TDC selects vendor for 10‑year tourism sustainability master plan; Eco Discovery Center design approved

Amy Lukasic told the Tourist Development Council on Oct. 15 that the county has selected a vendor for a 10‑year tourism sustainability master plan. The scope includes sustainability elements, strategic short‑term objectives extracted from the master plan, data‑driven recommendations for infrastructure, marketing, product development and governance, and guidance on use of bed‑tax reserves and possible new revenue streams.

Lukasic said the plan will inventory existing tourism assets, benchmark Flagler County against comparable destinations, and include community and stakeholder engagement through surveys and focus groups. Staff expect the master‑plan process to take about a year to reach final deliverables.

On the Eco Discovery Center, Lukasic said the county selected Collage Companies as vendor and Rough and Roads as architect (as announced at the county’s Sept. 15 workshop) to advance planning and design for the Visitor Eco Discovery Center at the Bulow Creek Headwaters Regional Park. The council was told the center will give the TDC a permanent place to interface with visitors, and staff discussed ideas for engagement and tracking (for example, offering small incentives or check‑ins to measure visitation).

Lukasic also said the TDC is partnering with FC3 to administer special event marketing grants for arts, culture and history; the program will remain a reimbursement process and will align with Palm Coast’s guidelines to keep applications consistent. Staff announced two open seats on the TDC (a lodger seat and a tourism industry seat) and said they expect to publicize applications with the goal of filling seats by the January meeting.

When asked about an estimated opening date for the Eco Discovery Center, staff said there is not yet a firm schedule but suggested 2028 as a rough target for initial construction steps; more detailed milestones will follow once design and engineering move forward.