In Palmetto Bay one department enforces several agencies’ rulebooks

The Palmetto Bay differenceSection 02 of 15

The hard question here is not what the rule is. It is whose rule it is.

Most municipal building departments do one job: they apply the building code. Palmetto Bay’s does that, and then several other things as well, through the same office and often across the same project.

The Village states that its Building and Permitting Department "works under the general direction of the Building Official, and oversees the building, permitting, and floodplain administration functions" — and separately, that it "also enforces all codes promulgated by regulatory agencies such as the Hotel and Restaurant Commission, Miami-Dade County Department of Environmental Resource Management, Florida Department of Health and Professional Regulation and others". Read that as an owner and the consequence is immediate: a single Palmetto Bay project can be answering to environmental resource rules, health rules, floodplain rules and the building code, all through one counter. The failure mode is not disobedience. It is asking the right question of the wrong authority, and losing weeks doing it politely.

The departmentALSO THE FLOODPLAIN

It oversees "the building, permitting, and floodplain administration functions" under the general direction of the Building Official.

The other rulebooksFOUR AGENCIES NAMED

It enforces codes promulgated by the Hotel and Restaurant Commission, Miami-Dade DERM, the Florida Department of Health and Professional Regulation "and others".

The practical riskTHE WRONG AUTHORITY

Not breaking a rule — asking the right question of the wrong body, and spending weeks before anyone notices.

What we do hereSection 03 of 15

The work Palmetto Bay owners ask us for.

Elbaz Construction is a licensed general contractor working across Miami-Dade. Palmetto Bay is a low-density village of large single-family lots, much of it close to Biscayne Bay, which shapes both what people build and which authority ends up having a view about it.

01Kitchen remodelingInside the footprint, or opened into the living space.

The commonest project in the village, and the one where the trades stack up most tightly behind a single wall.

02Bathroom renovationIncluding accessible and level-access design.

A shower running level with the floor is a drainage and structure decision, taken long before a tile is chosen.

03Whole-home renovationEvery room, run as one programme.

One permit record and one accountable contractor rather than several trades arriving in whatever order suits them.

04Room additionsWhere a large lot has room but the setbacks decide.

An addition is a zoning question before it is a construction one, and on a bay-side lot it can be a floodplain question as well.

05Guest houses and detached unitsA separate structure on the same property.

A detached unit is its own building: its own services, its own inspections, and its own conversation about what is permitted on the lot.

06Accessibility workGrab bars, level thresholds, wider doorways.

Done properly it is invisible. Done as an afterthought it is a handrail screwed to a finished wall.

07Impact windows and doorsGlazing approved for the wind zone.

Miami-Dade approvals and anchorage details are reviewed rather than assumed.

08Flooring throughoutCarried through, or changed deliberately at each threshold.

On single-level houses a continuous floor is what makes a plan feel finished.

09Outdoor livingCovered terraces, summer kitchens and screen enclosures.

Structures outside the house are permitted construction, and close to the bay they attract more than one authority’s interest.

Completed workSection 04 of 15

Finished work, photographed as it was handed over.

South Florida projects by Elbaz Construction

Both sets are Elbaz Construction projects in South Florida. Neither is represented as being in Palmetto Bay, and the two sets are not the same property.

Detached converted unit with light stucco walls and a dark fascia, seen across a lawn behind a row of newly planted columnar shrubs — 01The converted unit seen across the lawn

Light stucco elevation of a converted unit behind young columnar planting and a timber walkway — 02The same elevation, behind young columnar planting

Narrow side elevation with a concrete path running between the unit and a clipped hedge — 03The narrow side, with its path between hedge and wall

Exterior entry door to the converted unit beside a wall light, with a concrete path and hedge alongside — 04The unit’s own entry door, off its own path

Project recordSection 05 of 15

What these two projects show.

A detached unit is a building, not a room

It has its own envelope, its own services and its own inspections. That is the whole difference between converting a structure and extending a house.

The landscape is part of the handover

The planting and the walkway in the first frames were drawn with the building. Where a path runs decides where water goes.

Level access is set out in the slab

A shower floor that meets the room floor without a lip is decided at the drainage stage. It cannot be retro-fitted into a finished bathroom.

