Seawall Repair in Lake Worth Beach, FL

This city is named for the water in front of it. Lake Worth Beach took its current name on March 12, 2019, and both the old and new names come from the Lake Worth Lagoon. That lagoon was once a freshwater lake with no ocean outlet. The Lake Worth Inlet was cut near its north end in 1866, opening it to the sea, and the Boynton Inlet followed at the south end in 1927. Development in the 1900s then replaced most of the natural mangrove shoreline with seawalls and bulkheads. For larger jobs on this part of the lagoon, our West Palm Beach seawall repair team handles engineering, permits, and scheduling.

What Is the Lake Worth Lagoon Like Here?

Palm Beach County's Environmental Resources Management department (ERM) describes the lagoon as:

• The county's largest estuary, about 20 miles long from North Palm Beach to Ocean Ridge
• Fed by ocean water through two inlets
• Draining more than 350,000 acres through three major flood-control canals
• Lined mostly by seawalls and bulkheads after a century of development

Lake Worth Beach sits in the middle of that stretch, between the two inlets. Its walls can see freshwater pulses from the canals after heavy rain and salty tidal water the rest of the time.

Why Do Lagoon Bulkheads Here Wear Out?

• Tidal pumping through joints. Twice a day, water moves through any gap and carries backfill out.
• Wave and wake energy on open lagoon frontage, which works at caps and the toe.
• Trapped water behind walls after big rains, when the flood-control canals are running.
• Corroded tie-backs that let the cap lean.

County ERM's living-shoreline projects are a response to the same problem. One lagoon project built a 2,000-foot rock berm about 8 feet in front of a seawall, with filter fabric and mangroves planted between them, to absorb wave energy before it reaches the wall.

What Permits Apply to Lake Worth Beach Seawalls?

The city reviews structural seawall work, and the state rules depend on what you're building. Florida law allows some private infill seawalls up to 150 feet long between existing walls. In estuaries and lagoons, though, new vertical seawalls are limited to specific circumstances. Restoring a wall at its previous location, or within 18 inches waterward, is exempt from a Chapter 403 state permit. A repair usually stays within that exemption. A new wall on open lagoon frontage often does not.

Lake Worth is also a member of the Coastal Resilience Partnership of Southeast Palm Beach County, which has started discussing seawalls as an action area.

Which Repair Fits My Wall?

For a wall that still stands straight, polyurethane injection fills the voids where soil washed out and seals joints from behind. Cap rebuilds, crack repair, and weep holes are covered by our bulkhead repair service from West Palm Beach. A tipping wall needs anchors. See seawall reinforcement through our West Palm Beach crews for helical tiebacks.

Which Neighboring Towns Share This Lagoon?

Across the water, Palm Beach seawall repair covers the barrier island, which fronts both the lagoon and the Atlantic. To the south, seawall repair in Boynton Beach works near the Boynton Inlet at the lagoon's south end. Farther down the Intracoastal, Delray Beach seawall repair follows that city's 2022 seawall height rules.

Ready for an Inspection?

Seawall Repairs by Solid Foundations has served Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina since 1996. We're an NCFI-certified polyurethane installer with Florida license CBC1267322. Book a free inspection or call 866-398-9323.