Flagler County split over how to fund beach management plan; staff asked to prepare unincorporated-option details

FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. — Budget discussions at a May 28 workshop focused on the county’s unfinished beach management plan and how to pay for ongoing nourishment and maintenance after recent storms and temporary emergency work.

County Administrator Heidi Petito told commissioners that preliminary fiscal-year 2026 projections show a roughly 9.57% increase in property valuations, which staff estimate could translate to about $6.1 million in additional revenue on the county side of the budget. Petito said the county would need about 4%–5% of growth — roughly $3 million — to maintain existing operations (cost-of-living, retirement, insurance and similar recurring costs), leaving an additional 4%–5% potentially available for new decision units, capital projects or beach funding.

Budget and beach options presented: Petito laid out three funding approaches staff developed for the board’s direction:

• Option 1 — Countywide 18-mile plan: a comprehensive plan for the entire barrier island that includes a proposed new half-cent county sales tax to generate the local match for construction and the annual maintenance program; initial, illustrative MSBU estimates had been $160 per parcel if spread over the whole barrier island (staff said this figure would require recalculation during formal MSBU modeling and public hearings). The county attorney circulated a draft ordinance that could serve as the basis for interlocal agreements with municipalities if the commission favored this path.

• Option 2 — Unincorporated-only plan (northern ~10 miles): an MSBU/MSTU focused on unincorporated shorelines; staff…