Baldwin County seawall and bulkhead permits.
Fort Morgan to Fish River, plus Foley and Magnolia Springs.

Who permits a waterfront parcel in Baldwin County?

It depends on the city limit. The county Building Department permits all unincorporated land, plus three small towns: Elberta, Magnolia Springs and Perdido Beach. Gulf Shores, Foley and the rest permit themselves. Baldwin County Building Department

Sources: Baldwin County Building Department Baldwin County marine accessory checklist Foley Code Sec. 4-226 Magnolia Springs permit page Gulf Shores permits page

How do you check which office covers your lot?

In the Revenue Commission Parcel Viewer, pick Baldwin County Data and switch on the city limit and permit jurisdiction layers. A parcel that sits in neither layer is a county permit. Baldwin County jurisdiction guide

Do not trust the mailing address. Fort Morgan lots share the Gulf Shores ZIP code, but about 62 of 135 square kilometers of that ZIP area sit in no city. Census ZIP area file Many Foley addresses are county land, too. For Gulf Shores itself, read the Gulf Shores permit guide.

For state and federal contacts alongside the county offices, use the resources page.

Which county offices handle a bulkhead job?

Three county offices matter most. Building handles the flood permit. Planning and Zoning handles land disturbance. The Coastal Area Program handles the Gulf beach.

• Building Department. The phone is (251) 972-6837, open weekdays from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Offices are in Foley (the satellite courthouse at 201 East Section Avenue), Robertsdale and Fairhope. Baldwin County Building Department
• Planning and Zoning. The department is at 22251 Palmer Street, Robertsdale, (251) 580-1655, with a Foley satellite office at 201 East Section Avenue. Baldwin County Planning and Zoning
• Coastal Area Program. A division of Building. It permits work on the Fort Morgan beach and dunes on parcels crossed by or seaward of the Coastal Construction Line. Baldwin County Coastal Area Program

How do county applications work?

Apply, pay and track permits in the county's CitizenServe portal. Fees are due after plan review. The job may not start until the portal shows Issued. A complete file usually clears in 7 to 10 business days. Baldwin County permit portal

What does a Gulf-side beach permit involve?

ADEM delegates its beach and dune permitting to the Baldwin County Commission. ADEM delegation notice The county checklist for a house asks for two things. One is a sealed survey showing the line and wetlands. The other is an incidental take permit from the Fish and Wildlife Service. A 30-day public notice puts the whole process near six to eight weeks. Coastal Area Program checklist

The county's fee form is dated September 2014: $1,110 for a single-family dwelling, $1,460 for a duplex or townhouse, $665 for a modification and $2,730 for a variance. Coastal Area Program fees Ask the office to confirm current amounts. See Fort Morgan Gulf side and Gulf-front seawall rules.

What does a Baldwin County bulkhead permit cost?

In unincorporated Baldwin County, a bulkhead or seawall goes through a flood permit called Marine Accessory. It applies only to work inside a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area. A lot outside that area needs no county permit, though other agencies may still step in. Baldwin County marine accessory checklist

The application needs a Corps permit and an Alabama State Lands notice of intent to impact state submerged land. Baldwin County marine accessory checklist The Corps Mobile District is at (251) 690-2658. Baldwin County permit checklist The State Lands Coastal Section is at (251) 621-1216. State Lands Coastal Section The county checklist prints (251) 621-1238 for State Lands, so confirm which desk answers. Baldwin County permit checklist

Sources: Baldwin County fee schedule Baldwin County fee notes Planning and Zoning fees Planning and Zoning land disturbance fee

• Starting work before the permit issues can bring a penalty that matches the permit fees, capped at $5,000. Baldwin County fee notes
• Permits are required even when an owner does the work. Baldwin County owner exemption
• Contractors need an active Alabama business license. Baldwin County contractor rules

Check a license with the contractor guide. Docks and lifts follow a separate path: see docks and boat lifts.

What are the county flood rules?

Baldwin County's Floodplain Development Ordinance took effect February 20, 2024. It applies wherever the county issues building permits, which includes three small towns. Baldwin County ordinance

• A building's lowest floor must be at least 1 foot above base flood elevation. In V and Coastal A zones the bottom of the lowest horizontal member must be that high. Baldwin County flood zone page
• Man-made alteration of sand dunes is prohibited in V zones. The ordinance has no bulkhead-height rule. Baldwin County ordinance Art. 4
• The county floodplain administrator is a certified floodplain manager, reachable at (251) 972-6837. Baldwin County flood zone page
• Unincorporated Baldwin County is CRS Class 7, a 15 percent discount, current since May 1, 2017. FEMA CRS list

The county lists 406 repetitive loss properties in 2006, in areas that include Fish River, Point Clear and Bon Secour. Baldwin County CRS page Read flood zones and elevation for the map terms, and the seawall insurance guide for coverage.

Where do you find parcel and permit records?

Most records are online. Start with the parcel, then the deed, then past permits.

