Fort Lauderdale Overnight vs Liveaboard

[CSY Man]

it looks like the best options are the Isles of Hendricks or Venice.

Yup and there is a few more live aboard canals.

Riverbend Marina is another option for liveaboard, but it is a working boat yard with noise and dust, yet fairly secure in case of a hurricane.

[Habana Vieja]

Thank You>

"yet fairly secure in case of a hurricane."

Being outsiders, very good local knowledge to have.
Thanks,
HV

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by DotDun

................... Ft. Lauderdale cannot regulate a vessel in navigation while at anchor, per the Florida state law..........

I appreciate my right to anchor and recognize anchoring as an act of navigation. It's important to note that this post is about vessels that are not engaged in navigation. The requirements for a sewage pump out attachment is not regulating navigation. I personally have spent many nights and days anchored in Fort Lauderdale without any negative comments or interaction with any authority.

[Habana Vieja]

Thank you Aythya

[hellosailor]

From Riverbend's rates page:
"Invoices will be charged 5% environmental impact fee."

Isn't that, well, kinda scuzzy? Who the hell charges their customers an environmental impact fee, just for staying put? Maybe hotels will catch on to this next. "Well, y'all came in a car and that impacts our air quality, so ya see we got to charge you extra for that."

"Oh, and our secretary, Gladys? She's got the arthuritis and don't write so well, so we's got to charge y'all an extra buck for her cushiony grip pens, too."

Gimme the squirt gun full of LSD, I can fix this good, fast.

[Kettlewell]

The OP was about staying aboard for a night or two per month. That is not technically "living aboard" according to Florida state law or common sense. There are many transient boat slips in Ft. Lauderdale that do not have a pump out station at each dock. Those are only required for "liveaboards."

[CSY Man]

for berths that are rented from private residences where regulations prevent living aboard, do these regulations generally prevent a boat owner from sleeping aboard the vessel on a strictly
recreational, infrequent, basis for example, a few nights per month? Generally is there a minimum / maximum allowed?

It is up to the dock owner / landlord if he wants people to stay on the boat.
By the city ordinance there is no language as to minimum or maximum stay, just no stay.
The ordinance also prohibits owners of private docks to rent them out.
This is hardly being enforced as there would be no room for the 18,000 boats in town if they could not rent a private dock and many marine businesses and brokerages would implode as a result.
Most dock owners wants to keep a low profile because of the above and having boat owners camp out on their boats in somebody's backyard is not cool as the neighbors would call code enforcement in a hearthbeat, invasion of privacy and all.

Not sure how to explain in in more details than that...

There are many transient boat slips in Ft. Lauderdale that do not have a pump out station at each dock. Those are only required for "liveaboards."

Yup, marinas have toilet facilities included in the dockage for transient yachts, not the case with residential slips or docks.

[Richard Jordan]

+1 on what CSY Man said.

[joyce mickowski]

How would I be able to contact someone who could assist me in finding a dock around the Isle of Venice etc. Yes we liveaboard, but plan to return to Maine Aug to November and would like to store the boat. A place that won't break the cruising kitty for a catamaran 46X30,no fixed bridges for us. Can you help? Thanks, Joyce

[tbodine88]

I spent three days on the hook off Merle Fog Park, with out any of those conveniences for free, but then it was Easter weekend. The harbor police didn't show until after I left.

[denverd0n]

Originally Posted by joyce mickowski

How would I be able to contact someone who could assist me in finding a dock around the Isle of Venice etc.

Best option is probably to search craigslist.

[carstenb]

How about cruisers? We will be in the Florida area in about a year or so and want to explore both it and the states. How long are we allowed to stay on the boat? If we find a nice marina we like and want to stay a couple of weeks, will we be classified as live-aboards? We'll be cruising the entire world over the course of 4-5 years so we will be live-aboards.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Joyce.

[noatylo]

Hi, hope u are doing well. I stumbled across a posting of yours from 2012, and hoping u could possibly give me some helpful suggestions or advice. I'm very new to the boating lifestyle/community, just bought a houseboat (47ft) a month ago, and moved to Ft. Lauderdale without much of an idea of what and where and how, all I know is, is that Its an adventure, and I'm gonna like it.

The boat is currently on Hendricks Isle, at the property of whom I bought it from. It has a lot of potential, but it's been neglected and needs a lot of work, mostly inside, the outside looks great. The monthly slip rental here is $800, with no cable, no wifi, a pump out that doesn't work, and turns out we don't quite get along, and I've really tried. Anyway, I was thinking that money could be better spent on the updating and upgrading of the boat than on just a slip, and I pretty much have to be out of here in a couple days. Do u have any suggestions on where I could look or whom I could talk to, about renting a pet-friendly, liveaboard slip, from a Marina or pvt residence, from Las Olas, Ft. Lauderdale, anywhere Broward to Miami Dade.. Best regards

Noa
Noatylo@me.com

Originally Posted by CSY Man

Fort Lauderdale has nothing against liveaboards, but there are two kinds of canals and docks: Those you can live on, and those you can not.
Pretty simple rules, easy to comply with and no confusion.

If somebody is looking for an inexpensive liveaboard dock with showers and parking, shoot me a PM.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Noatylo.

Isle of Venice?