Orange Beach Bulkhead Height: What Alabama Rules Say
Alabama and Baldwin County give no single top-of-wall number, so height is decided by design, datum and the permit reviewer.
- Top of the capMeasured from a fixed survey reference.
- WaterlineRises and falls with tides and weather.
- Survey reference (datum)A named reference, such as NAVD88.
Use the survey reference printed beside the elevation.
How high should your seawall be?
Your city or county may set a lowest or highest allowed elevation for the top of the wall. The rules can change with the property’s location and the work planned. Drainage, flooding and neighboring properties also affect the design.
For local height rules, use the top-of-cap elevation on your survey. This is the top of the wall measured from a fixed survey reference. It is different from the wall’s bottom-to-top height or the water level.
Find these two items on your survey.
Find the elevation for the top of the seawall cap and the survey reference used with it. The example below shows what to look for.
Seawall cap elevation
- Top of seawall cap
- 6.0 ft
- Survey reference (datum)
- NAVD88
This example shows 6.0 ft NAVD88. Use the number and reference on your own survey.
Match the value and the reference.
- The elevation: use the number for the top of the wall cap, not a building floor, water depth or the wall’s full height.
- The reference: copy the name beside the elevation, such as NAVD88 or NGVD29. You can compare elevations only when they use the same reference.
- Cannot find both? Choose “No / not sure” in the checker. Ask a surveyor to help find them; measuring from the water will give a different result.
What does NAVD88 mean?
NAVD88 is a fixed survey reference used to measure elevations, like a shared zero point. Another survey may use NGVD29 or a tide-based reference. To compare two elevations, they must use the same reference. A surveyor can help if the references differ. Read NOAA’s explanation of survey references.
Look for the seawall cap elevation on your survey or final construction plans. A flood certificate may show only the building’s elevation. If the wall measurement is missing, ask a surveyor; you do not need to measure beside the water.
Repair, replacement and permits
Before raising or replacing the wall, ask the permitting office which rules apply to the work. An engineer can check whether the existing wall, supports and drainage can handle the change. A higher wall can also change where rainwater flows.
Use the permit guide to find the city or county office, ADEM, Alabama State Lands and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers contacts. Describe your location and planned work and ask which approvals you need. The joint ADEM and Corps application (Form 166) lists the drawings a shoreline project needs, including the mean high water line.
Common questions
How do I plan a change in wall height?
Start with your survey, the wall’s condition and the change you want to make. An engineer can check the supports, drainage and effects on nearby properties. Tell us about your plans and we’ll help you prepare the next step.
Is maximum height the height I must build?
A maximum is the highest allowed elevation, not a target you must build to. Ask your permitting office whether there is also a minimum for your property.
What if I do not know the elevation?
You can start with the property address and what you want to change. A surveyor can identify the top-of-cap elevation and its reference on your survey.
Can an existing seawall be raised?
An engineer needs to check the wall, supports and drainage before recommending a height change. The right approach may involve modifying the wall or replacing parts of it.
Does meeting a number mean the wall is safe?
Height is only one part of the wall’s condition. The supports, drainage and signs of damage also matter. Use the warning-sign check to prepare for an assessment.
How can I get help with the height?
Tell us the property’s city or county and what you want to change. Discuss the next steps, including whether you need a survey or seawall assessment. Confirm any service details and price before going ahead.
What does water level mean on this coast?
Tides here are small, so storms set the real heights. NOAA shows a daily range of 0.9 feet at Perdido Pass. NOAA Alabama Point station Mean higher high water (the average of the day's higher high tides) sits about 0.7 feet above the NAVD88 land datum at the Gulf State Park Pier gauge. NOAA Gulf State Park Pier station
Know your datum. Orange Beach asks for elevations based on NAVD 88 on site plans for new homes. Orange Beach submittal checklist Its older Gulf-front wall survey rule still refers to NGVD, an older datum. Orange Beach Code 30-189
Have the surveyor write the datum on the drawing, and ask the city which one it wants.
How high does storm water get?
Hurricane Ivan drove water to about 8.8 feet NGVD at Perdido Pass in 2004. Corps tide-gage table Sally put 5 to 7 feet of water above ground along the Baldwin County coast in 2020. NHC Sally report
On the effective flood map, VE zone base flood elevations (the 1-percent-chance flood level) run from 10 to 18 feet, mostly 12 or 13. FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer
No bulkhead cap is built to stop a surge like that. A wall top is a design choice about everyday water, waves and overtopping.
What do local codes say about wall height?
Orange Beach's only top-of-wall language applies to Gulf-front protective shoreline structures. It says the elevation must correspond to the projected wave run-up. The run-up is based on water depth, tide, slope of the sea bottom, wind and current analysis, and design of the structure. It gives no number. Orange Beach Zoning Ordinance 10.0305(k)(4)
In the Gulf Shores, Baldwin County and Orange Beach codes reviewed for this site, no jurisdiction sets a numeric bulkhead or seawall height for canals, bayous or bays. Building floor rules are different and apply to houses, not walls. Orange Beach requires new building floors two feet above base flood elevation. Orange Beach Ord. 2024-1472
- Gulf-front walls also face the Coastal Construction Line (CCL) limits in the Gulf-front guide.
- Replacement walls must sit at or within two feet waterward of mean high tide. ADCNR rule 220-4-.09(4)(e)2(iv)
What should I ask the surveyor and engineer for?
Ask for a drawing that shows the existing and proposed top elevation, the mean high tide line and the datum. State Lands and the Corps both reject drawings that miss mean high tide or lack accurate dimensions. MSU Extension permit guide
- Top of wall now, top of wall proposed and the datum used.
- Low spots where water overtops or drains behind the wall.
- Neighbor wall tops, so new sections tie in cleanly.
- An engineer's note on how the design height was chosen.
Read the repair-or-replace guide before you ask for raised-wall prices.
Show sourcesHide sources
- CO-OPS datums: 8730667 Alabama Point, ALSource reviewed 2026-10-31
- CO-OPS datums: 8731269 Gulf State Park Pier, ALSource reviewed 2026-10-31
- Building Department Checklist for New Construction: One- & Two-Family Dwellings (2026.01)Source reviewed 2026-10-31
- Orange Beach Code of Ordinances Ch. 30, Art. VII Coastal Construction (Municode, Supp. 40)Source reviewed 2026-10-31
- Hurricane Ivan - September 16, 2004 (Table 3, observed storm surge data, courtesy USACE Mobile District)Source reviewed 2026-10-31
- National Hurricane Center Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Sally, 11-17 September 2020Source reviewed 2026-10-31
- FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL) map service, layer 28 Flood Hazard ZonesSource reviewed 2026-10-31
- City of Orange Beach Zoning Ordinance No. 172, amended through May 6, 2025Source reviewed 2026-10-31
- Orange Beach Code of Ordinances Ch. 42, Art. III (Municode, Supp. 40)Source reviewed 2026-10-31
- ADCNR Admin. Code r. 220-4-.09 Placement and Configuration of Piers and Other Improvements on State Owned Submerged LandsSource reviewed 2026-10-31
- Living Shorelines: A Permitting Guide for Alabama Homeowners (Publication 3120)Source reviewed 2026-10-31
Ask about local requirements
Identify the property and the question to resolve. Keep any available survey with your planning notes.