• Parcel and tax. The Revenue Commissioner's property search takes a name, parcel, account, subdivision or address, and its help line is (251) 937-0245. The map viewer says its maps are for tax purposes only. Revenue Commission property search
• Deeds. The Probate Office records search covers deeds and mortgages back to 1899. Recording costs $13 for the first page and $3 for each added page. Probate recording page
• Past permits. Older permits, issued before November 1, 2020, sit in the Delta Computer Systems search. Later ones, plus Certificates of Occupancy and Elevation Certificates, are in the CitizenServe search. Email the address to Permitting@BaldwinCountyAL.gov if a record is missing. Baldwin County permit history
• Public records. The county takes requests at its NextRequest site. Baldwin County records page Alabama law now gives the right to residents. A standard request gets an acknowledgment within 10 days, then an answer within 15 business days. Code of Alabama Sec. 36-12-40 Code of Alabama Sec. 36-12-44

What are the City of Foley's creek and riparian rules?

Foley has creeks and headwaters, not open bay. Inside Foley limits you follow a city riparian permit, not the county marine permit. The census place layer shows only a sliver of water: about 0.4 million square meters, against 91 million of land. Census place layer

Which waters are they?

• Wolf Creek and Sandy Creek. They feed upper Wolf Bay. ADEM classes Wolf Creek as Fish and Wildlife and Sandy Creek as Swimming and Fish and Wildlife. ADEM water classes
• Graham Creek. Graham Creek Nature Preserve covers 650 acres, with a canoe and kayak launch. Wolf Creek Park has 24 acres and a paddlecraft launch. Foley nature parks
• Bon Secour River headwaters. The river is about 8 miles long and rises in Foley. Bon Secour watershed plan Lower down, it is county land. See Bon Secour and Weeks Bay and Fish River.

How does the riparian structure permit work?

Foley requires a riparian structure permit for all new piers, docks, boathouses, retaining walls, wharves and bulkheads. Repairs to a structure damaged more than 50 percent need one too, and lesser repairs need a repair permit. Both last six months. Foley Code Sec. 4-226

• Bring a site plan and the state and federal permits. In a floodway, add an engineer's no-rise certificate. The fee is $75, or $25 for a repair. Foley Code Sec. 4-227
• The site plan must show the shoreline, mean high tide, setbacks and any dredge or fill. Foley Code Sec. 4-225
• Apply through the city CitizenServe portal. A complete application typically takes three business days. Foley Environmental Department
• The city inspects for impacts on grassbeds, wetlands and waterways, not building codes. Foley Code Sec. 4-228
• Starting before permits can bring a stop work order and fines of $100 to $500 per day. Foley Code Sec. 4-230

Joint Corps and State Lands filings are still required. Foley Code Sec. 4-223

How do Foley's flood rules differ?

Sources: Foley Floodplain Ordinance Baldwin County flood zone page Gulf Shores flood ordinance FEMA CRS list FEMA CRS list FEMA CRS list Foley Code Sec. 4-227 Baldwin County fee schedule

Some creeks are mapped as approximate A zones with no base elevation. If no flood data exists, the lowest floor must sit at least 3 feet above the highest adjacent grade. Foley Floodplain Ordinance The Chief Building Inspector is the floodplain administrator. Foley Floodplain Ordinance Art. 3

What is the 1.5-mile planning jurisdiction?

Foley's subdivision rules, effective October 1, 2025, set its planning jurisdiction outside city limits at 1.5 miles. The stricter of Foley's or the county's rules applies there. An earlier May 2025 draft said five miles. Foley Subdivision Regulations This is about subdividing land. Building permits outside the limits come from the county.

Foley Planning and Development Services is at 120 S. McKenzie Street, (251) 952-4011. Foley Planning and Development Services

How does the Town of Magnolia Springs fit in?

For a bulkhead, you deal with two governments. The county issues the building and flood permits in the town, and the town wants its own Land Use Certificate before that. Magnolia Springs permit page The town also posts a Special Flood Hazard Area application and an erosion control permit form. Magnolia Springs Building page

• Town Hall is at 12191 Magnolia Springs Highway, (251) 965-9888. The town's site listed a pending zoning text amendment and a Planning Commission hearing on November 3, 2026. Magnolia Springs Town Hall
• The county flood ordinance applies inside the town, so freeboard is 1 foot. Baldwin County ordinance
• The town is not on FEMA's CRS list, so policies there get no CRS discount. FEMA CRS list
• The Magnolia River from Weeks Bay upstream is an Outstanding Alabama Water. ADEM rule 335-6-11-.02 ADEM bars new point-source discharges unless there is no feasible alternative and requires best practices for runoff. ADEM rule 335-6-10-.09
• The town limits are small, and the river mouth and Weeks Bay lie outside them. The lower river is county land. Census place layer

About 17 percent of the Magnolia River shore was hard armor in the state survey, one of the lowest shares in the county. Armoring table Ask town hall which zoning rules cover your shoreline work. See Magnolia Springs and Weeks Bay and Fish River for more.

Which area guides cover the county waters?

Use the guide that matches your water. Each one lists the local permit path, the named streets and the storms that shaped the shore. Coastal rules reach low land below the 10-foot contour. ADEM rule 335-8-1-.02(k)

• Fort Morgan Gulf side: beach homes, the Coastal Construction Line and the beach mouse.
• Fort Morgan bay side: Navy Cove and the open bay shore.
• Bon Secour: the river, the county launch and the Foley edge.
• Magnolia Springs: the town process and the Outstanding Alabama Water river.
• Weeks Bay and Fish River: the reserve, Marlow and the county permit.
• Plash Island: the Gulf Shores edge where city and county can overlap.

Whatever the office, the Corps and State Lands still review the water side. Read the Gulf Shores permit guide and the bulkhead materials guide next.