Creative Edge Outdoor Living has built outdoor kitchens, a concrete bar and a lanai fireplace on Anna Maria Island. We are based in Sarasota. Call 941-879-4777 or send the form with a photo of your space, and tell us which city you are in, Anna Maria, Holmes Beach or Bradenton Beach, because each one issues its own permits.
L-shaped lanai kitchen with a stainless wall hood and a griddle, Anna Maria Island
These are our own island jobs, photographed when we finished them. Captions name the island only.
An L-shaped kitchen under the lanai roof, with dark gray wood-look cabinets, white countertops, a stainless wall-mount hood over the grill, a flat-top griddle and a sink, with the water in view through the window. On the same property, an outdoor bar beside the dock with white concrete tops in sections, with rust-colored veining.
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(Open photo larger)A covered lanai kitchen faced in dark wood-look horizontal panels, with a gray concrete countertop that turns down the end of the island as a waterfall panel, a stainless grill, an undercounter fridge and stainless doors, on a paver floor.
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(Open photo larger)An L-shaped kitchen in taupe wood-look panels with a white countertop and a sink cutout, a built-in grill and stainless access doors, set on light stone pavers beside a column, with palms behind.
(Open photo larger)A white stucco fireplace with a raised hearth, a gas log set behind stainless trim, a reclaimed wood beam as the mantel and a TV above it, under a wood plank ceiling.
(Open photo larger)Anna Maria, Holmes Beach and Bradenton Beach each run their own building department, so the permit for an island outdoor kitchen comes from your city, not from Manatee County, which serves unincorporated land only. Florida's new exemption for work valued at less than $7,500 does not help here: the statute excludes "Work on a property that is partially or entirely located in a flood hazard area" and "Any electrical, plumbing, structural, mechanical, or gas work" (s. 553.79, F.S.), and Holmes Beach says "the entire island is designated by FEMA as a Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA)" (City of Holmes Beach permit list). The same Holmes Beach list says the work on it, including "Any alteration of electrical, plumbing, mechanical, or gas", "Propane tanks (including hook-ups, excluding 20 lb. portable tanks)" and "Concrete slab with footers", requires "a state certified or locally licensed contractor AND a building permit", with an exception for owners working on their own residence. The other two cities publish their own lists; call yours. The county-level rules are in our guide, outdoor kitchen permits in Manatee County and the island cities.
| Where your home is | Office | Online portal | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| City of Anna Maria | Building Department | Citizen Portal | 941-708-6130 ext. 140 |
| City of Holmes Beach | Building Department | Citizenserve | 941-708-5833 ext. 232 |
| City of Bradenton Beach | Building and Planning | CitizenServe | 941-778-1005 ext. 210 |
The whole island is a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area, and the zone letter on your parcel decides what an outdoor kitchen or patio can be. In V zones, FEMA's guidance on keeping the space under and around an elevated house free of obstructions says "Attaching seats, benches, tables, planters, or similar features will cause a deck or patio to lose its deemed-to-comply low-profile classification", and "aboveground tanks must not be located beneath elevated buildings or attached to elevated buildings below the BFE. This requirement also applies to permanently installed fuel tanks for outdoor kitchens" (FEMA Technical Bulletin 5). Bradenton Beach applies its coastal high-hazard building rules in its Coastal A zones as well, and allows "minor quantities of fill ... for support of parking slabs, pool decks, patios and walkways" (Bradenton Beach local flood amendments). There is also the 50 percent rule, which in Holmes Beach's words "limits the dollar value of renovations that may be made to structures that are not elevated above the floodplain to half the value of the structure (exclusive of the land)" (City of Holmes Beach). Since 2025, Florida law says a local government "may not adopt or enforce an ordinance for substantial improvements or repairs to a structure which includes a cumulative substantial improvement period" (ch. 2025-190, Laws of Florida), meaning a period over which separate projects are added together; ask your city's floodplain manager how an attached outdoor kitchen is counted. Look up your parcel's zone on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center and send us the zone with your photos.
On the Gulf side of the island there is a state permit as well as the city's. Florida's Department of Environmental Protection says "Unless otherwise exempt, a permit is required from DEP for construction and excavation activities seaward of the CCCL" (Florida DEP), and Holmes Beach puts that line at "roughly all property west of Gulf of Mexico Drive" (City of Holmes Beach). The state rule treats water features as expendable: "Swimming pools, wading pools, waterfalls, spas, or similar type water structures are expendable structures and shall be sited so that their failure does not have adverse impact on the beach and dune system" (rule 62B-33.005(8), Florida Administrative Code). Outdoor kitchens are not named in the rule, so if your lot is seaward of the line, ask DEP how it classes yours before we draw anything.
