On this page
- Land Clearing Services in Fernandina Beach, FL
- Lot Clearing for New Homes in Fernandina Beach and Yulee
- Selective Clearing and Forestry Mulching Near Fernandina Beach
- How Much Does Land Clearing Cost in Fernandina Beach?
- Tree Permits, Gopher Tortoises and Drainage Before You Clear in Fernandina Beach
- Land Clearing Services Across Fernandina Beach and Amelia Island
- Land Clearing FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions from Fernandina Beach Property Owners
Land Clearing Services in Fernandina Beach, FL
Whitfield Clearing & Grading provides land clearing, forestry mulching, lot clearing, brush clearing, stump grinding and site prep across the Fernandina Beach area. We are a land clearing company serving residential and commercial properties in Fernandina Beach and the surrounding area, with services throughout the county and the Jacksonville area.
- Selective clearing under the oaks: understory and pepper out, specimen trees kept.
- Mulching: a land clearing method that uses specialized equipment to grind trees and brush standing, turning vegetation into mulch.
- Infill lots: quarter-acre footprint cleared and graded, $1,900 flat.
- Brush removal on overgrown land and marsh edges.
- Tree removal, hauling, cleanup, permit in hand.
- Stumps: $4.25 per inch of diameter, $160 minimum per stump; we grind flush.
- Site prep and grading: pad staked, filled, rolled.
Property clearing, land improvement and site work all start on the same walk-through. Concrete, wells, septic and demolition I leave to people I trust, and I will give you their names.
Lot Clearing for New Homes in Fernandina Beach and Yulee
Fernandina Beach issued 92 single-family permits in 2025 (Census Building Permits Survey), nearly all infill lots inside the city grid; the south end of the island is unincorporated and counts toward the county's 768. Residential land clearing here is a quarter-acre to half-acre lot with protected oaks on it. Site preparation starts with the tree survey, not the stakes.
A quarter-acre infill lot is $1,900 flat; a half-acre is one skid steer day, $2,700. The pad is quoted per pad: rough grade and 12 inches of compacted fill above crown of road, three roller passes. Island sand compacts dry, not wet; the pad waits for a dry week. On a lot off Sadler Road last spring we cleared around four live oaks; the pad proof-rolled on the second try. Professional clearing on the island is mostly deciding what stays. Send me the site plan and tree survey before the walk.
Selective Clearing and Forestry Mulching Near Fernandina Beach
Live oak hammock selective clearing runs $2,000 to 3,200 an acre on the island, the highest rate on my list, because the machine works around trees it cannot touch. Brazilian pepper, wax myrtle, vine and cabbage palm sprouts get mulched in place; the oaks and magnolias stay. Pepper comes back from the stump unless the cut is treated within minutes, so the treatment rides on the machine. A professional land clearing service in Fernandina Beach knows that or you pay twice.
Palmetto and slash pine on the inland lots toward Yulee and Nassauville mulch at $1,400 to 2,300 an acre, with a second pass for the root mat. Areas with dense pepper along the marsh take longer than they look. Lots here overgrow fast; two seasons and the pepper is head high. We can remove brush along a marsh edge. Mulching will make your property walkable and leave the oaks a mulch bed.
How Much Does Land Clearing Cost in Fernandina Beach?
Land clearing costs on the island run from $1,900 for a quarter-acre infill lot to $3,200 an acre for selective hammock work. The total depends on the size of the lot, the protected trees in it and what has to leave the site. In the written price first: the FWC gopher tortoise survey on sandy lots, $400 to 900, and the wet-season extra day on flatwoods, June to September.
- Quarter-acre infill lot: $1,900 flat. Half-acre lot: one day, $2,700.
- Skid steer forestry mulcher: $2,700 a day, transport included.
- Live oak hammock, selective: $2,000 to 3,200 an acre.
- Palmetto and pine flatwoods: $1,400 to 2,300 an acre.
- Full clearing to dirt with stumps: $2,800 to 5,000 an acre.
- Debris hauled: $650 to 1,200 per 10-yard load.
Nearest comparables: a 1-acre Yulee lot, $2,700 clearing plus a $3,900 pad; 12 acres of pasture reclaim near Callahan for large acreage clearing, three days, $12,300 plus transport. No surprises on the invoice. Call (904) 406-7990 or pick a walk-through slot on the calendar, and you have the written price that evening.
Tree Permits, Gopher Tortoises and Drainage Before You Clear in Fernandina Beach
The Fernandina Beach tree code is the strictest in the county: specimen trees and tree cover percentages, a removal permit before any protected tree comes down, mitigation inches on top. Outside the city line the Nassau County Land Development Code applies, 8 inches DBH and heritage live oaks at 36, with a clearing permit before a building permit. The FWC gopher tortoise rule runs on the dune and scrub lots: survey within 90 days, no work within 25 feet of a burrow.
SJRWMD cares about fill, not clearing. Filling a wet spot or changing drainage triggers an Environmental Resource Permit; the salt marsh and the freshwater sloughs stay out of the footprint. Sunshine 811 flags the gas pipeline and power runs before any excavation starts. Most land clearing projects here start with the city arborist; I pull the permit.
Land Clearing Services Across Fernandina Beach and Amelia Island
ZIP 32034 is Fernandina Beach and the whole island, American Beach included. Nearby: Yulee across the bridge and Nassauville on the Nassau River. Fernandina Beach, FL and the surrounding area sits inside the included-transport zone. Our crews run land clearing services across northeast Florida; the land clearing Fernandina Beach owners book is the same crew that works the mainland. The county page and the Jacksonville metro hub cover the rest.
Land Clearing FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions from Fernandina Beach Property Owners
How much does land clearing cost in Fernandina Beach, FL in 2026?
A quarter-acre infill lot is $1,900 flat; a half-acre is one day, $2,700; selective hammock clearing runs $2,000 to 3,200 an acre. Site conditions and the tree survey set the final number, so the written price follows the site visit.
Do you clear commercial sites on the island?
Yes. Commercial land clearing services cover commercial sites on 14th Street, full site clearing for a pad, and commercial development tracts on the mainland. Commercial properties in Fernandina Beach fall under the same city tree code as houses. Commercial clearing goes by the day or by the acre.
Can you take out a live oak?
Only with a city tree removal permit, and the arborist decides. Specimen oaks almost never come down; smaller protected trees do, with mitigation inches. Depending on site layout I move the footprint first and ask for the permit second. That is the cheaper way to clear land on the island.
What happens to the debris?
Mulched in place where the city allows it; otherwise hauled at $650 to 1,200 per 10-yard load. Nothing burns on the island; a Florida Forest Service authorization is required for any pile and is not issued in the city. After Matthew in 2016 the hauling was the whole job.
What does the land clearing process look like, and how do I book?
Tree survey, site visit, written price, city permit, machine. I walk the property with you and the price goes out that evening. Landscape-bed stumps go last, and the arborist signs off before the first oak limb is touched. Pick a walk-through slot on the calendar or call (904) 406-7990.
