Design Review Board asks city commission to study relaxing 25% rule for private roof decks
May 14, 2026 | Miami Beach, Miami-Dade County, Florida
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At its May 14 meeting the Miami Beach Design Review Board voted to ask the city commission to explore changes to the municipal code that limits private roof decks to 25% of rooftop area.
Board members said the 25% limit, adopted in earlier regulations, is increasingly out of step with contemporary flat‑roof residential designs and can produce unusable roof spaces. The board discussed multiple approaches: removing the 25% cap while keeping setback and canopy/covered‑area limits in place; allowing larger decks administratively when a structure remains below height limits; or requiring increases above 25% to go through a DRB waiver process rather than a variance so the board can review design implications without the stricter variance hardship standard.
"I just feel like it really has to be a case‑by‑case scenario," one member said during deliberations, while others urged a study of how neighboring jurisdictions treat rooftop deck area and whether a waiver process could provide design review without creating automatic as‑of‑right development rights.
Motion and outcome: The board voted to transmit a letter to the city commission requesting that planning staff explore options to allow larger roof decks (including removing the 25% limit) while retaining existing setbacks and canopy area limits, and to consider whether increases beyond the current limit should proceed via a DRB waiver. The motion carried unanimously.
What happens next: The board asked planning staff to review statutory history and comparative practice and report back; any change to the land‑development code would require formal referral, planning board review and two commission readings.
Board members said the 25% limit, adopted in earlier regulations, is increasingly out of step with contemporary flat‑roof residential designs and can produce unusable roof spaces. The board discussed multiple approaches: removing the 25% cap while keeping setback and canopy/covered‑area limits in place; allowing larger decks administratively when a structure remains below height limits; or requiring increases above 25% to go through a DRB waiver process rather than a variance so the board can review design implications without the stricter variance hardship standard.
"I just feel like it really has to be a case‑by‑case scenario," one member said during deliberations, while others urged a study of how neighboring jurisdictions treat rooftop deck area and whether a waiver process could provide design review without creating automatic as‑of‑right development rights.
Motion and outcome: The board voted to transmit a letter to the city commission requesting that planning staff explore options to allow larger roof decks (including removing the 25% limit) while retaining existing setbacks and canopy area limits, and to consider whether increases beyond the current limit should proceed via a DRB waiver. The motion carried unanimously.
What happens next: The board asked planning staff to review statutory history and comparative practice and report back; any change to the land‑development code would require formal referral, planning board review and two commission readings.
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