governments from regulating where and how registered honeybee…

Okaloosa County does not ban pet shops from selling dogs or cats; Section 5-72 instead requires any commercial animal establishment, including a pet shop, to hold an annual county…

Okaloosa County has no blanket spay-or-neuter mandate, but Section 5-41(b) hits owners financially the second time their unaltered animal is impounded for a violation. The owner pays a…

Okaloosa County bans feeding birds on public beaches and waterfront parks in South Okaloosa County under Section 5-45. The ban carries escalating penalties, from a verbal warning on a…

South Okaloosa County bars feeding birds on any public beach or waterfront park, from the situs line at Range Road 215 West and Range Road 213 East south to the Gulf. The Sheriff's…

Okaloosa County's accessory-use rules only cover ordinary household pets: the Land Development Code defines "pet" to exclude any animal the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation…

Florida preempts breed-specific dog bans, so Okaloosa County cannot outlaw any breed. Section 767.14 bars local rules specific to breed, weight, or size, and a 2023 amendment ended the…

Animal hospitals, veterinary clinics, commercial kennels and animal boarding are permitted uses in Okaloosa County's General Commercial (C-3) district, but Section 2.10.04(12) bars any…

Okaloosa County lets registered nonprofits maintain feral cat colonies on private property under a documented spay-neuter-release program approved by the Panhandle Animal Welfare…

Any grooming shop operating in unincorporated Okaloosa County must hold an annual commercial animal establishment permit under Sec. 5-72, paying a $100 fee under Sec. 5-73. The county…

Okaloosa County requires every dog and cat to carry traceable identification whenever it is off its owner's premises. Section 5-38 lists a microchip as one acceptable form, alongside a…

Okaloosa County cannot cap your customers just because you work from home. Florida's Home-Based Business Act, Fla. Stat. §559.955, lets a home business receive clients, but limits…

You can bake and sell cottage foods from an Okaloosa County kitchen with no permit and no local approval. Fla. Stat. §500.80 preempts cottage food regulation to the state, letting an…

A family day care home in Okaloosa County registers annually with the Florida Department of Children and Families. Fla. Stat. §402.313 requires DCF registration, background screening…

Okaloosa County cannot zone a home business out of a residential neighborhood. Florida's Home-Based Business Act, Fla. Stat. §559.955, bars the county and cities like Crestview and…

A home business in Okaloosa County shows almost no outward sign of commerce. Florida's Home-Based Business Act, Fla. Stat. §559.955, protects the business but requires that, seen from…

Okaloosa County lets a storage shed of 200 square feet or less go up without a building permit in any zoning district. Anything larger needs a permit, and every shed must sit at least…

Guest houses and garage apartments are permitted accessory dwelling units in every zoning district in unincorporated Okaloosa County, but the Land Development Code caps them at one per…

Before a new residential pool in Okaloosa County can pass final inspection, Fla. Stat. § 515.27 requires at least one listed safety feature: a code-compliant barrier, a safety pool…

Every residential pool in Okaloosa County needs a barrier under Chapter 515 of the Florida Statutes: at least four feet high on the outside, with no gaps a child can crawl through…

In unincorporated Okaloosa County, single-family and two-family homes are exempt from the tree code, so a homeowner can remove yard trees without a county permit. Removal is regulated…

Florida law bars any Okaloosa County ordinance, deed restriction or homeowners' association covenant from prohibiting a property owner from installing Florida-friendly…

Okaloosa County encourages Florida-Friendly, native, and drought-tolerant landscaping for water conservation. State law protects your right to replace turf with native plantings, and…

In unincorporated Okaloosa County, single-family homes are exempt from the tree code, so homeowners may trim their own trees freely. State law lets you cut branches overhanging from a…

Okaloosa County declares excessive vegetation over 18 inches a nuisance on improved MU-1 and MU-2 property in the unincorporated area. Invasive plants like cogongrass and Chinese…

Florida bans selling, possessing or using fireworks statewide, including in Okaloosa County, except through a county- or municipal-permitted public display. Fla. Stat. § 791.08 carves…

Yard-debris and land-clearing burns in unincorporated Okaloosa County need a Florida Forest Service authorization before you light them. Burning trash, treated wood, or debris hauled…

Okaloosa County closes every county park, including river and beach access points, between one hour after sunset and one hour before sunrise, and Code of Ordinances Sec. 16-52 bans…

Okaloosa County outright prohibits abandoned vehicles, boats, or trailers on public property, including road and utility rights-of-way, under Code of Ordinances § 21-64. Any vehicle…

