DEERFIELD BEACH, FL — Deerfield Beach is on track to ask voters in November to weigh in on the city's beach-area development caps and main-beach parking protections, with city commissioners beginning that process at a workshop Wednesday night.
The workshop item, listed as the only piece of city commission business on the July 15 agenda, called for discussion of Charter Section 11.01, which limits height, density and lot coverage on properties east of the Intracoastal Waterway, and Charter Section 11.02, which restricts uses of the city's main beach parking areas. Both sections were adopted by voter referendum on Nov. 5, 2002 and codified through Resolution No. 2003/005 on Jan. 7, 2003, according to the charter.
A face sheet included with the agenda tied the July 15 discussion to "presenting proposed Charter amendments to the electorate for a vote at the November 3, 2026, General Election."
The Boca Post has not yet obtained a transcript or recording of the workshop and cannot report on what commissioners actually said, proposed or directed staff to bring back. Workshops in Deerfield Beach are discussion meetings and do not include formal votes.
What Article XI currently requires
Article XI defines the city's "beach area" as the land between the Intracoastal Waterway and the Atlantic Ocean.
Section 11.01 sets minimum land-development standards for that area based on zoning designations in effect on May 1, 2002. Under the current charter, those requirements include:
- A 45-foot height maximum for commercial-zoned properties
- A 55-foot height maximum for multi-family-zoned properties
- A floor area ratio maximum of 1.0 for commercial properties and .8 for multi-family properties
- A maximum lot coverage of 50 percent for commercial properties and 40 percent for properties with multi-family, hotel or motel uses
- A prohibition on rezoning any property east of the Intracoastal to a commercial or mixed-use commercial designation if it did not carry a commercial designation on May 1, 2002
- Restrictions on mixed use and accessory use beyond what the May 1, 2002 land-use regulations and land-use plan allowed
The section says the city commission may adopt stricter regulations but cannot loosen those standards without further voter approval.
Beach parking area protections
Section 11.02 limits use of specific city-owned properties collectively described as "designated main beach parking areas." Those properties are identified in the charter as the main beach parking lot on multiple lots in Block 11, the current fire station and parking area behind it, portions of NE First Street contiguous to city land, the "Conrad House property" and a parcel deeded by South Florida Beach Properties, LLC.
Under the current charter language, those properties may be used only for parking, roadways for ingress and egress, and public-safety facilities such as fire, rescue, police, restrooms and showers. If the city constructs a garage on the property, the charter caps it at two stories with a possible below-grade level. Any garage on the main beach parking lot must sit at least 110 feet west of Ocean Way, also known as NE 21st Avenue.
Parking spaces must be at least 10 feet by 20 feet. The charter also bars significant commercial use of the properties, defined as commercial use exceeding 15 days per year. Vending machines and occasional municipal events such as Founder's Day are exempt from that restriction.
Section 11.02 further prohibits using parking on those properties to satisfy off-street parking requirements for any other property.
What was not detailed in the agenda
The agenda materials for the July 15 workshop did not include proposed replacement language, redline versions or a staff memo describing which specific provisions of Article XI the commission was being asked to consider changing. The face sheet identified only the two sections for discussion and the general election as the target ballot.
What happens next
The agenda lists three future commission meetings: a Special City Commission Meeting on Tuesday, July 21; a City Commission Workshop on Thursday, July 30; and a Regular City Commission Meeting on Tuesday, August 4. Any proposed charter amendments would need to be finalized on a timeline that allows them to appear on the November 3, 2026 general election ballot.
Deerfield Beach voters last amended Article XI through the 2002 referendum that established the current beach-area development caps and main-beach parking protections.
As Deerfield Beach grows, questions about density, traffic, parking, housing, and neighborhood character are followed through Deerfield Beach Government reporting.
