Cape Coral, FL Sidewalk & Pedestrian Rules: Sidewalk Repair (2026)

10 makes every property owner responsible to maintain or construct the city-owned right-of-way lying between their property boundaries and the city pavement. Before a building lot is prepared for construction, the building permit holder must first get the correct swale flow-line elevations from the city and build the required swale immediately, so stormwater keeps flowing continuously through the construction process. During construction or reconstruction, city-approved erosion control devices must sit in the swale along both property lines to keep foreign matter out of the stormwater system, and those devices must stay in place until final sod goes down in the right-of-way.

No excavated or construction material may be left in a way that restricts stormwater flow through the swale area. Once the certificate of occupancy is issued, the ongoing maintenance duty shifts fully to the owner: the owner must maintain the swale indefinitely, to the same standard applied to privately owned property, for as long as they own the lot. The same section requires any pavement damage in the right-of-way to be repaired to meet or exceed the City of Cape Coral Engineering Design Standards, regardless of whether the property is newly built or already occupied.