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Apopka publishes the most complete fire fee schedule of any city on this site. Every figure below is the city’s own, computed on a stated cost-recovery basis. The department’s general line is 407-703-1756.
The city notes that its schedule should be treated as a reference rather than a legally binding document, and that fines and penalties are generally not included in it. Confirm the current amount before you pay.
Fire and life safety inspection fees
| Inspection service | Fee |
|---|---|
| Fire safety inspection, up to and including 2,000 sq ft of facility area | $66.00 |
| Each additional square foot above 2,000 — covers state-required, licensure and requested inspections | $0.02 / sq ft |
| Fire safety re-inspection — all re-inspections | $43.00 flat |
| Convention, trade show or exhibit plan review and inspection | $93.00 |
Worked through: a 4,000 square foot restaurant pays $66 plus $40, so $106. A 25,000 square foot warehouse pays $66 plus $460, so $526. The per-square-foot add is small individually and substantial at scale, and it is calculated on facility area, not leased area — worth clarifying if you occupy part of a larger building.
Construction, plan review and permits
| New construction and buildings | Fee |
|---|---|
| Commercial / multi-family construction: plan review, permit, original submittal review and one site inspection, up to $1,000 valuation | $49.00 |
| — each additional $1,000 of valuation | $1.00 |
| Commercial / multi-family alterations, up to $1,000 valuation | $40.00 |
| — each additional $1,000 of valuation | $1.00 |
| Fire protection systems, up to $1,000 valuation | $39.00 |
| — each additional $1,000 of valuation | $5.00 |
| Revised plan submittal: first / second / third+ | $15.00 / $30.00 / $40.00 ($50.00 if the initial fee exceeded $100) |
| Construction re-inspections: first / second / third+ | $25.00 / $50.00 / $75.00 |
| After-hours or expedited plan review (plus $53.00 per additional hour) | $227.00 |
| After-hours or expedited inspection (plus $53.00 per additional hour) | $228.00 |
| Permit extension — one 90-day extension per permit, before expiry | $36.00 |
| Fire Code Board of Appeals filing fee | $163.00 |
Fire protection systems cost five times as much to review. Note the $5.00 per additional $1,000 on fire protection systems against $1.00 for general construction and alterations. On a $100,000 sprinkler or alarm package that is roughly $534 in review fees rather than roughly $148. Budget the fire protection permit separately from the general construction permit — they are not on the same rate.
Fire prevention permits
| Permit | Fee |
|---|---|
| Special events, indoor or outdoor | $91.00 |
| Open flame permit | $91.00 |
| Laser effect permit (FAC 64E-4.015) | $91.00 |
| Mobile food service permit and inspection | $38.00 |
| Flammable / combustible liquids tank permit | $36.00 |
| Waste / used tire permit, annual | $92.00 |
| Distributed Antenna System (DAS) operational permit, annual | $30.00 |
| Restricted access gate / fence installation review and inspection | $60.00 |
| Restricted access gate / fence permit, annual | $11.00 |
| Private fire hydrant permit, annual, each | $5.00 |
| Fire hydrant installation, relocation or removal permit (up to five) | $30.00 |
| Review of fire emergency plan | $62.00 |
| Pyrotechnics or flame effects before a proximate audience (NFPA 1126 / 160) | $322.00 |
| Aerial fireworks display permit (NFPA 1123) | $322.00 |
| Consumer sparkler sales, temporary or fixed retail | $92.00 |
Fireworks and pyrotechnic applications must be submitted 30 days before the shoot or an after-hours plan review fee is added, and fire watch or standby personnel are charged separately from one hour before the first shot to one hour after the last, with a four-hour minimum.
False alarms and standby
| Response | Commercial | Residential |
|---|---|---|
| First false alarm response | No charge | No charge |
| Second response | $153.00 | $61.00 |
| Third and subsequent responses | $306.00 | $122.00 |
| Administrative processing, per charged response | $34.00 | |
| Fire watch personnel, per person, 4-hour minimum | $213.00 (+ $55.00 per additional hour or half-hour) | |
Three Apopka programs worth knowing about
- Emergency Responder Radio Coverage (BDA). Apopka reviews whether firefighters can maintain radio contact inside your building. Concrete, metal decking, below-grade space and large footprints all attenuate signal, and a failing survey means installing an in-building amplification system — which then carries a $30 annual DAS operational permit. Ask about this at design stage, not at final inspection.
