Big Pine Key seawall repair: Key deer rules, canals and permits
Big Pine Key holds ten of the top 25 canals on Monroe County’s restoration ranking, and Key deer rules shape its waterfront permits. Since July 1, 2026, parcels in the species focus area go to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for review.
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Big Pine Key at a glance
- Who permits it
- Monroe County, with FWS review for species focus area parcels
- Call first
- County satellite office, 179 Key Deer Blvd, (305) 289-2877
- The water
- 45 canal sections, 38 bayside, 2,529 parcels
- Storm record
- Irma: about 8 ft above ground at the lowest shoreline spots
- Local rule to know
- Coupon Bight: a restored wall may go no more than 1 ft waterward
Get to know your waterfront
Big Pine has about 10.2 square miles of land. The county lists 45 canal sections here, 38 of them bayside, fronting 2,529 parcels along roughly 56,400 feet. The National Key Deer Refuge is based here, and Coupon Bight Aquatic Preserve lies off the south shore.
2020 Census Gazetteer Files: Places, Florida · Monroe County Residential Canals (Google Earth KMZ layer 'Residential_Canals_WGS', linked as 'Google Earth Document with Downloaded Canal Information') · National Key Deer Refuge · Coupon Bight Aquatic Preserve
Big Pine Key seawall rules, canals and storm record
Key deer review since July 2026
The Big Pine Key and No Name Key Habitat Conservation Plan expired in 2023, and its incidental take permit ran out June 30, 2026. The county says Fish and Wildlife agreed to move both keys into the countywide FWS review process, with the old caps on species impacts still in force. Monroe County HCP transition notice
Every Big Pine property inside the Species Focus Area Maps now goes to FWS. A "no effect" or "not likely to adversely affect" finding needs nothing more from FWS, while "may affect" means coordination before the county issues your permit. Key Deer Assessment Guide, July 2026
| Your lot | Result |
|---|---|
Outside the species focus area and real-estate list | No effect |
Developed, only non-native cover, no native habitat removed, no fencing or fencing that meets the 2012 guidelines | Not likely to adversely affect |
Removing native habitat on a lot over 1 acre, or next to more than 1 acre of it | May affect: FWS coordination first |
Mangroves and beach berm count as native habitat, so a wall job that touches them needs a vegetation survey. When the county sends a permit to FWS for review, its fee is $825. Key deer assessment key Resolution 277-2025 fees
Some plan conditions carry on: no habitat loss in the Sands corridor, and standard eastern indigo snake protections during all construction. The plan’s overall cap on Key deer habitat take, 1.1 H, still applies, and a little over half of it had been used by the end of 2024. County HCP transition boards County HCP transition boards
Coupon Bight: a one-foot limit
Coupon Bight Aquatic Preserve covers about 5,400 acres of the Atlantic south of Big Pine, out to the 12-foot depth contour. DEP Coupon Bight page Inside an aquatic preserve, no seawall may be built waterward of the mean high water line. Rule 18-20.004, F.A.C.
A restored wall may sit at its old line, behind it, or within one foot waterward without a consent application. Elsewhere, state rules let a wall damaged within the past year be restored up to 18 inches out. Rule 62-330.051(12), F.A.C. DEP’s contact for the preserve is (305) 289-7087. DEP Coupon Bight contact
The canal-restoration capital
Big Pine canals take ten places in the top 25 of the county’s 2021 ranking, led by canal 255 in 3rd and 315 in 4th. Eden Pines canal 278 sits last, 96th of 96. County canal ranking list, 2021
| Canal | Where | Status |
|---|---|---|
293, 295, 297, 299, 300, 315 | The Avenues: 293 at Avenues H and I, 315 at Warner and Beach Streets | $12.4 million federal RESTORE award, March 17, 2025; design and permitting nearly done in February 2026 County February 2026 update FloridaCommerce Keys oversight report |
278 | Eden Pines | Injection well finished May 2024 for $324,000 FloridaCommerce Keys oversight report |
266 | Baileys and Witters Lane | Priority 2 request for backfill and a larger air curtain County 2024 Stewardship requests FloridaCommerce Keys oversight report |
255 | Ranked 3rd countywide | Priority 3 request, including an injection well County 2024 Stewardship requests |
287 and 290 | 287 off Sands Road | Priority 10 and 9 requests County 2024 Stewardship requests |
These are water-quality projects, and their costs are not seawall prices. The county notes that residents fund air-curtain operation through municipal service benefit units (MSBUs), so a buyer on a restored canal should ask whether one applies. County 2024 Stewardship requests
Eden Pines and the Sands
- Eden Pines, canal 278: 21 dead-end fingers reach North Pine Channel through one mouth, about 1.3 miles from the back of the system. County canal 278 report, 2017 It fronts 494 parcels, the most of any canal in the Lower Keys layer. County residential canal layer
- The Sands, canals 286 and 287: Hibiscus, Ixora and Palm Drives sit on 286, and Atlantis and Hollerich Drives on 287, all off Sands Road. County canal street list
- Roads: the Sands leads Big Pine’s critical list with 15 segments and 184 residential units. County critical roads list Area 35 (the Sands, Big Pine Cove and Virgil’s Lowe) and Eden Pines Colony (29-A) are both in the 2025 adaptation group. County road study, Table 2
Irma on Big Pine
- A surveyed mark 6.0 feet above ground in a Big Pine garage points to about 8 feet of water at the lowest spots near the shoreline. Hurricane Center Irma report
- The lowest pressure reported in the Keys, 933.7 mb, came from a Big Pine spotter, and a station here logged a 104-knot gust.
