Cocoplum and the mouth of the Coral Gables Waterway

Cash for a Cocoplum canal or bay lot in 33143

In ZIP 33143 nearly all the tidal waterfront is Cocoplum, the Coral Gables enclave on the south side of the Coral Gables Waterway where it meets Biscayne Bay; the rest of the ZIP, across South Miami and unincorporated Glenvar Heights, is dry land. From a Cocoplum dock you reach open bay at once, and Biscayne Channel off Cape Florida is roughly 5.5 to 6 nautical miles away in a straight line with no bridge to pass under. We buy Cocoplum lots from 7,000 sq ft, empty or with a house on them that is coming down.

Get my cash offer or call Steve, 954.459.1697

33143 at a glance

Postal name vs governing city: USPS calls 33143 Miami, but the waterfront is in Coral Gables: the Census geocoder puts 185 Cocoplum Road, 33143, inside the City of Coral Gables. source
The dry side of the ZIP: Most of 33143 has no tidal frontage. 7000 SW 57th Street, 33143, for example, falls in Glenvar Heights, an unincorporated census-designated place governed by Miami-Dade County. source
The Coral Gables Waterway: A dredged channel through coral, 4.2 miles south of the Rickenbacker Causeway, running about 2 miles inland to the US 1 bridge. Reported controlling depth 5 ft (1999); the entrance is marked by a light and daybeacons, and shoaling was reported between Daybeacons 5 and 7. source
Out to the Atlantic: South-east across the bay to Biscayne Channel, south of Cape Florida: no bridge, but the channel is only partially dredged and has shoaled. Or north 4.2 miles to the Rickenbacker's 76 ft fixed span and on to Government Cut. source
How far a dock may reach: Coral Gables Zoning Code Section 5-802(A): a dock may not be built more than 5 ft outward from the bank. The City Attorney ruled in 2017 that where a seawall is being reinforced, the 5 ft is measured from the face of the new wall. source
Rebuilding a seawall: Miami-Dade DERM can issue a replacement seawall administratively, as a short-form Class I permit, only if it stays within 12 inches of the old wall. Further out, it goes to a public hearing before the County Commission. source
Minimum seawall height: The Miami-Dade County Flood Criteria map, effective 28 October 2022, sets a minimum top of seawall of 6.0 ft NAVD88 unless a higher figure is shown. source
Flood zone: FEMA's National Flood Hazard Layer puts 185 Cocoplum Road in zone AE with a base flood elevation of 11 ft NGVD29. The open-bay shoreline in front of Cocoplum is mapped VE. source
Inland canal in the ZIP: The Snapper Creek Canal (C-2) crosses the west of 33143 upstream of the S-22 salinity structure on SW 57th Avenue, so it has no boat route to the bay. source
2025 single-family sales, whole ZIP: 204 closed sales at a median of $2,350,000, up 38.2% on 2024; 112 paid in cash; median 53 days to contract. ZIP-wide and all single-family, not waterfront only. source

Cocoplum is the only salt water in 33143

Look at a map of 33143 and most of it is South Miami, Glenvar Heights and the streets around Sunset Drive, with no tidal water at all. The one canal that does cross the west of the ZIP, Snapper Creek, runs here upstream of the S-22 salinity structure at SW 57th Avenue, which means fresh water and no way through for a boat.

The salt water is in the ZIP's south-east corner, in Cocoplum. That is where we buy. If your lot is elsewhere in 33143 and backs onto a lake or the upper Snapper Creek, send it anyway and we will give you a straight answer, but it is outside the box we publish.

The lower Coral Gables Waterway and its 5-foot channel

Cocoplum sits where the Coral Gables Waterway runs out into Biscayne Bay. The Coast Pilot describes the waterway as a channel dredged through coral, lit at the entrance, with a reported controlling depth of 5 feet, and it notes shoaling between two of the entrance daybeacons.

Five feet is enough for most sportfishing boats at a sensible tide and not enough for a deep-keeled yacht. So on a Cocoplum lot we look at which side it faces: the waterway, an interior canal, or the bay itself, and what water is actually at the wall. Those three can price very differently even inside the same gate.

Coral Gables dock and seawall limits

Coral Gables keeps docks tight to the wall. Section 5-802 of the city's zoning code stops a dock 5 feet out from the bank, and the City Attorney has said that when a seawall is reinforced the 5 feet runs from the face of the new wall. A buyer planning a large boat has to fit it alongside the seawall, not out in the channel.

Seawalls answer to the county. DERM will let you replace a wall within 12 inches of where it stands on an administrative short-form permit; push it further out and it needs a public hearing. The new cap must reach at least 6 feet NAVD88 under the 2022 county flood criteria. We take a lot with a failing wall and budget the rebuild ourselves.

Why the 33143 median jumped in 2025

The ZIP's single-family median rose 38.2% in 2025 to $2,350,000 across 204 sales. Much of 33143 is inland family housing, so a handful of large Cocoplum closings can move that figure a long way on its own.

That is why we do not price a Cocoplum lot from the ZIP median. We start from frontage, lot size, which water it faces and what Coral Gables will let a new owner build, and we show you each of those lines.

Questions from 33143

How deep is the Coral Gables Waterway where it meets the bay?

The Coast Pilot gives a reported controlling depth of 5 feet, from a 1999 report, with shoaling noted between Daybeacons 5 and 7. Actual depth at your wall can differ, so we check it rather than assume.

Is there a bridge between Cocoplum and the ocean?

Not on the southern route. From the bay you can run to Biscayne Channel off Cape Florida with nothing overhead. The northern route to Government Cut passes under the Rickenbacker Causeway, which clears 76 feet.

Can a new owner build a bigger dock on my Cocoplum canal?

Not much bigger outward. Coral Gables caps canal docks at 5 feet from the bank or seawall. Length along the wall is where the room is, which is why frontage matters so much here.

My lot in 33143 is on the Snapper Creek Canal. Do you buy it?

Probably not for our waterfront box. That stretch lies above the S-22 salinity structure on SW 57th Avenue, so there is no boat route to the bay. Send it anyway and we will tell you if it still works.

Own a waterfront lot in 33143? Send us the address.

From 7,000 sq ft with a route to the ocean for a big boat, vacant or with a house on it. Not sure it fits? Send it anyway.

Get my cash offer Call or text Steve, 954.459.1697

Know someone selling? Send them our way.

Neighbours, agents, dock builders and captains usually hear a waterfront lot is coming free long before it is listed. Point us at one. If you hold a Florida real estate licence and we buy it, we pay you a referral fee through your broker, agreed in writing before we approach anyone and paid at closing.

Not licensed? Send it anyway. Florida law does not let us pay you for it, but we still want to know.

Refer a lot Or text Steve, 954.459.1697

Nearby on the water

Sources

Facts last checked September 27, 2026. Sales figures are ZIP-wide single-family numbers, not waterfront-only. General information, not legal or tax advice.