- KnoxBox program. A city key box program so the department can enter without forcing a door. Keep the keys inside it current when you re-key.
- The Contractors Red Book. Apopka publishes its own contractor reference. Read it before your designer starts, not after the first rejection.
Apopka’s occupancy mix, and what it triggers
Nurseries, greenhouses and the foliage industry
Apopka calls itself the Indoor Foliage Capital of the World, and the agricultural and horticultural sector shapes its compliance profile in ways no other city on this list shares. Greenhouse and nursery operations bring fertiliser and chemical storage, LP gas for heating, fuel storage for equipment, and large areas of combustible shade cloth, plastic film and growing media. Chemical storage quantities and separation are the live questions, and hazard classification for these occupancies rarely lands at light hazard.
Warehouse, distribution and light manufacturing
The industrial corridors along US-441 and SR-436 carry distribution and light manufacturing where commodity class and storage height decide the outcome. Plastics and packaged goods stored high escalate hazard class quickly, and in-rack sprinkler requirements follow. A tenant who changes product mix or racking height without a permit has changed their classification whether or not they know it.
Auto service and equipment repair
Repair garages, tyre shops and equipment service along the 441 corridor operate with flammable liquids, waste oil, parts washers and hot work. These need extinguisher ratings materially above 2A:10B:C, plus attention to spray operations, waste storage and the flammable liquids tank permit if you keep bulk fuel on site.
Retail and medical growth
Newer retail centers and medical offices along 436 and 441 are conventional multi-tenant construction with the conventional multi-tenant findings: travel distance measured through the wrong path, unsealed demising wall penetrations from build-outs, and rear exits used for receiving.
Apopka fire fee and inspection questions
What does a fire safety inspection cost in Apopka?
$66.00 for up to 2,000 square feet of facility area, plus 2 cents per square foot above 2,000. A 10,000 square foot space is $66 plus $160, so $226. That base covers state-required inspections, licensure inspections and requested inspections. Re-inspections are a flat $43.00, regardless of how many. These figures come from the city's own published fee schedule as of August 2026.
Is Apopka's re-inspection fee really flat?
For fire safety re-inspections, yes — $43.00 for all of them, with no escalating ladder. That is unusual. Winter Park escalates maintenance re-inspections from free to $75 to $100 to $150, and Mount Dora charges 50 percent of the original inspection fee each time. Note that Apopka's construction re-inspections do escalate: $25 for the first, $50 for the second, $75 for the third and subsequent.
What does fire plan review cost for new construction in Apopka?
Commercial and multi-family construction plan review, permit, original submittal review and one site inspection is $49.00 up to $1,000 of valuation, plus $1.00 for each additional $1,000. Alterations are $40.00 on the same $1-per-thousand basis. Fire protection systems are $39.00 up to $1,000 of valuation, plus $5.00 per additional $1,000 — five times the rate, so a $60,000 sprinkler system carries roughly $334 in review fees against roughly $108 for the same valuation of general alteration work.
I run a food truck. Do I need an Apopka permit?
Yes. Apopka charges a $38.00 mobile food service permit and inspection fee. It is one of the few cities in the region to price mobile food service as its own line item, which tells you it is actively enforced rather than incidental.
What is the DAS permit on Apopka's fee schedule?
A Distributed Antenna System operational permit, $30.00 annually. Apopka also runs an Emergency Responder Radio Coverage (BDA) review. If your building's construction blocks radio signal — concrete, metal decking, below-grade levels — you may need an in-building amplification system so firefighters can communicate inside it, and once installed it carries an annual operational permit. This is a requirement most owners have never heard of until a plan review raises it.
What happens after repeated false alarms in Apopka?
For commercial properties: the first response is free, the second is $153.00, and the third and each subsequent response is $306.00 — plus a $34.00 administrative processing fee on every charged response. Two bad months on an ageing panel can cost more than servicing it.
Where these Apopka figures come from
Fees and procedures are set locally and change. Every figure on this page was taken from the official source below on — confirm the current amount with the department before you write a check.
- Apopka Fire Department — Fire Fees schedule — apopka.gov/912
- Apopka Fire Department — Prevention / Inspection — apopka.gov/280
- Apopka Fire Department — about the department — apopka.gov/149
- City of Apopka open permitting portal — apopkafl.portal.opengov.com
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