Florida's Stopping, Standing, or Parking statute, Fla. Stat. § 316.1945, governs on-street parking in unincorporated Okaloosa County: no stopping or parking on sidewalks, in…

Okaloosa County has no rental-specific noise code; short-term-rental guests follow the same Land Development Code Chapter 9 limits as residents, including the 60/55 dBA caps and the…

A short-term rental in Okaloosa County owes 6% Florida state sales tax plus a 6% county Tourist Development Tax on stays of six months or less, roughly 12% total, remitted to the Clerk…

Florida lets Okaloosa County regulate short-term-rental parking, and the county lists parking among the aspects it may control, but it has adopted no countywide STR parking mandate…

Florida preempts local vacation-rental bans under Fla. Stat. 509.032(7), so Okaloosa County cannot prohibit STRs or cap their duration or frequency. Hosts need a state DBPR license…

Commercial drone pilots in Okaloosa County need an FAA Part 107 certificate. The county cannot add its own flight rules under Fla. Stat. §330.41, but Eglin Air Force Base's restricted…

Florida law (Fla. Stat. §330.41) reserves drone regulation to the state, so Okaloosa County and its cities cannot restrict where you fly. FAA rules govern instead, and Eglin Air Force…

Okaloosa County's Waste Management franchise collects bulk items - furniture, appliances, mattresses - for unincorporated residents, up to four cubic yards per pickup. Larger loads and…

Single-family homes in unincorporated Okaloosa County get curbside recyclables pickup once a week, the same day as trash collection when possible, under section 11-191(c). Accepted…

Dumping litter or waste on public or private property, streets, rights-of-way, or waterways in unincorporated Okaloosa County is a misdemeanor under sections 9.03.02 and 9.03.12 of the…

Dumpsters are a permitted accessory use in every Okaloosa County zoning district except R-1 and R-2, where only temporary construction dumpsters are allowed. Land Development Code §…

The county's residential trash franchisee must collect solid waste from single-family homes in unincorporated Okaloosa County twice a week, picked up curbside from a cart placed within…

Okaloosa County's waste franchisee skips collection only on New Year's Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas Day under County Code § 11-194. When a regular route falls on one of those three…

Okaloosa County's franchised hauler picks up yard trash once a week under County Code § 11-191(b), separate from garbage and recycling. Grass clippings, leaves, and trimmings must go…

Okaloosa County runs residential garbage pickup through one exclusive franchisee, and County Code § 11-191(a)(1) locks in twice-weekly collection for every single-family home in the…

Florida law requires Okaloosa County to run a recycling program, and Section 403.706(2)(a), Florida Statutes, sets the state recycling-rate goals the county must chase: 40 percent by…

Okaloosa County's residential solid waste franchisee collects only from carts, and automated side-arm trucks require carts within three feet of the pavement edge, curb, or travel lane…

Okaloosa County requires a permit under Sec. 6-134(b) before anyone builds, enlarges, alters, repairs, moves or demolishes a building or structure, or installs electrical, gas…

Okaloosa County Code Section 6-135 adopts the Florida Building Code and the 2011 National Electrical Code by reference for the entire unincorporated permitting jurisdiction, along with…

Okaloosa County's Fire Prevention Code requires every residential board and care or foster care day care center in the unincorporated county to pass an annual fire and life safety…

Okaloosa County requires an engineer's sealed fire sprinkler documents before issuing a building permit for any new building or addition with 50 or more sprinkler heads. Systems of 49…

Okaloosa County's Administrative Construction Code, Section 110.3, sets the inspection sequence for every unincorporated-area building permit: foundation, framing, sheathing/dry-in…

Okaloosa County adopts the Florida Building Code, Plumbing volume for every plumbing system installed, altered, repaired or replaced under Section 101.4.3 of its Administrative…

Okaloosa County does not regulate bass or low-frequency sound as its own category, but Code of Ordinances Sec. 11-104(b) tightens the standard for it: any 'pure tone' source, defined…

Air conditioners, heat pumps, and other HVAC equipment are exempt from Okaloosa County's maximum permissible sound levels as long as the unit performs to the manufacturer's own sound…

Okaloosa County treats a motor vehicle horn, bell or other warning device sounding too long as an unreasonably loud, disturbing and unnecessary noise. Land Development Code Sec…

Running a generator during a power outage does not violate Okaloosa County's nighttime noise restrictions. Section 9.02.04 of the county's Land Development Code exempts internal…

At Destin Executive Airport and Bob Sikes Airport, Okaloosa County bars loitering under its 2024 airport rules and regulations. Section 3-83(2)(b) forbids staying on the airport, or in…

