--- title: "Artificial Turf in Penney Farms, FL | TIMELESS Grass & Greens" description: "Penney Farms' tree permit and impervious-surface ratio apply to lots of an acre or more and to institutional or commercial ground. Most house lots are smaller." url: https://www.timelessgrass.com/northeast-florida/penney-farms-fl/ --- Penney Farms, FL # Artificial turf in Penney Farms, FL, sized to your lot and trees. Most in-town houses clear the tree-removal permit, but the town still caps hard surface. Free visit, then a custom layout you approve before anything is dug. - A base laid out clear of any protected tree's roots - Site prep sized to your district's coverage limit - One list of what to ask Town Hall, not a guess [Request a free estimate](https://www.timelessgrass.com/estimate/) [Call 303-349-2368](tel:3033492368) - Layout approved before installation - American-made turf - Free estimates, no pressure The short answer ## Do I need a town permit to put in artificial turf in Penney Farms? Possibly. The town bars development without a permit, and its definition includes excavating and grading, so ask the Town Clerk whether your dig needs a Site Clearing permit. The tree-removal permit exempts residential lots under an acre. Planning a turf installation? Get a layout, turf options and a written quote for your space. [Request a free estimate](https://www.timelessgrass.com/estimate/) [Call 303-349-2368](tel:3033492368) We’ll call to arrange a free site visit. Before you install in Penney Farms ## What to know in Penney Farms. The rules in short. We measure and check the ground at a free visit, then draw a layout that fits. [Request a free estimate](https://www.timelessgrass.com/estimate/) [Call 303-349-2368](tel:3033492368) - ### The tree rule Cutting and compacting a base under a canopy can count as tree removal, but homes in residential districts on lots under an acre are exempt from the permit. Confirm your district at Town Hall. See the rule on the tree rule Cut into an oak's roots and the town calls it tree removal, but not every lot is on the hook. Penney Farms has its own Land Development Regulations, adopted 28 June 2006 and updated 20 April 2020, and Section 5.01.01 is the part a turf job meets first. It treats anything that will cause a tree to die as removing it, and names two things a lawn install can do: damage to the root system from heavy machinery, and changing the natural grade above the roots or around the trunk ([Penney Farms LDRs](https://penneyfarmsfl.org/wp-content/uploads/Penney-Farms-LDRs-2020.pdf)). Stripping sod, then cutting and compacting a base under a canopy, can do both. The permit list covers oaks, the bays and magnolia at 12 inches in diameter or larger, and maple, sweet gum, hickory, elm and sycamore at 18 inches or larger, measured 54 inches above the ground. The code's definitions section casts a wider net, any tree over 8 inches plus palms with 4½ feet of clear trunk, so ask the Town Clerk which measure applies to yours. The permit itself is exempt for lots in residential districts under one acre. The code sets Low Density Residential lots at 21,000 square feet minimum and Medium-Low at 7,000, both under an acre, so a house on either kind of lot clears the exemption without asking. Rural Density Residential, which the code sizes at a full acre minimum, is the district that wouldn't; the town's 2046 Comprehensive Plan lists only Low, Medium-Low, Institutional and the commercial and utility categories on its current Future Land Use Map, so confirm at Town Hall whether any lot is still mapped Rural before assuming the acre threshold applies to you. Institutional and commercial ground gets no exemption regardless of size. Where the town does allow a tree to come out for construction, the Town Council requires replacement trees on a site plan it approves (5.01.03). - ### Around the trunk A protected tree's zone is its drip line, at least 6 feet and at most 20 from the trunk. We measure trunks and drip lines at the free visit, then draw the layout around them. See the rule on around the trunk We set the base edge by the tree, not through it. The same regulations define a tree protection zone around each protected tree: 6 feet from the trunk when the drip line is closer than that, the whole drip line when it reaches between 6 and 20 feet, and 20 feet when the crown spreads wider. The code doesn't attach a digging rule to that circle by name, but it's the clearest line the town draws for where the roots are. At the free visit we check trunk diameters and drip lines against that zone and build your custom layout around it, which you approve before anything is dug. If a green or lawn has