Want a Larger Roof for your Personal Dock? The Winter Haven City Commission Will Soon Permit You to Have One.
by James Coulter
If you live on the Chain of Lakes, chances are your house has a personal dock where you moor your watercraft, be it a boat or jet ski. Some people even own more than one.
However, current city regulations limit the size of the roof for your dock, which means some craft receive shade while others are exposed to the elements. Fortunately, city residents may soon be able to expand their roofs thanks to a new ordinance being considered by the city commission.
At their regular meeting on Monday, Winter Haven City Commissioners voted unanimously to approve the first reading of an ordinance updating marine structure requirements, allowing residents to build larger roofs for their docks and other water structures.
Under the revised regulations, the maximum roof areas of single-family residential marine structures would increase from 500 to 750 square feet, while the maximum roof areas for non-single family residential structures would increase from 625 to 1,000 square feet.
According to the city memo: “In October 2019, the City Commission amended Section 21-103 of the Code of Ordinances for the purpose of updating the City’s marine structures requirements….During this update, length and surface area maximums for marine structures were updated and maximum roof area square footages were also created. Prior to this update, there were no maximum roof area square footage.”
However, as the memo further elaborates, local boat owners and dock contractors had requested an increase to the maximum roof areas to better accommodate larger or multiple vehicles: “In recent years, dock contractors and residents have both sought to have larger roof areas over their docks to protect their watercraft from the Florida sun.”
City Commissioners voted unanimously 4-0 to approve the ordinance. The second reading will be held at the next city commission meeting on Mon. Feb. 12 at 6 PM.
