Building in Palm Beach
begins with one question:
who reviews it.

Roof covering

In-kind, or a new design

What the matrix records. Roofing is inside the building-alterations category, and the matrix separates in-kind replacement of architectural features — S tile replacement named specifically — from removal, replacement or addition of a feature with an alternate design, which also covers the installation of new S tile.

Other options. Matching the existing covering is the lighter application. Changing profile, colour or material is a design change and is designated as one, so it belongs in the earliest conversation rather than in a change order.

Fenestration

What faces the street decides it

What the matrix records. Window and door replacement sits in building alterations, and the matrix separately calls out street-facing fenestration alterations in the C-WA district and major façade alterations that affect architectural style.

Other options. Rear and side openings not visible from the right-of-way are a different proposition from the street elevation. Impact-rated products are selected against the wind-borne debris and design-pressure requirements for the address; Palm Beach County is outside the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone that applies in Miami-Dade and Broward.

Boundary treatment

Fences, walls and gates

What the matrix records. The matrix distinguishes new boundary work visible from the right-of-way — and names the use of PVC products and corrugated sheet piling — from in-kind replacement and from new work interior to the lot and not on property lines. New work on side or rear property lines is where neighbour consent enters, and the matrix notes that without consent the project moves to a minor designation.

Other options. Masonry, rendered block, hedging and metalwork all read differently from the street, and the material choice is part of the review rather than a detail settled afterwards.

Plant and screening

Mechanical equipment

What the matrix records. Condensing units, pool equipment, cooling towers, water filtration and generators up to 100 kW form one category. The matrix separates new equipment visible from the right-of-way from new equipment outside the setbacks and not visible — the latter conditional on meeting FEMA, screening and zoning requirements — and from replacement equipment in an existing location. It also records that generators above 100 kW must be housed in a building.

Other options. Where plant sits is therefore an architectural decision. Moving a generator inside a structure moves the whole application into the new-construction or additions category.

Ground plane

Hardscape, landscape, turf and lighting

What the matrix records. Driveways, patios and pools sit under site alterations for hardscape, with substantial alterations separated from minor ones and from work interior to the lot. Landscape has its own line, and artificial turf is treated by position — front yard or readily visible from the right-of-way against side and rear yards. Landscape lighting appears with the Town’s exterior lighting affidavit.

Other options. A ground-plane scheme drawn as one package — paving, planting, turf and lighting together — is easier to review than four applications that arrive separately and contradict each other.

The Project Designation Manual Matrix

Adopted 13 July 2022 and published jointly by the Architectural Review Commission and the Landmarks Preservation Commission through the Planning, Zoning & Building Department. It sorts categories of work by the level of design review authority they attract, and in its own words exists to aid homeowners, design professionals and Town staff in determining that path.

Four levels of review authority

The matrix’s columns are Commission Review, Commission Chair Review and Staff Review. The levels are named ARCOM Major, ARCOM Minor, Staff Approval and Neighbor Consent, with a parallel Landmarks route to a Certificate of Appropriateness on a landmarked or historically significant building.

Visible from the right-of-way

The single test that recurs most in the matrix. Additions, boundary work, mechanical equipment, hardscape, landscape, artificial turf and statuary are all designated differently depending on whether they are visible from a public right-of-way.

Landmarked and historically significant buildings

Where a property is a designated landmark or a historically significant building, the Landmarks Preservation Commission performs the development review and issues the Certificate of Appropriateness. The Town publishes a Landmarks Preservation Commission Project Designation Guide, a Landmarks Manual, a Landmarks Administrative Review Application and a Landmarks Tax Abatement Application.

Administrative review

Both commissions have an administrative route: the Town publishes an ARCOM Administrative Review Application and a Landmarks Administrative Review Application. The matrix records that staff-reviewed applications are still subject to staff design review and full compliance with the Zoning Code of Ordinances.

Neighbor consent

A designation level in its own right in the matrix, appearing on work such as new fences, walls and gates on side or rear property lines and landscape alterations on those lines — where the matrix notes that the project moves to a minor designation without consent.

Variance, special exception and site plan review

Where the scope needs any of these, the Town Council hears the project. The matrix carries a variance line covering all variance requests and the corresponding projects as determined by staff. Council also handles Comprehensive Plan amendments and zoning code changes.

The Development Review Calendar

The Town publishes a Development Review Calendar carrying the submittal deadlines and hearing dates for ARCOM, the Landmarks Preservation Commission and Town Council. On a commission-level project it is the first programme constraint, and it is published in advance rather than negotiated.

The EPL Permit Portal

The Town’s permit system is the EPL Permit Portal, a Tyler EnerGov self-service platform brought live in April 2024. Design review approval and the building permit are separate steps, and the portal is where the second one happens.

Contractor registration

The Town publishes contractor registration instructions for the portal alongside its account-creation, permit-and-plan and inspection-scheduling guides. Registration is the contractor’s job, not the owner’s, and it is done before an application can be filed.

The Town’s own checklists

Published alongside the construction permit application: a Demolition Checklist, a Checklist for 1 & 2 Unit Dwellings, an Information Checklist for Certificate of Occupancy and Certificate of Completion, a Condo Checklist, and FEMA’s Substantial Improvement Checklist. A submission built against the Town’s own list is the cheapest way to avoid a correction cycle.

Storm season and HB 803

The Town publishes a Post-Storm Permitting Plan 2026, and HB 803 information for contractors for 2026. On a barrier island both matter: what can be repaired after a storm, and under what process, is set out in advance.

Status before body

Whether the building is a designated landmark or historically significant is what selects the reviewing commission. It is the first thing to establish, because it changes which published guide applies to the application.

The matrix sets the level, not the body

Once the commission is known, the designation matrix sets how much authority the application needs — a full commission, the commission chair, staff, or neighbour consent. Category and visibility do most of the work in that determination.

Council is a parallel route, not a later one

A variance, a special exception or a site plan review sends the project to Town Council. That is not an appeal after a refusal; it is a separate requirement that the scope either triggers or does not.

Design approval is not the permit

The building permit is a separate application through the EPL Permit Portal. Treating design review and permitting as one step is the most common way a Palm Beach programme slips.

Deadlines are published, not negotiated

Where a commission or the Council will hear the project, the Development Review Calendar carries the submittal deadline. Missing one moves the hearing, not the deadline.

Staff review is still design review

The matrix is explicit that applications submitted for staff review remain subject to staff design review and require full compliance with the Zoning Code of Ordinances. Administrative is not automatic.

Licensed general contractor

CBC1265280 — certified building contractor, bonded and insured. Verifiable in the Florida DBPR licence register.

The designation question answered first

We read your scope against the Town’s own matrix and confirm the path with the Department before you commission design, because the answer changes what design has to produce.

One contract across design review and construction

Design, engineering, submittals, permitting and construction sit with one company, which matters most where approval and building are separate processes with separate clocks.

Built for the coast

Salt exposure, drainage and fixing specification treated as engineering decisions rather than finish choices, on a barrier island where the cheapest version fails first.

Documented, inspected, closed out

Approved drawings, product approvals, inspection records and warranties handed over as a set — which is what protects the property’s value at sale.

Regional, and specific about it

Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties, where review requirements differ sharply between neighbouring municipalities and Palm Beach differs from all of them.