Finish carpentry in the Town of Palm Beach
Paneled rooms, coffered and beamed ceilings, built-in cabinetry and doors are the interior millwork Apperals Custom Woodwork builds and installs in the Town of Palm Beach. Work inside the house answers to the town's building permit. Anything visible from the street also answers to ARCOM or, on a landmark, to the Landmarks Preservation Commission.
- County
- Palm Beach
- Permits
- Town Planning, Zoning and Building Department, 360 South County Road
- Design review
- ARCOM for changes visible from public rights-of-way, the Landmarks Preservation Commission for landmarks
- Work calendar
- Separate summer and winter construction hours, and no construction from December 24 to January 1
- Wind zone
- Palm Beach County, outside the High Velocity Hurricane Zone
Which commission sees your project
The town splits design review between two bodies. The Architectural Commission, ARCOM, reviews and approves modifications to existing structures visible from public rights-of-way, along with new construction and landscaping. It traces back to the Art Jury the town set up in the 1920s. Seven members and three alternates sit on it, all appointed by the Town Council, and architects are required among them.
Properties designated as landmarks, or as historically significant buildings, go to the Landmarks Preservation Commission instead. It meets monthly on the third Wednesday and issues Certificates of Appropriateness for work on those houses. Both commissions have an administrative review route for smaller items.
For woodwork, the dividing line is what the street can see:
| Work | Who reviews it |
|---|---|
| Paneled study, built-in bookcases, coffered ceiling | Building permit |
| New front doors, shutters, an exposed loggia | ARCOM, or the LPC on a landmark |
| Any change to a landmarked house | Ask the town first, since the LPC reviews modifications to landmarks |
Building around the town’s calendar
Palm Beach sets construction working hours by season. Summer runs May 1 to October 30 and winter runs November 1 to April 30, each with its own hours. Under Ordinance 7-2025 no construction is allowed from December 24 through January 1, and the town lists further no-work holidays each year.
Paneling, cabinetry boxes and ceiling beams can be built off site, which suits that calendar. The days in the house go to fitting, scribing and finishing.
Woodwork for an island house
An older island house may call for stain-grade rooms: a paneled library, a beamed ceiling in a long living room, or wainscoting carried up a stair hall. Matching an existing profile means building it up from stock moldings or having knives ground to copy it.
Two site conditions shape the material choice. Salt air finds every unsealed end grain, so outdoor ceilings and exterior doors need species and finishes that tolerate it. And the town publishes FEMA flood maps, effective December 20, 2024. On a ground floor at or below the flood elevation, moisture-tolerant materials make more sense than MDF.
Palm Beach County is outside Florida’s High Velocity Hurricane Zone, which applies only in Miami-Dade and Broward. Exterior doors still need a product approval matched to the county’s design wind speed for the site.
What we build in Palm Beach
Quote for your Palm Beach project
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Palm Beach questions
Does ARCOM review interior woodwork in Palm Beach?
Not as a rule. ARCOM reviews modifications to existing structures that are visible from public rights-of-way, plus new construction and landscaping. A paneled library or a coffered dining room ceiling is a building permit matter. An exterior door, shutters or a loggia the street can see is the kind of change that goes to ARCOM.
My house is a Palm Beach landmark. Who approves a new front door?
The Landmarks Preservation Commission. It reviews modifications to landmarked structures against a set of objective criteria and issues Certificates of Appropriateness. Smaller landmark items can take an administrative review path, so ask the Planning, Zoning and Building Department which route your door takes.
When can construction crews work in the Town of Palm Beach?
The town sets separate working hours for summer, May 1 to October 30, and winter, November 1 to April 30. Ordinance 7-2025 also stops construction from December 24 through January 1, on top of listed holidays. Check the current schedule before you book a start date.
What wood holds up on an oceanfront loggia ceiling?
Choose a species that tolerates salt air and humidity, such as cypress, teak or ipe, and seal every face of each board before it goes up, back and cut ends included. Stainless fasteners keep rust streaks out of the finish.
Sources for the local notes on this page
- Town of Palm Beach, Planning, Zoning and Development Review (ARCOM and Landmarks)
- Town of Palm Beach, Planning, Zoning and Building Department
- Town of Palm Beach, construction working hours and holidays
- Palm Beach County, ultimate design wind speed maps
- IIBEC, the Florida Building Code high velocity hurricane zones