to reach under a canopy, that's the part to raise with the Town Clerk before the layout is final. - ### Coverage Most in-town houses fall in the 0.40 or 0.50 coverage district, and whether a turf base counts as hard surface is the town's call. Bring the product sheet and base detail to Town Hall first. See the rule on coverage Your district sets how much of the site can be hard surface, and a state rule sets a floor under all of it. Section 6.01.02 caps impervious surface as a ratio of the total to the gross site area: 0.35 in rural density residential, 0.40 in low density residential, 0.50 in medium-low residential, and 0.70 in commercial, industrial and institutional districts. Roofs, sidewalks and parking lots already count toward it, and most in-town houses sit in the 0.40 or 0.50 districts rather than the tighter 0.35. Your district comes from the town's Future Land Use Map, not from how the lot is used today, so confirm it before assuming a ratio. Artificial turf isn't named. The code defines impervious surface as ground compacted or covered so it is highly resistant to water soaking in, and it leaves porous paving built to town-approved standards out of the count. Where a compacted turf base falls is the town's call, so take the product sheet and base detail to Town Hall before the layout is final. Our [guide to turf and impervious surface](https://www.timelessgrass.com/guides/is-artificial-turf-impervious/) lists what to bring. Underneath the town's own rules sits a state floor. Since 19 May 2026, a Florida local government can't prohibit artificial turf on a single-family lot of an acre or less once it meets the state's infill standard, Rule 62-308.100, F.A.C. ([DEP Rule 62-308.100](https://flrules.org/gateway/ruleNo.asp?id=62-308.100)). Penney Farms doesn't prohibit turf outright, so this protects the concept, not the tree-removal or coverage rules above it; our [Florida turf infill guide](https://www.timelessgrass.com/guides/florida-turf-infill-rules/) covers what infill the rule allows. - ### The paperwork Excavating and grading count as development, which needs a permit the Town Clerk issues after the Building Inspector reviews it, with no public hearing. Ask at Town Hall whether your dig needs one. See the rule on the paperwork Ground work goes through the Town Clerk and the Building Inspector. Section 12.01.01 bars development without a permit, and the code's definition of development includes excavating, grading, installing an impervious surface and any tree removal that needs authorization. The Building Inspector reviews each application before the Town Clerk issues the permit, with no public hearing required (12.05.01 and 12.05.02). For site work the form is the [Site Clearing/Site Work Application](https://penneyfarmsfl.org/wp-content/uploads/Site-Clearing-Site-Work-Application.pdf), listed on the town's [Building Department page](https://penneyfarmsfl.org/building-department/). It asks for the FLUM designation and acreage, a site plan and survey with a vicinity map, a statement of the proposed work with any wetlands delineated, the tax parcel number, proof of ownership, and a St. Johns River Water Management District permit if wetlands are affected. The town checks completeness within 14 business days. One trip to Town Hall, 4100 Clark Avenue, settles most of it: which district your lot is in, whether your trees are on the protected list, whether your dig needs a Site Clearing permit, and whether a turf base counts as impervious surface for your ratio. - ### Ground and wells The water table can sit about a foot down, and within 300 feet of a town well the code bars drainage trenches that cut into it. Ask Town Hall how far the nearest well is. See the rule on ground and wells Flat sand, a shallow water table, and town wells to keep clear of. USDA soil data at the town's center point returns Hurricane fine sand on 0 to 5 percent slopes, somewhat poorly drained, with the water table as shallow as 69 centimetres in the wet season. A short way south it's Leon fine sand, poorly drained, at 31 centimetres, about a foot down ([USDA Soil Data Access](https://sdmdataaccess.sc.egov.usda.gov/)). We build the base for the soil your lot actually has and plan where water leaves the turf when the ground below is already wet. Town water comes from two wells in the Floridan Aquifer ([town water quality report, 2025](https://penneyfarmsfl.org/wp-content/uploads/Town-of-Penney-Farms-CCR-2025.pdf)), and the code guards them, though its own numbers don't agree with each other. Section 5.04.02 bars development within 50 feet of a public drinking well, but the code's definitions section separately calls the 'zone