Nothing on Anna Maria Island is far from salt water, so the metal in an outdoor kitchen matters more here than inland. FEMA's guidance on corrosion says salt spray "declines rapidly in the first 300 to 3,000 feet landward of the shoreline", but that "studies have shown accelerated corrosion rates as far inland as 5 to 10 miles", and that "In coastal applications, stainless steel should be Type 304 or Type 316" (FEMA Technical Bulletin 8). The next edition, the 2026 Florida Building Code, adds a rule for "Fasteners and connectors in areas within 3,000 ft (914 m) of a saltwater coastline" (2026 Florida Building Code, significant changes). Concrete tops are a different question: what protects them is the sealer, which is covered on our cast concrete countertops page.
On island and waterfront jobs, most of the appliances we install are 304 stainless steel, and we also use powder-coated stainless. Every sealer and appliance we use is made for salt air. For structure we use footings and lag bolts.
If your island home is a rental, you cannot pull the permit yourself in Holmes Beach: the city says "Owners cannot pull permits in multi-family (3 or more units) or for rental or leased properties", so on a rental the city's list calls for "a state certified or locally licensed contractor". Holmes Beach also sets the hours a crew can make noise: construction noise is prohibited "before 7:00 A.M. and after 7:00 P.M. Monday through Friday, before 9:00 A.M. and after 5:00 P.M. on Saturday and all day on Sunday and Federal Holidays" (City of Holmes Beach), which matters when you book renters around a project. Anna Maria and Bradenton Beach have their own rules; ask your city.
We do not pull permits, on the island or anywhere else. Licensed trades do the gas, electrical and plumbing work, and we work hand in hand with them; who may apply for the permit depends on your city's rules. If the home is a rental, tell us when you call, because Holmes Beach does not let owners pull permits on rentals.
Yes. We take jobs anywhere on the island, in Anna Maria, Holmes Beach and Bradenton Beach; we are based in Sarasota, and the island is well inside the distance Jason will drive. As everywhere, we leave pergolas and pavers to others.
The City of Holmes Beach Building Department, not Manatee County. Apply through the city's Citizenserve portal or call 941-708-5833 ext. 232 (City of Holmes Beach Building Department). Anna Maria and Bradenton Beach each have their own department; the three are listed above.
No. The exemption does not apply to "Work on a property that is partially or entirely located in a flood hazard area" or to "Any electrical, plumbing, structural, mechanical, or gas work" (s. 553.79, F.S.), and Holmes Beach says "the entire island is designated by FEMA as a Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA)" (City of Holmes Beach). Confirm with your city's building department.
Not in a V zone, under FEMA's guidance, which says "aboveground tanks must not be located beneath elevated buildings or attached to elevated buildings below the BFE. This requirement also applies to permanently installed fuel tanks for outdoor kitchens" (FEMA Technical Bulletin 5). Bradenton Beach applies its coastal high-hazard building rules in Coastal A zones too. Check your parcel's zone and ask your city's floodplain manager.
Seaward of the Coastal Construction Control Line, yes, unless the work is exempt: "Unless otherwise exempt, a permit is required from DEP for construction and excavation activities seaward of the CCCL" (Florida DEP). On Holmes Beach the line runs at "roughly all property west of Gulf of Mexico Drive" (City of Holmes Beach). Ask DEP how it classes an outdoor kitchen on your lot.
Type 304 or Type 316. FEMA says "In coastal applications, stainless steel should be Type 304 or Type 316" (FEMA Technical Bulletin 8). Most of the appliances we install are 304 stainless steel, and we also use powder-coated stainless; every appliance and sealer we use is made for salt air. Ask about the grade of any grill, door or drawer before you buy it.
Insurance: Insured.
We take jobs in Sarasota, Bradenton, Lakewood Ranch, Anna Maria Island, Parrish and Venice. Tell us where your home is when you call 941-879-4777 or send the form.
Estimates are free.
We warranty our work, and most appliances carry their own warranties.
Tell us which city you are in, what you want built and whether the home is a rental, and send a photo of the space. Call 941-879-4777 or send the form.
Owner: Jason White
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Grill islands, L-shaped kitchens and bars for lanais, pool decks and patios.
Charcoal grill island beside a pool
Lanai fireplaces in stone or stucco, fire pits and fire tables.
Lanai fireplace with a cream stone surround, at dusk
Boulder waterfalls and rock grottos on pools, some with fire in the rock.
Boulder grotto and waterfall inside a pool cage
Concrete tops we cast for outdoor kitchens and bars, some with veining or an integral sink.
Gray concrete top with a chiseled edge on a screened lanai
Stacked stone veneer on islands and fireplaces, and flagstone pool decks.
Flagstone pool deck around a raised spa
Hand-troweled micro cement on showers, tubs, accent walls and outdoor kitchens, plus lime plaster and lime paint.
Media wall in gray micro cement with a linear fireplace
