Alachua County, FL Solar Energy: Panel Permits (2026)

5, the county cannot use zoning or design standards to block rooftop solar as accessory equipment on a conforming or legally nonconforming building, even one holding a nonconforming use. The only physical limit is height: panels must not exceed the roof line defined in Chapter 410, and on flat roofs (with or without a parapet) the array may not stand more than five feet above the roof. Before Growth Management issues the building permit, the property owner must sign an acknowledgment on the permit application covering two points: first, that if the parcel sits inside a homeowners' or condominium association, or is bound by restrictive covenants, those private rules can impose additional requirements the county permit does not override; second, that the county permit creates no right in the owner, or in the property itself, to remain free of shadows or obstructions to solar exposure caused by a neighbor's building, tree growth, or vegetation.

Once installed, the system must be kept properly maintained and free of hazards such as faulty wiring or loose fastenings that would create an unsafe condition or endanger public health, safety, or general welfare. The section was adopted by Ordinance No. 2014-17 on September 23, 2014, and carried forward in the 2020 ULDC rewrite (Ordinance No. 2020-25). This rule governs unincorporated Alachua County only; Gainesville and the county's other eight municipalities administer their own separate solar permitting standards.