Emergency Board Up in Gainesville, FL

How Much Does Emergency Board Up Cost in Gainesville?

Covering one to a few broken windows or a door with plywood in Gainesville typically runs $170 to $850.

Here the tree usually sets the price. A limb through a second-floor window means working around it, and after a storm like Helene, when trees fell on homes^[2], many houses need covering at once. Long-term boarding of an empty building adds the city's $99.75 permit^[5]. See our cost page for the rest.

How Does Gainesville Want an Empty Building Boarded?

Under the city code, a vacant building not secured against trespassers is a dangerous building, and so is one made dangerous by fire or wind^[3]. Once a building has sat unoccupied and unsecured more than 30 days, every opening visible from the street must be covered with clear or semi-clear polycarbonate at least .177 inch thick^[3].

Plywood is still allowed under an open permit, for weather protection or a state of emergency, or for conditions lasting under 30 days^[3]. The code then sets the method:

• Exterior sheathing plywood 3/8 inch or thicker, with no splices over the opening^[3]
• 8d hot-dip galvanized nails or No. 10 wood screws, no more than 12 inches apart^[3]
• Paint that matches the building colors^[3]

A board-and-seal permit costs $99.75 and lasts one year, and the building official can grant an emergency exception to protect life and property^[4][5]. Boarding to this standard does not count as repairing a dangerous building^[3]. Statewide rules are on our Florida board-up rules page.

Why Trees, Not Flying Debris, Break Gainesville Windows

Gainesville sits inland. The Building Division lists a 130 mph design wind speed for ordinary homes^[6], and the Florida Building Code starts its wind-borne debris region at 140 mph away from the coast^[7], so code does not require storm panels on a typical house. The city's own guide still says to cover all windows with shutters or plywood once a hurricane watch is issued^[11]. The damage that comes is mostly trees through roofs and windows.

NOAA counted 11 named storms affecting Alachua County from 2016 to 2025, about one a year, plus 138 thunderstorm wind reports^[2].

Is My Gainesville Address Under City or Alachua County Rules?

A Gainesville mailing address does not always mean city rules. Check the tax district on the Property Appraiser's site, where District 3600 means inside city limits^[10]. Only those properties fall under the city's polycarbonate rule and permit.

Outside city limits, Alachua County Code Administration enforces county codes under Florida Statute 162^[12]. A 2019 county ordinance added dangerous structures to its nuisance rules, with 30 days to clear a nuisance after a standard notice^[13]. For an empty building in the county, ask Code Administration what covering it accepts.

Boarding Up Rentals Near UF and Houses in Gainesville's Historic Districts

About 6 in 10 occupied homes in Gainesville are rented^[1], so for many callers the landlord or property manager approves and pays for the board up. Owners also cannot pull their own permits on a rental, because the owner-builder exemption covers only a home the owner lives in^[10].

Older houses take more fitting. About 44 percent of the city's homes were built before 1980^[1]. Gainesville has five local historic districts, including Pleasant Street and Northeast Residential, which was platted in 1854 and covers 80 blocks around the Duck Pond^[15]. Boards there are cut to each casing. Ordinary maintenance needs no certificate of appropriateness, other work on a listed building does, and there is an emergency procedure for one near collapse^[16].

Where in Gainesville and Alachua County We Board Up

We take jobs across Gainesville, from Pleasant Street and the Duck Pond near downtown to University Terrace and Florida Court by campus^[15], and out to Willow Bend and the Westside along Newberry Road^[2]. We also work in Alachua, Newberry, High Springs, Archer, Micanopy and Hawthorne^[2], and in unincorporated Haile, Jonesville and Tioga.

ZIP codes: 32601, 32603, 32605, 32606, 32607, 32608, 32609, 32610, 32612, 32641, 32653

Near Gainesville

We also cover Jacksonville in the North Florida area. See all areas, the price table and Florida rules.