Seawall Repair in Tallahassee, FL

Tallahassee is Florida's capital and the largest city in the Big Bend, but it isn't on the coast. Its waterfront is mostly lakes. Lake Jackson, a few miles north of downtown, is part of a state aquatic preserve that FDEP describes as having an "ever-fluctuating lake level." The lake has a long history of draining into sinkholes during droughts, most recently in June 2021, then refilling when rain returns. Walls built for one water level can end up holding back dry, unsupported soil. The saltwater coast lies to the south, in Wakulla and Franklin counties.

Which Big Bend Communities Does Our Tallahassee Team Serve?

Tallahassee is the regional lead for our Big Bend work, coordinating inspections and permits for the coastal towns south and southwest of the city.

In Wakulla County, seawall repair in St. Marks covers the river town on the St. Marks and Wakulla rivers above Apalachee Bay, where tides run far larger than at Pensacola or Panama City. In Franklin County, the Carrabelle seawall repair team works the Carrabelle River and St. George Sound, and Apalachicola seawall repair covers the riverfront and bay walls of Florida's largest river system.

Seawall Repairs by Solid Foundations is an NCFI-certified polyurethane installer, holds Florida license CBC1267322, and has served Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina since 1996.

Why Do Tallahassee Lake Walls Fail?

Lake walls don't face tides, but they face something just as hard on them: big changes in water level. The Friends of Lake Jackson explain that sinkholes in the lakebed feed limestone caverns connected to the Floridan Aquifer, and during drought the lake drains into them. When the water drops, a wall that was half-submerged suddenly has no water pressure on its face, and saturated soil behind it pushes outward. When the lake refills, water moves back through any gap.

The result is soil loss, leaning, and cracked caps, even with no storm.

What Storms Have Hit the Big Bend Coast?

The coast south of Tallahassee has taken repeated hits:

• Hurricane Michael (2018): NHC recorded a high-water mark of 7.9 ft above ground in the St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge and 7.7 ft above mean higher high water on the Apalachicola gauge.
• Hurricane Idalia (2023): landfall near Keaton Beach, with 8–12 ft of inundation from Keaton Beach to Steinhatchee.
• Hurricane Helene (2024): landfall about 10 nautical miles southwest of Perry as the strongest hurricane to hit the Big Bend since reliable records began around 1900. Shell Point Beach in Wakulla County measured 6.53 ft above mean higher high water.

How Do We Repair Lake and Coastal Walls?

For walls that are still standing straight, we work from behind. Our crews inject NCFI polyurethane through small ports to fill voids, bind loose soil, and seal joints from the land side. Read how polyurethane injection fills voids behind a wall. That approach suits lake lots well, since it avoids digging near the shoreline. Cracked caps are rebuilt, and leaning walls can often be anchored.

Which Permits Apply to Tallahassee and Big Bend Seawalls?

Tallahassee is the only incorporated city in Leon County, so a lake lot is either inside city limits or in unincorporated Leon County, and the permit office follows from that.

At the state level, FDEP's shoreline guidance explains that state-owned submerged lands include land below the ordinary high water line of lakes over 140 acres, and that projects in an aquatic preserve need written authorization to use those lands even when the work is otherwise exempt. That applies to Lake Jackson. On the coast, Florida Statute 403.813(1)(e) exempts restoring a seawall at its old location, upland, or within 18 inches waterward from a separate FDEP permit. FDEP's Northwest District has a branch office in Tallahassee.

Book a free Tallahassee-area inspection for a lake or coastal wall.