Okaloosa County Code § 16-43(c) bans smoking and vaping outright inside every county-owned public park and public beach: no cigarette, pipe, lighted tobacco product, e-cigarette or…

Medical marijuana dispensing facilities may operate in unincorporated Okaloosa County under siting rules the county adopted instead of an outright ban. Fla. Stat. § 381.986(11)…

Okaloosa County bars medical marijuana dispensing facilities and treatment centers from operating within 500 feet of any pre-existing public or private elementary, middle, or secondary…

Growing cannabis at home anywhere in Okaloosa County, including the unincorporated area and Destin's beach neighborhoods, is a state felony. Fla. Stat. § 893.13(1)(a) bars…

After a declared disaster, Okaloosa County may remove debris from private streets and roads in private residential communities under County Code § 11-198, but only when the board of…

Okaloosa County's flood-resistant construction amendments, Section 6-138, require enclosed areas below the design flood elevation to be used only for parking, building access or…

Okaloosa County requires storm shutters or other opening protection on high-value, site-built single-family homes in the windborne debris region whenever a building permit costing…

Okaloosa County bars new adult entertainment establishments within 1,000 feet of schools, churches, parks or other adult businesses, 500 feet of residential zoning, and 200 feet of…

Okaloosa County's Pawnbroker and Secondhand Dealers Ordinance requires every pawnshop to keep a full transaction register, report daily to the sheriff, refuse pledges from anyone under…

Okaloosa County does not license or zone massage establishments under its own code. Section 12-159 states the board's explicit intent to leave that regulation entirely to the state…

Okaloosa County Code Chapter 12, Article VI governs towing or booting a vehicle from private property without the owner's consent. Operators need written authorization from the…

Okaloosa County Code § 15-3 does not license tattoo shops; it requires anyone who sells or applies a temporary (henna-type) tattoo in the county to post an 18-by-24-inch FDA warning…

Okaloosa County's home occupation rule bars any equipment or process that produces noise, vibration, glare, fumes, or odors detectable off the property, and forbids outside storage…

Any outdoor musical or entertainment festival over 5,000 people in Okaloosa County needs a special entertainment permit filed at least 30 days ahead, with fees, insurance, security…

Okaloosa County Code § 16-47 requires a written application to Public Works staff at least 60 days before any special event on a county park, beach or recreational area, with…

Okaloosa County bans camping or overnight sleeping in county buildings and on county grounds under Sec. 1-19, with matching bans on county streets, sidewalks and rights-of-way under…

In Okaloosa County's R-1 single-family residential district, Table 2.3 caps building height at 45 feet. The same table sets minimum 20-foot front and 10-foot side and rear setbacks and…

Okaloosa County requires a 20-foot front setback and 10-foot side and rear setbacks for R-1 single-family lots under Table 2.3. The county also gives waterfront R-1 parcels their own…

Okaloosa County's Agriculture (AA) zoning district lets landowners farm, ranch, and raise livestock as a use by right, alongside one home per family caretaker or farmworker. Section…

Okaloosa County's Land Development Code exempts farm operations in the unincorporated county from the Code's requirements to the extent Florida's Right to Farm Act and Agricultural…

Okaloosa County bans stopping, standing, or parking a vehicle on a bicycle path or in an exclusive bicycle lane anywhere in the unincorporated county, Code of Ordinances § 21-51. The…

Rideshare drivers using a transportation network company (TNC) at Destin Executive Airport or Bob Sikes Airport must operate under a county ground-transportation agreement. Section…

Okaloosa County Water and Sewer makes property owners responsible for reporting and repairing any leak on a privately owned water main or service line 'in a timely manner,' Code of…

Okaloosa County requires the use of reclaimed water in place of potable water for irrigation wherever the reclaimed system reaches, under Code of Ordinances § 24-192. The Board is…

Okaloosa County levies a tourist development tax on every short-term rental of six months or less under Code of Ordinances § 20-71. The rate is six percent inside the county's original…

Okaloosa County Code § 16-43(b) bans open flames, including Bar-B-Q grills, sternos, candles and tiki torches, at John Beasley, James Lee and Newman C. Brackin Parks and the Okaloosa…

Okaloosa County requires new and substantially improved buildings in flood hazard areas to meet minimum elevation standards under the Florida Building Code and ASCE 24, and it goes…

Okaloosa County's Floodplain Management Ordinance regulates all development within flood hazard areas in the unincorporated county, from subdivisions to pool installations, based on…