- In Wilma, in 2005, several sailboats ended up grounded on the shoulder of U.S. 1 on Big Pine. NWS Key West Wilma summary
- Georges, in 1998, brought 5 to 6 feet of surge to Big Pine. Hurricane Center Georges report, Table 2
No Name Key shares the Key deer rules; see the No Name Key guide. Compare other keys on the Lower Keys overview, and see permits for the county, state and federal steps.
What could the work cost?
Big Pine permit costs can include an $825 county fee when a file goes to FWS, plus the $976 Notice to Proceed. Add a biologist’s vegetation survey if mangroves are involved. Ask bidders to price a same-footprint replacement first, since it keeps both the Key deer review and the Coupon Bight limits simpler.
Calculator ranges come from a 2026 national cost guide and one Key West public bid. None is a quote; your written, itemized scope sets your price.
Compare quotes and plan a budget →Find the relevant permits and records
| Starting point | What to resolve | Prepare and look up |
|---|---|---|
Monroe County Big Pine Key satellite office | The county building permit, filed online, with in-person help on the key. | 179 Key Deer Blvd, (305) 289-2877. Applications go through OPAL; paper is not accepted. |
Monroe County Environmental Resources (FWS review) | Species focus area check. When FWS input is needed, the county sends the file weekly and conditions the permit on a Notice to Proceed. | Ask if your parcel is on the focus area maps, and budget $825 if it goes to FWS. Environmental Resources: (305) 289-2502; the county also lists qualified biologists. |
Florida DEP, Coupon Bight Aquatic Preserve | Wall or dock work on preserve shoreline south of Big Pine. | Show the old and new wall lines; a restored wall may go no more than one foot waterward. Preserve contact: (305) 289-7087. |
Florida DEP, Marathon branch | Exemption verification, environmental permits and mangrove questions on the rest of Big Pine. | (305) 289-7070. Send photos before trimming mangroves that grow into a wall. |
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Keys Permits Section | The federal permit; until it is filed, the county will not release the job. | (305) 526-7181. Once approvals are filed, the county Notice to Proceed costs $976. |
A Big Pine Key planning checklist
Big Pine permits take longer when the habitat questions come late. Ask them first.
Check the species focus area maps
Ask Environmental Resources if your parcel is on the maps. If it is, build the FWS review into your timeline.
Key Deer Assessment Guide (July 2026) · Environmental Resources
Photograph mangroves and berm at the wall
Both count as native habitat. If the work touches them, hire a biologist from the county’s qualified list for a vegetation survey.
Key Deer Assessment Guide (July 2026) · Environmental Resources
Ask where your canal project stands
On the Avenues canals or Eden Pines, ask the county canal program about the schedule before you replace a wall.
February 2026 Updates Presentation (Monroe Resilience & Environmental Projects) · Canal Restoration
Get a re-entry sticker before storm season
Lower Keys stickers are dark pink and come from Tax Collector offices, including the one on Big Pine Key. They stop being issued once a state of emergency is declared.
Plan your Big Pine Key seawall repair
Tell us your canal or street, whether mangroves grow along the wall, and what you see at the cap and toe. We will help you plan the repair and the review steps.
