Boat docks built and repaired on Table Rock Lake

How it works

1. Call or send a request

   Tell us where your lot is on the lake and what you have in mind.

2. We connect you

   We pass it to an independent dock contractor that covers your arm of Table Rock Lake.

3. They call you back

   The builder visits, talks permits and design with you, and quotes the job directly.

Who uses this site?

Owners of lake lots, cabins and homes along Table Rock Lake in southwest Missouri: around Branson and Indian Point in Taney County, Kimberling City, Cape Fair and Blue Eye in Stone County, and Shell Knob up the lake where Barry and Stone counties meet. Some callers are building a first dock on a lot they just bought. Others have a dock that came with the house and now needs flotation, new decking, a lift or a better anchoring setup. We point each of them to a contractor who already works on this water.

Why is a dock on Table Rock Lake different?

Table Rock is a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lake, and the shoreline around it is federal land managed from the Corps' Table Rock Lake Project Office, which sits just south of Table Rock Dam on State Highway 165. The Corps says that owning private land next to the lake doesn't give you exclusive rights to the water or to the public land between your lot and the lake. A private dock needs written permission from the Corps before it goes in, and the rules for where docks can go, what they're built from and how they're wired come from the Corps' Shoreline Management Plan and federal regulations. A builder who knows that process saves you time and rework.

Do I need a permit to put a dock on Table Rock Lake?

Yes. The Corps requires you to apply to the Project Office before building a boat mooring facility, altering government land or changing lakeshore vegetation. The Corps lists the boat dock Shoreline Use Permit fee at $30 and a vegetative management permit at $10, with real estate fees possible on top. Both permits run for five years and are nontransferable and nonrefundable. That last point matters when you buy lake property: the seller's dock permit doesn't simply pass to you. See the Table Rock Lake dock guide for the details and sources.

Can every lake lot have a dock?

No. Under the federal shoreline rules the Corps follows, private floating facilities can only be permitted along shoreline allocated as a Limited Development Area. Shoreline set aside as Public Recreation, Protected Shoreline or Prohibited Access doesn't get private dock permits. The Corps keeps a shoreline zoning allocation map for Table Rock Lake, so check how your frontage is zoned before you pay for a design. The 2020 Shoreline Management Plan also changed dock sizes. The plan says new permits will be issued for docks of 1 to 20 slips (KY3 reported the earlier floor was 12). A private dock with a single owner may have one or two slips, a community dock with several owners can run up to 20, and no household may own more than two slips on the lake.

How big can the dock be, and where can it sit?

The 2020 plan caps each slip at 12 feet wide and 30 feet long, keeps the main walkway 4 to 6 feet wide and fingers 3 to 4 feet wide, and calls for an access ramp 4 to 6 feet wide and 20 to 60 feet long, set perpendicular to the shoreline. A dock has to sit at least 100 feet from the nearest point of an adjacent dock or land structure, can't reach more than one-third of the way across a cove, and needs at least eight feet of water at the 915-foot contour for all its slips. New docks with enclosed sides are not allowed.

How much does the water level move?

A lot more than many first-time owners expect. The U.S. Geological Survey lists Table Rock's conservation pool at 915 feet and its flood pool at 931 feet, so in a wet spring the lake can climb well above its usual line. The Corps' flowage easement on private land generally reaches elevation 936. Floating docks are the norm here for that reason, but the anchoring has to be set up for the full swing. Cables, stiff arms and the walkway from shore all need enough length and travel to follow the dock up and back down without binding, and the electrical disconnect has to sit above flood pool.

What work do Table Rock owners usually call about?

• New floating docks with one or more slips, a swim platform, and often a roof
• Boat and PWC lifts added to a new dock or fitted to an existing slip
• Repairs to flotation, frames, cables, walkways, roofs and storm damage
• Relocation of a dock that ended up in the wrong spot or too shallow after a level change
• Decking replacement with wood, composite or aluminum on a sound frame

What does a new dock cost?

That depends on the number of slips, the frame and decking materials, the flotation, whether there's a roof or lifts, how far the dock sits from shore, and how hard the site is to reach with materials. Steep lots and long walkways add work. The builder you're connected with will look at the site and give you a written quote. We don't set prices or take a cut of the job's price from you.

What should a builder handle for me?

• Checking how your shoreline is zoned and where on the water a dock can sit
• Drawings and details for the Shoreline Use Permit application you submit
• Flotation built from marine-grade material that meets the Corps' warranty requirement
• Anchoring and a walkway sized for the gap between conservation pool and flood pool
• Bringing in a licensed electrician for lights, outlets and lift power

Is Table Rock Dock Builders a dock company?

No. We're a referral service. We connect you with an independent dock contractor that serves Table Rock Lake, and that company designs, prices, builds and warranties the work. Read our tips for hiring a dock builder before you sign anything.

Areas we cover

• Branson and Indian Point
• Kimberling City
• Shell Knob
• Blue Eye

Planning ahead? Read our Table Rock Lake dock guide.