Boat docks, piers, bulkheads and boathouses are exempt from the county's standard mean-high-water-line setback in every zoning district. Only the home or other principal structure on a…

Destin, Okaloosa Island, and Fort Walton Beach front the Gulf of Mexico. Under Fla. Stat. §161.053, an FDEP permit is required to build, excavate, or alter ground seaward of the…

Before building or altering a stormwater management system, dam, impoundment, or similar water-control structure in Okaloosa County, Florida law requires an environmental resource…

Florida Statutes Section 373.413 requires a permit before anyone constructs or alters a stormwater management system, dam, impoundment or appurtenant work, administered by the…

Okaloosa County's code enforcement division investigates a complaint only after it comes in through the county's citizen request for service system or a signed, written form with a…

Okaloosa County's code enforcement fee schedule sets flat civil penalties for the violations residents report most: dumping litter draws $500, construction debris left onsite $250…

Before Okaloosa County issues a code enforcement citation, the officer must give the violator a set correction window capped at 30 days. Repeat violators, unlicensed contractors, and…

Okaloosa County's Land Development Code sorts every protected tree into three size classes at LDC § 6.05.033: Type A species like dogwood and crape myrtle at a 4-inch trunk, Type B…

New commercial and multi-family development in unincorporated Okaloosa County must landscape a ten-foot-wide strip along the street frontage and plant one tree for every 25 linear feet…

Okaloosa County requires one preserved tree for every 4,300 square feet of impervious surface on a site holding protected trees, under LDC § 6.05.03. A tree is legally 'protected' if…

Off-site signs (billboards) facing an interstate highway in unincorporated Okaloosa County must sit at least 1,500 feet from the next permitted sign on the same side of the road, under…

Okaloosa County treats garage-sale signs as temporary event signs. They may go up no more than seven days before the sale and must come down within five days after, and no sign may sit…

Okaloosa County allows political signs on private property but, under content-neutral sign rules, keeps every sign at least ten feet off the public right-of-way. Signs on utility poles…

In Okaloosa County's water resource caution areas, the Land Development Code bans planting eleven listed invasive species outright, including water hyacinth, hydrilla, cogon grass and…

Okaloosa County bans up-lighting any billboard or other advertising media outright under LDC § 6.11.04, no matter whether the sign itself needed a development order. All outdoor…

Okaloosa County bans any measurable light overspill onto a neighbor's property. Section 6.11.04 caps overspill from new exterior, parking and advertising lighting at zero footcandles…

Okaloosa County's beachfront lighting rules exist mainly to protect sea turtles. Gulf-front and Okaloosa Island properties must use shielded, long-wavelength amber fixtures and keep…

Okaloosa County has no county-wide juvenile curfew on the books. Florida gives local governments a ready framework in Fla. Stat. §877.20–877.25, but a curfew only takes effect where a…

Buildings and structures in unincorporated Okaloosa County that are unsafe, unsanitary, lack adequate egress, or are otherwise dangerous to human life are declared illegal under the…

Businesses, apartments, hotels, and other establishments in unincorporated Okaloosa County have a legal duty to keep vacant lots they own or lease free of wind-driven and…

Florida law strips Okaloosa County of any power to cap or freeze rents. Fla. Stat. § 125.0103(2) bars every county, municipality, and local government entity in the state from adopting…

Florida bars Okaloosa County from requiring landlords to show "just cause" before ending a residential tenancy. Fla. Stat. § 83.425 preempts the entire landlord-tenant relationship to…

Okaloosa County classifies its local business tax by the categories set in Chapter 205, Florida Statutes, and charges a flat $35.00 annual rate. The receipt is not a professional…

Rooftop solar is protected across Okaloosa County. Under Fla. Stat. §163.04, no local ordinance may prohibit installing solar collectors. A homeowner needs building and electrical…

Florida law voids any deed restriction, covenant, or homeowners association rule that bans solar collectors, clotheslines, or other renewable-energy devices on homes in unincorporated…

Okaloosa County cannot shut food trucks out of town. Fla. Stat. §509.102 preempts food-truck operation to the state and forbids a local government from prohibiting mobile food vehicles…

Florida law strips Okaloosa County of authority to license mobile food trucks. Fla. Stat. § 509.102(2)(a) bars any county from requiring a separate license, registration or permit…

Anyone who wants to operate equipment on, or build improvements into, a public road or right-of-way in unincorporated Okaloosa County that could damage it must first get a right-of-way…

Okaloosa County rewards water-efficient landscape design with real zoning incentives: a development or landscape plan that meets the county's water-efficient standards can earn up to a…