Accessible does not mean clinical

A wall-hung vanity with clear space beneath it reads as a design decision. It happens also to be the thing that makes the room usable from a seated position.

Interior entry with a glazed front door, white walls and wood-look plank flooring running through to the rooms beyond — 05Inside the entry, plank flooring running through

ScopeDetached guest unit converted and handed over complete

EnvelopeLight stucco walls, dark fascia, own entry door

InteriorWood-look plank flooring carried through, vaulted living area

ServicesWall-mounted mini-split, recessed lighting throughout

Second setAccessible bathrooms, separate South Florida property

AccessGrab bar beside the WC, level threshold into the shower

VanitiesWall-hung, with clear open space beneath

DrainageLinear drain set so the shower runs level with the floor

Why it matters hereSection 06 of 15

Palmetto Bay rewards a contractor who works out which authority owns a question before spending three weeks asking the wrong one.

The Village has published enough about how its department is organised that the right question can be aimed correctly from the start.

01One office, several mandates

Building, permitting and floodplain

The same department administers the floodplain, so an elevation question and a building question arrive at the same counter.

02Other agencies’ codes are enforced here

DERM, Health, and others

The Village names them. On a project near the bay, or one touching water or waste, that is not a technicality.

03Code compliance sits alongside permitting

The same department educates and enforces

It describes "educating the public on the Village’s code regulations and enforcing those regulations" as part of the same function.

04The Village’s own page cites an old edition

Fifth Edition (2014), where the 8th (2023) is in force

We say so rather than quoting it as current, and we confirm the applicable edition with the Department on every job.

05The Village publishes a caveat about itself

Official versions come from the Clerk

It states its material "is believed to be accurate at the time of its posting" and that official versions come through the Office of the Village Clerk.

06One contractor, one record

The permit history is the asset

A closed record is what a future buyer’s search finds and what an insurer asks for.

The wind zone, the water table and the wet season apply across South Florida and are planned for on every project we run. What is specific here is how many separate rulebooks one department is enforcing at once.

Bathroom with a wall-mounted grab bar beside the toilet, a white vanity with a stone top and wide clear floor space — 06A grab bar beside the WC, and a stone-topped vanity

Completed workSection 07 of 15

The same standard, room by room.

The second set is a different property and is about accessibility: wall-hung vanities with clear space beneath them, and a shower that runs level with the floor.

Wall-hung double vanity with open space beneath it and a full-width mirror above

A wall-hung double vanity, open beneath

Long wall-hung vanity with twin basins and no floor-mounted cabinet below

The same vanity along its length, no cabinet to the floor

Shower area running level with the bathroom floor beside a freestanding bath, with a linear drain

The shower running level with the floor, drain in the threshold

Bathroom with a freestanding bath and an adjoining level shower zone under a ceiling rain head

The same room from the doorway, bath and shower zone together

Bath and shower combination with a wall-mounted rail and a handheld shower on a slide bar

A different bathroom: bath and shower combination with a slide bar

Open living area with wood-look plank flooring and a vaulted ceiling, looking through to a white kitchen at the far end — 12The living area, looking through to the kitchen

Layout strategyA separate structure treated as its own building throughout

SitePath and planting drawn with the building, not after it

AccessibilityLevel access designed at the drainage stage, not added later

FittingsWall-hung vanities chosen for clear space as much as for looks

ProvenanceTwo separate South Florida projects, honestly captioned

SpecificationSection 08 of 15

What gets specified differently here.

Not an exhaustive list — the six decisions where this county, this climate and this Village’s published remit change the answer.

Windows and doors

Approved for the wind zone

Miami-Dade specifies for high wind loads. Every glazed unit carries a product approval and an anchorage detail, and both are reviewed.Keep tracks and weeps clear; check seals and anchors before each season.

Drainage and levels

Where accessibility is actually decided

A level-access shower is a linear drain and a set-down in the substrate. It is specified at first fix and it cannot be added to a finished room.Keep the drain channel clear; check the seal at the threshold annually.

Sanitaryware

Wall-hung, and structurally carried

A wall-hung vanity or WC needs a frame behind the wall. That frame is built in before the wall closes, not fixed to plasterboard afterwards.Check fixings on wall-hung units every few years.

