St. Petersburg, FL Water Use Rules: Turf Replacement Rebates (2026)
Key Facts
- Refund, 1-2 unit residential
- $150.00 of permit fee
- Refund, non-res/multifamily
- $300.00 of permit fee
- Eligibility confirmed
- At the City's final inspection
- Bonus, non-res/multifamily
- 1 interior landscape island waived
- Ongoing condition
- No St. Augustine sod planted after approval
- Baseline citywide cap
- St. Augustine ≤50% of permeable area, § 16.40.060.2.1.2(B)
Summary
St. Petersburg City Code § 16.40.060.1.3 pays builders to skip water-hungry St. Augustine sod: new one- and two-unit homes get a $150.00 refund of their permit fee, and non-residential or multifamily projects get $300.00, confirmed at final City inspection. Sod-free non-residential and multifamily projects also waive one required interior landscape island.
A. Non-residential, multifamily and residential construction permit applications are eligible for a partial refund of the permit fees if the landscaping as installed does not include any St. Augustine sod. 1. For new one- and two-unit residential construction, the City will refund $150.00 of the permit fee paid. 2. For non-residential and multifamily construction, the City will refund $300.00 of the permit fee paid. 3. The determination of the eligibility for the refund shall be made upon the final inspection by the City. B. Non-residential and multifamily construction permit applications are eligible for a waiver of the following landscape requirements if the landscape plan does not include any St. Augustine sod. A condition of the permit approval shall be that St. Augustine sod shall not be planted, or allowed to grow, on the permitted property. 1. For non-residential or multifamily construction, one required interior landscape island shall be waived.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 54).
Full Breakdown
The incentive is voluntary, not a mandate, construction permit applicants who install landscaping with zero St. " Subsection (B) adds a second incentive for non-residential and multifamily projects: going sod-free lets the applicant waive one required interior landscape island, but the permit approval then carries a running condition that St. Augustine sod "shall not be planted, or allowed to grow, on the permitted property" afterward. 1, reducing water consumption by favoring drought-tolerant plant beds over turf. Even outside this incentive, St. 2(B) caps St. Augustine sod on new one- and two-unit construction at 50 percent of the permeable lot area, so the refund program pushes builders further than the baseline cap requires by rewarding a complete switch away from St. Augustine.
Violations & Fines
There is no standalone fine written into § 16.40.060.1.3 itself. Reneging on the no-sod condition after taking the non-residential/multifamily landscape-island waiver breaches the permit approval condition and is enforceable as a Code violation under the City's general penalty, § 1-7: a fine up to $500.00, up to 60 days imprisonment, or both, with each day of continuing noncompliance a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to apply separately for the sod refund?
What does a non-residential project get for skipping St. Augustine entirely?
Can I keep a little St. Augustine sod and still get the refund?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in St. Petersburg
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