- May 3, 2024
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A proposed new resort in downtown Flagler Beach just west of Veterans Park earned initial approval from the Flagler Beach City Commission on Thursday, Dec. 10.
"I think it’s going to benefit all of us business owners in the downtown area, and I think, hopefully, it will be the kickstart to other redevelopment in the downtown of Flagler Beach."
— DENNIS BAYER
The commission unanimously approved a special exception application that will allow the placement of a hotel on a 1.38-acre parcel off Moody Boulevard, bordered by North Central Avenue and South Daytona Avenue and currently used for the Flagler Beach farmers market. The site is separated from A1A by Veterans Park.
The commission's decision concerned the question of whether a hotel would be an appropriate use of the property, rather than the particulars of the individual proposal. A more detailed level of review will follow after the developer submits a site plan.
The land is zoned general commercial, and while that zoning designation allows for hotels, they fall within a special category of uses that must undergo a secondary layer of review and approval.
The land had been the site of the Flagler Beach Hotel from 1925 to 1972 and is now owned by Zoee Forehand, the owner of the Z Wave Surf Shop.
The proposed two-story, 97-room hotel building would be designed by Anjon Resort Homes and would also have a tavern. Ten townhomes would also be constructed on the site.
A management company has not yet been named, but confidential talks with a national resort chain were underway when the city's Planning and Architectural Review Board gave the proposal its unanimous vote of support on Dec. 1.
Only one resident expressed opposition at the Dec. 10 meeting to the proposed resort, saying she was concerned that it would impact roadway traffic and increase pedestrian traffic that damages the beach dune. No members of the public had expressed opposition to the proposal at the PAR Board meeting.
Commissioners asked a few brief procedural questions of staff before their vote.
"We all knew sooner or later that that commercial piece of property was going to be developed," local attorney Dennis Bayer said at the Dec. 10 meeting, "and I think the Forehands have really gone the extra mile to find the proper proposal for the property. ... It’s finally going to give us that boost for our community redevelopment area that’s really been stagnant since the recession. It's going to really help bring in the money that we can use to help revitalize downtown, provide additional parking, complete the under-grounding of the utilities and all the other things that will make us a vital downtown area that will be a benefit to the community."
