Bulkhead Repair in Coden, Heron Bay and Cedar Point

Mobile County Engineering says there is no zoning in the unincorporated areas. You can send a parcel or key number and ask for that in writing. County Engineering, zoning

The county still wants a permit for almost any residential work, and it checks flood rules. If your lot is in a flood zone, the permit request needs a current elevation certificate or a waiver from the county's floodplain administrator. County permits page County permit checklist

• Any development in a flood hazard area needs a separate "Permit to Develop in a Special Flood Hazard Area." County engineering requirements
• Shore protection placed below high tide counts as fill. It needs a Corps permit, requested online through the Corps' Regulatory Request System, and copies go to ADEM's Mobile office and State Lands. Shoreline plan, permit path Corps Mobile District

Below mean high tide, the average high-water mark, the bottom belongs to the state. A brand-new wall goes at or landward of it. State Lands rule Replacement rule

Faster than anywhere else in the county. The 2025 Mobile County shoreline plan measured yearly shore loss from 2010 to 2021, and West Fowl River to Bayou La Batre was highest at 9 feet.

Sources: Mobile County Shoreline Management Plan, December 2025. Shoreline plan, retreat rates

Nearly all of this shore is marsh. In the West Fowl River basin, about 98 of 113 miles are marsh or swamp, with only 3.58 miles of bulkhead and 0.74 of riprap. Shoreline plan, West Fowl basin Coden Bayou mapped 46.7 percent hard in 2012 but also 23.6 percent living shoreline. Heron Bay was only 2.6 percent hard. Living shorelines manual, Table 3

The plan warns that the marsh south of West Fowl River has little room to move inland. Without new sediment, it will likely break into open water. The plan proposes to spread about 13 million cubic yards of dredged sediment over 5,377 acres, from Heron Bay west toward Bayou Coden. Shoreline plan, thin-layer placement

Sampled points are mostly VE zones, the high-wave kind. The number is the base flood elevation, in feet. Federal flood maps give these readings at named sites:

• Shell Belt Road and the Bayou La Batre launch at the bayou mouth: VE 19.
• Coden Belt Road: VE 17.
• Dauphin Island Parkway just north of Heron Bay: VE 15.
• Delta Port Marina in Coden: AE 12. FEMA flood layer, sampled sites

Both roads sit very low. The shore there lost about 5.7 feet a year since 1850, but the plan says the county's rock revetment has stopped that loss. Shoreline plan, Coden and Shell Belt

The plan suggests fringing marsh and a low rock sill in front of it. That would cost about $1.9 million for 6,140 feet on Coden Belt Road. Shell Belt Road, at 7,620 feet, would cost about $3.2 million. Shoreline plan, Coden and Shell Belt

In October 2020, the Weather Service found Zeta high-water marks 4 to 8 feet above ground in the Coden area, likely including waves. NHC Zeta report

Zeta lifted the West Fowl River Bridge gauge to 5.92 feet over mean higher high water. Nate in 2017 reached 5.57. NOAA top water levels, West Fowl

Cedar Point Pier is a 24-hour county fishing pier with over 100,000 visits in 2024. In February 2025 the county awarded about $1 million for access, parking and shoreline upgrades. County pier record The bid plan replaces a derelict timber sea wall with a rock revetment. County bid notice

Across State Route 193, the county awarded a $6.5 million boat launch in May 2026. Work began June 29, 2026, and should take about a year. County launch award

• The Dauphin Island Causeway shoreline project runs 3.5 miles from Bayfront Park to Cedar Point. It used more than 150,000 tons of rock, finished in 2024. Town project page
• The county awarded a $26,685,698 breakwater and marsh contract on August 14, 2023. County award
• Work near it may need a Corps Section 408 review, and public launches at Jemison's and Delta Port Marina sit nearby. Shoreline plan, permit path Outdoor Alabama launch list

It can be. The plan rates a typical yearly storm wave off this shore, 0.5 to 0.9 feet at 100 feet out, as moderate for a living shoreline. Shoreline plan, wave modeling

State rules lean the same way. State Lands prefers vegetation and riprap to vertical seawalls, and ADEM wants non-structural options ruled out first. State Lands rule ADEM rule

At the plan's Sound meeting, owners showed little interest in living shoreline, and many believed armor was the county commission's job. Shoreline plan, Sound meeting Flood insurance does not cover seawalls or docks. Flood policy exclusions

• In 2015 the Deepwater Horizon Trustees estimated breakwater projects at $2,300,000 for Point aux Pins and $8,050,000 for Shell Belt and Coden Belt roads. Trustees fact sheet
• Gulf sturgeon critical habitat on the Sound runs east to Point aux Pins. Ask the Corps whether species review applies. Critical habitat unit 8

For method and materials, see the living shorelines guide and the shoreline erosion guide. County permit steps are in the Mobile County permit guide. Next door, Bayou La Batre has its own city rules, and Fowl River shares the same watershed. For riprap work, read about riprap and shoreline stabilization.