Palm Beach Daily News
Palm Beach property owners who want to build wider docks or piers that wrap around their lakefront lots may face a hurdle in the future.
A memo sent to the Planning and Zoning commissioners by Zoning Manager Paul Castro expressed concern about owners taking advantage of an existing loophole in the Code of Ordinances that doesn’t limit how wide a dock can be.
Further, Castro said, the loophole has provided an opportunity for developers and property owners to extend backyards over the lake.
“If they (property owners) can get a permit through the DEP (Department of Environmental Protection), we have nothing to control how wide a dock can be,” Castro told the Daily News. “In some cases, they’re building 30-foot-wide docks going out 15 or 20 feet into the water.”