Grab rails and blocking

Timber in the wall, decided early

A rail that will actually take weight needs blocking behind the tile. The time to decide where rails go is before the wall is closed up.Test rails by leaning on them, not by looking at them.

Waterproofing

Inspected, then buried forever

In a wet room the membrane is signed off before tiling starts. Putting it right later means removing a finished room.Check sealant and movement joints annually; act on the first sign of a leak.

Detached structures

Their own services, their own inspections

A guest unit carries its own supply, its own drainage and its own inspection list. It is specified as a building rather than as an extension.Service the mini-split on schedule; check the unit’s own shut-offs yearly.

The photographs on this page are Elbaz Construction projects in South Florida. None is represented as having been taken in Palmetto Bay.

How we run itSection 09 of 15

Nine stages, in order.

Address and scope

What the work is, what kind of building it is, and how close to the bay it sits.

Which authorities have a view

Building, floodplain, and whether any of the other agencies the Village enforces for are engaged by this scope. Asked at the start rather than discovered.

Survey and conditions

What is actually there. On single-storey houses of this age the surprises are in the services and the slab.

Confirm the applicable code edition

With the Department, because the Village’s own page still names the 2014 edition and the 2023 edition is the one in force.

Drawings, resolved

A set complete enough to be reviewed once rather than three times.

Products and approvals

Glazing and doors selected with their Miami-Dade approvals attached, because that documentation is part of the review.

Submittal, filed complete

One package with every attachment, including anything a second agency will want to see.

Review, then inspections

Comments answered as a set; inspections booked when the work will genuinely pass.

Closeout and the record

Final inspections, any certificate that applies, and the documents handed over.

Village of Palmetto BaySection 10 of 15

The Village’s own rules, as it publishes them.

What the department is

The Village states its Building and Permitting Department "works under the general direction of the Building Official, and oversees the building, permitting, and floodplain administration functions".

Whose codes it enforces

It "also enforces all codes promulgated by regulatory agencies such as the Hotel and Restaurant Commission, Miami-Dade County Department of Environmental Resource Management, Florida Department of Health and Professional Regulation and others".

Why that matters to a homeowner

It means the building code is not the only rulebook in the room. On a project that touches water, waste or the shoreline, another agency’s requirement can be the one that actually governs — arriving through the same office.

Code compliance too

The Village lists overseeing "the building, code compliance, and Flood Plain administration functions" and "educating the public on the Village’s code regulations and enforcing those regulations" among the same department’s work.

The floodplain point

Because floodplain administration sits inside the building department, an elevation question and a permitting question are answered by the same people. That is genuinely useful, and it is worth using early.

An out-of-date citation on the Village’s page

The same paragraph states the department enforces "particularly the Florida Building Code Fifth Edition (2014)". The edition in force is the 8th Edition (2023). We are not correcting the Village here — we are telling you the page says one thing and the code in force is another, and that the Department is who settles it.

How we handle that in practice

The applicable code edition is confirmed with the Building and Permitting Department at the start of every Palmetto Bay project, in writing, before a drawing is finished.

The Village’s own caveat

It publishes that its material "is believed to be accurate at the time of its posting. However, much of the information provided is continually changing … The official versions may be obtained through the Office of the Village Clerk."

What is not ours to state

Fees, flood-zone determinations for a specific address, and which outside agency’s approval your scope needs are all the Village’s to answer. We ask with you rather than guessing on your behalf.

Every statement above is the Village of Palmetto Bay’s published position as read on 19 August 2026 at palmettobay-fl.gov, including the Fifth Edition citation, which is reported rather than endorsed. Municipal procedure changes; confirm the current requirement with the Building and Permitting Department before relying on any of it. No fee is quoted here.

The routeSection 11 of 15

From an address to a closed record.

Five steps. The second is the one that is genuinely local, and on a Palmetto Bay project it is the one that prevents three weeks spent asking the wrong authority.

Place the property

What kind of building it is, roughly when it was built, and how close to the bay the lot sits.

Map the authorities

Building, floodplain and any outside agency the Village enforces for. Established with the Department at the start, along with the code edition that actually applies.

Decide the scope

Which trades it involves and how much of the envelope comes off. That decides the inspection list and the drawings.

File complete

One submittal with the drawings, the product approvals and anything a second agency will want attached.