of exclusion' the land within 200 feet. Either way, within 300 feet the code bars excavated drainage that cuts into the water table, and on sand this wet a drain trench can reach it. Ask Town Hall how far your lot sits from a well before a trench goes on the plan. The town's Comprehensive Plan, adopted 20 January 2026, lists enforcing the St. Johns River Water Management District's irrigation rule, under a 2009 town ordinance, among its water conservation practices ([Comprehensive Plan](https://penneyfarmsfl.org/wp-content/uploads/Penney-Farms-2046-Comprehensive-Plan-1-2026-No-Underline-and-Strikeout.pdf)). Ask Town Hall which watering days apply to your meter now; the plan also notes the town has no reclaimed water available for irrigation. [Request a free estimate](https://www.timelessgrass.com/estimate/) [Call 303-349-2368](tel:3033492368) What we install in Penney Farms ## Choose your turf project. Compare a lawn, a practice green or turf for larger grounds, each laid out around the trees and your district's coverage limit. - [### Artificial lawns Spend less time mowing, with an artificial lawn planned around your yard and its use. See artificial lawns](https://www.timelessgrass.com/northeast-florida/residential-turf/) - [### Putting greens Practice your putting right outside your back door. See putting greens](https://www.timelessgrass.com/northeast-florida/putting-greens/) - [### Commercial turf Turf for daycares, pet daycares and common areas, with maintenance planned around daily use. See commercial turf](https://www.timelessgrass.com/northeast-florida/commercial-turf/) FAQ ## Turf questions in Penney Farms. ### Who installs artificial turf in Penney Farms, FL? We install artificial lawns, backyard putting greens and commercial turf in Penney Farms, FL, with 13 years' experience and premium American-made turf. Here the town's own code shapes the job, so we start with your trees and your coverage ratio, then build a base for your soil. Call 303-349-2368 for a free visit to measure and check the ground. ### Does Florida's new turf rule override Penney Farms' tree and coverage rules? No. Rule 62-308.100 and the state law behind it stop a local government from banning artificial turf outright on a qualifying single-family lot; Penney Farms doesn't ban turf, so the protection doesn't come up. It has nothing to do with the tree-removal permit or the impervious-surface ratio, which are about digging and hard surface, not the turf itself, and both still apply on the lots and districts they cover. ### Does the landscaping code apply to turf at a church, club or business? At a single-family home, no: Section 6.06.01 exempts lots used as one, though that exemption doesn't reach a residential development that needs an approved development plan. Sites that do need one get irrigation built to town standards and mulch at least 2 inches deep, with no plastic surface covers, though the town may waive the irrigation requirement where the planting is native or xeric (6.06.04). Plan turf beside the required planting, not in place of it. ### Who supplies water in Penney Farms, and which watering days apply? The town does, through its own [water utility](https://penneyfarmsfl.org/utility-information/), not Clay County Utility Authority, drawing from two wells in the Floridan Aquifer. Ask Town Hall which watering days apply to your meter now. Nearby areas we cover - [Asbury Lake / Lake Asbury, FL](https://www.timelessgrass.com/northeast-florida/asbury-lake-lake-asbury-fl/) - [Middleburg, FL](https://www.timelessgrass.com/northeast-florida/middleburg-fl/) - [Hibernia, FL](https://www.timelessgrass.com/northeast-florida/hibernia-fl/) - [Everywhere we work in Northeast Florida](https://www.timelessgrass.com/northeast-florida/) Useful links - [Town of Penney Farms Land Development Regulations (adopted 28 June 2006, updated 20 April 2020)](https://penneyfarmsfl.org/wp-content/uploads/Penney-Farms-LDRs-2020.pdf) - [Town of Penney Farms 2025 Annual Drinking Water Quality Report](https://penneyfarmsfl.org/wp-content/uploads/Town-of-Penney-Farms-CCR-2025.pdf) - [Rule 62-308.100, F.A.C. — adopted rule text, Florida Administrative Code](https://flrules.org/gateway/ruleNo.asp?id=62-308.100) Free estimate ## Your free estimate in Penney Farms. Tell us about your project and we’ll call to arrange a free visit. [Or call 303-349-2368](tel:3033492368) Your free estimate includes - A visit to measure your space - A custom layout, drawn for your space - Turf options, side by side - A written price, with no pressure to sign [Request a free estimate](https://www.timelessgrass.com/estimate/) Five short steps. We’ll call to arrange your visit.