Every answer here links to the public record behind it.
Big Pine Key project questions
Does my Big Pine seawall repair need Fish and Wildlife review?
If your parcel is in the Species Focus Area Maps, it goes to FWS. A developed lot with only non-native cover, no native habitat removed and no new fencing reaches "not likely to adversely affect," which needs no further FWS letters. Mangroves and beach berm count as native habitat.
What happened to the Big Pine Key HCP?
The plan expired in 2023 and its incidental take permit expired June 30, 2026. Big Pine and No Name permits now use the countywide FWS review process. The plan’s limits on species impacts still apply.
Habitat Conservation Plan Community Meeting - Big Pine Key (May 28, 2026) · Key Deer Assessment Guide (July 2026)
Can I move my Coupon Bight seawall out a little?
Only a little. In an aquatic preserve, a restored wall may sit no more than one foot waterward of its old location without a consent application. No new seawall may go waterward of mean high water. Call DEP’s preserve contact at (305) 289-7087 first.
Rule 18-20.004, F.A.C. (Management Policies, Standards, and Criteria - Aquatic Preserves) · Coupon Bight Aquatic Preserve
How much water did Irma put on Big Pine?
The Hurricane Center estimates about 8 feet above ground at the lowest spots near the shoreline, based on a 6.0-foot mark surveyed in a garage. Big Pine also logged the lowest pressure in the Keys, 933.7 mb.
Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Irma (AL112017), current version dated 8 July 2026
Will the Avenues canal project touch my seawall?
The $12.4 million award covers canals 293, 295, 297, 299, 300 and 315, with organic removal, backfilling and air curtains. It is a water-quality project, not a seawall program. Backfill changes depth at your wall, so share the county’s plans with your engineer.
February 2026 Updates Presentation (Monroe Resilience & Environmental Projects) · Florida Keys Area of Critical State Concern Annual Report, FY23-24 (reporting period July 1, 2023 - June 30, 2024)
Keep planning
Nearby waterfront guides
Show sourcesHide sources
- 2020 Census Gazetteer Files: Places, FloridaSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Monroe County Residential Canals (Google Earth KMZ layer 'Residential_Canals_WGS', linked as 'Google Earth Document with Downloaded Canal Information')Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- National Key Deer RefugeSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Coupon Bight Aquatic PreserveSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Habitat Conservation Plan Community Meeting - Big Pine Key (May 28, 2026)Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- Key Deer Assessment Guide (July 2026)Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- Resolution No. 277-2025 (Building Department permitting fee schedule)Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- Habitat Conservation Plan transition presentation boardsSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Rule 18-20.004, F.A.C. (Management Policies, Standards, and Criteria - Aquatic Preserves)Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- Rule 62-330.051, F.A.C. (Exempt Activities)Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- Coupon Bight Aquatic PreserveSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Monroe County Canal Restoration Ranking List (dated 06/16/2021; page footer 4/12/2021)Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- February 2026 Updates Presentation (Monroe Resilience & Environmental Projects)Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- Florida Keys Area of Critical State Concern Annual Report, FY23-24 (reporting period July 1, 2023 - June 30, 2024)Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- Water Quality Protection and Canal Restoration in the Florida Keys ACSC: DEP Stewardship Funding Portal Project RequestsSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Water Quality Improvement Technology Evaluation Report for Canal 278 Eden PinesSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Canal, Roads Names and Areas (List of Keys Residential Canals by location)Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- Appendix K: Prioritization of Roadway Segments (Technical Memorandum, Dec. 29, 2020; Initial 25% Critical Roadways list dated 6/10/2021)Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- Monroe County Roadway Vulnerability Study Final Report (Table 2: Adaptation Plan List)Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Irma (AL112017), current version dated 8 July 2026Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- Hurricane Wilma (2005) event summarySource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Preliminary Report: Hurricane Georges (AL071998), 5 January 1999, updated 9 September 2014Source reviewed 2026-10-28
- Building and PermittingSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Online Permitting ServicesSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Monroe County Land Development Code, Chapter 122 - Floodplain ManagementSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Environmental ResourcesSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- SED Marathon OfficeSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Mangrove Frequently Asked QuestionsSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Jacksonville District Regulatory Office LocationsSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Canal RestorationSource reviewed 2026-10-28
- Resident Reentry Windshield StickersSource reviewed 2026-10-28