Inspect and close

Inspections called when the work will pass, then the certificate and the documents handed over.

Owner’s guideSection 12 of 15

What actually moves a Palmetto Bay project.

We do not publish prices, and we do not publish the Village’s fees or timelines as if they were ours to promise. What follows is where the number and the calendar actually move.

What moves the number

Whether services move

Keeping a sink, a hob or a soil stack where it is costs far less than relocating it, because relocation is work in the floor.

How much is structural

Removing a wall means engineering before it means construction, and engineering is a cost and a lead time at once.

Whether a second agency is involved

A scope that engages an outside agency’s code carries its own documentation and its own wait, and it is far cheaper identified early.

Level access and drainage

A shower level with the floor is work in the substrate. It is worth every penny and it is not a finish-stage decision.

Whether it is a detached structure

A separate building carries its own services and its own inspections, which is a different order of project from a room.

What the demolition finds

The real scope is settled when the finishes come off, not when the estimate is written.

Access and protection

Working around an occupied house is slower than working in an empty one.

Reinstatement

Making everything good afterwards is invisible in the finished photograph and it is genuinely part of the job.

What moves the calendar

How complete the submittal is

A package reviewed once moves; a package reviewed three times does not.

Whether the right authority was asked first

The most expensive delay in Palmetto Bay is a correct question aimed at the wrong office.

Whether the code edition was confirmed

The Village’s page names the 2014 edition. Drawing to the wrong edition is a revision, and revisions are weeks.

Floodplain questions

Where elevation matters they are settled before drawings are finished, not during review.

Lead times on glazing

Approved units are ordered against a real programme, and a late substitution is a revision rather than a swap.

Weather

Anything opening the roof or the envelope is planned around the wet season rather than surprised by it.

Bring to the first call

The property address.
What kind of building it is, and roughly when it was built.
What you want to do, in plain words.
Whether anything is moving: a wall, a sink, a soil stack.
Whether anybody will need level access or grab rails.
Any drawings, survey or permit paperwork you already hold.

Before you callSection 13 of 15

What a first conversation covers.

Twenty minutes on the phone, or at the property, answers most of it. We will talk about what the scope opens, whether anything beyond the building code is likely to be engaged, and whether the lot’s position matters.

The property address and roughly when the house was built.
Whether the work stays inside the existing footprint.
Whether anything is being built as a separate structure.
Whether anybody using the house needs level access.

Living area with a wall-mounted mini-split head, recessed lighting and a doorway through to the bathroom — 13Handed over: mini-split, recessed lighting, one continuous floor

Questions, answered.

Palmetto Bay questions

Who actually decides on my project?

The Building Official directs the Building and Permitting Department, which the Village states oversees building, permitting and floodplain administration. But the same department also enforces codes promulgated by other agencies, so on some scopes the governing requirement is somebody else’s and arrives through this office.

Which other agencies are involved?

The Village names the Hotel and Restaurant Commission, the Miami-Dade County Department of Environmental Resource Management, the Florida Department of Health and Professional Regulation, "and others". Which of them touches your scope is settled at the start of the job.

Your page says the Village cites an old code edition. What does that mean for me?

The Village’s About page states the department enforces "particularly the Florida Building Code Fifth Edition (2014)". The edition in force is the 8th (2023). We report both rather than quoting the old one as current, and we confirm the applicable edition with the Department in writing before drawings are finished.

Does the building department handle flood zones too?

Yes — the Village states floodplain administration is one of the functions the same department oversees. What flood zone a specific property is in is theirs and FEMA’s to state, not ours.

Can I build a guest house on my lot?

It depends on the lot, the zoning and the services, and it is a separate building rather than an extension of the house. It is a question worth putting to the Village before any design work happens.

Can a bathroom be made properly accessible in an existing house?

Usually, but the decisions are structural and they happen early: a linear drain and a set-down for level access, and blocking behind the wall wherever a rail will go. Added at the end, it looks added at the end.

Do I need a permit to remodel a bathroom?

Almost certainly, because a bathroom remodel involves plumbing and usually electrical work. What your specific scope requires is the Department’s to state, and it is a short call rather than a guess.

Where do I get the official version of a Village code?

