Dock Building in Saint Augustine, FL

Building a new dock on the St. Augustine coast is not the same as building one on a calm inland lake. The tidal range, brackish water, boat traffic and permitting all shape what gets built and how. The sections below outline questions to understand before seeking bids from independent marine contractors.

Fixed dock or floating dock, which is right for you?

It depends on your water and how you use it. A fixed dock on driven pilings is rock-solid and the traditional choice where water depth is reasonable. A floating dock rises and falls with the tide, which keeps boarding easy at any water level — a real advantage given the tidal swing here — and works well in deeper or highly variable water. Many of the best setups combine both. The right answer comes from someone walking your shoreline and looking at your depth, your boat, and how you actually plan to use the dock.

What goes into building a dock that lasts?

The parts you do not see matter most. Properly sized and driven pilings, marine-grade hardware that will not rust out in a season, framing designed for tidal loads, and decking chosen to hold up to sun and salt. Cutting corners on any of these is how you end up needing dock repair in three years instead of thirty.

Do you need a permit to build a dock in St. Johns County?

New dock construction requires you to determine the applicable county, state, submerged-land and federal authorizations. Florida DEP offers self-certification for qualifying single-family dock projects, but eligibility depends on location and project criteria. Before signing, confirm who will seek each authorization, what it costs and what happens to a deposit if approval is denied.

What to expect

The usual sequence is an on-site visit, then design and drawings, then permitting, then construction scheduled around tide and water access. Timelines vary mainly with the permitting, which is largely out of any builder's hands — so treat a confident completion date offered before permits are filed as a sales number rather than a plan. The build itself is the fast part.