The Village states that official versions may be obtained through the Office of the Village Clerk, and that the material on its site "is believed to be accurate at the time of its posting" but changes continually.

How much are the permit fees?

We do not publish the Village’s fees. The Department states the current schedule, and it is a straightforward question to ask before a scope is committed to.

Do you handle the permit and the inspections?

Yes. We establish which authorities have a view, confirm the code edition, assemble the submittal, answer the review as a set, and book every inspection. What we will not do is promise a review duration that is the Village’s to decide.

Why Elbaz.

Licensed general contractor

Licence CBC1265280 — licensed, bonded and insured, so several permitted scopes on one property run under a single contract.

We map the authorities first

Building, floodplain and any outside agency the Village enforces for, established before drawings rather than during review.

We confirm the code edition in writing

Because the Village’s own page still names the 2014 edition and the 2023 edition is in force.

We design accessibility into the structure

Level access and rail blocking are first-fix decisions here, not finishing touches.

We treat a detached unit as a building

Its own services, its own inspections, its own record.

Honest about what is not ours to answer

Fees, flood-zone determinations and outside agencies’ requirements belong to somebody else. We will tell you exactly who, and ask with you.

Financing available

Financing options are available — ask and we will explain what applies to your project.

Closed records at handover

A closed permit record and the documents to prove it, which is what a future buyer’s search will find.

Proof & ReadingSection 14 of 15

What South Florida homeowners say.

Reproduced verbatim from our Google Business Profile. Nothing here has been edited, merged or rewritten.

Redid my whole bathroom and kitchen. Great service - Great quality - very quick - very professional !! Highly recommended!

Adir DavidovGoogle review

They are amazing! Very professional. Met my exact requests with so much patience and knowledge. They renovated my whole house and the whole process was such a breeze. I highly recommend them!

Lee MoraliGoogle review

We hired them to renovate our investment property and they provided exceptional quality service for an affordable price!

Shir PartushGoogle review

Amazing experience with the entire company! They did a great job in my house for some work that needed to be completed, and I am extremely happy with the result. Super professional & great service. I highly recommend Elbaz Construction.

Mia ZafraniGoogle review

After I've been Looking for a good company to renovate my house , I found those guys! These people are super professional super honest super Fast !! Don't hesitate to Rent their service! They are number one!!

carmit cohenGoogle review

I highly recommend them for home improvement. They renovated my master bathroom and a few upgrades for other guest bathrooms. They are very professional, courteous and transparent. They are great at communicating and finding ways to streamline the work. Sean has impeccable project management and customer relationship management skills. Very pleased with the work!

Omri BGoogle review

Home remodeling in Palmetto Bayone department,several rulebooks.

Tell us the address and the scope.

Thanks — that came through.

The hard question here is not what the rule is. It is whose rule it is.

The work Palmetto Bay owners ask us for.

Finished work, photographed as it was handed over.

What these two projects show.

A detached unit is a building, not a room

The landscape is part of the handover

Level access is set out in the slab

Accessible does not mean clinical

Palmetto Bay rewards a contractor who works out which authority owns a question before spending three weeks asking the wrong one.

Building, permitting and floodplain

DERM, Health, and others

The same department educates and enforces

Fifth Edition (2014), where the 8th (2023) is in force

Official versions come from the Clerk

The permit history is the asset

The same standard, room by room.

What gets specified differently here.

Nine stages, in order.

Address and scope

Which authorities have a view

Survey and conditions

Confirm the applicable code edition

Drawings, resolved

Products and approvals

Submittal, filed complete

Review, then inspections

Closeout and the record

The Village’s own rules, as it publishes them.

From an address to a closed record.

Place the property

Map the authorities

Decide the scope

File complete

Inspect and close

What actually moves a Palmetto Bay project.

What moves the number

What moves the calendar

Bring to the first call

What a first conversation covers.

Questions, answered.

Why Elbaz.

Licensed general contractor

We map the authorities first

We confirm the code edition in writing

We design accessibility into the structure

We treat a detached unit as a building

Honest about what is not ours to answer

Financing available

Closed records at handover

What South Florida homeowners say.

Further reading.

Service Areas

Send the address and the scope.

What happens next

Thanks — that came through.

Home remodeling in Palmetto Bay
one department,
several rulebooks.