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Flagler County approves compacted‑shell parking but delays decision on Hammock restaurant spaces to April 6
Summary
The commission granted a surface‑material waiver allowing compacted shell rather than asphalt for a proposed Hammock restaurant but continued the decision on reducing required off‑street parking from 41 to 33 spaces until April 6 so the applicant can provide employee‑count justification and staff can verify available on‑street parking.
The Flagler County Board approved a waiver to allow compacted‑shell parking rather than asphalt for a proposed restaurant at 5949 North Ocean Shore Boulevard, but it continued the separate request to reduce the required number of off‑street parking spaces to April 6 at 9:30 a.m.
Planner Simone Kenny summarized the proposal: a roughly 3,000‑square‑foot building with about 1,800 square feet of dining area and an initial calculation of 41 required parking spaces (one space per 50 square feet of seating plus employees). The applicant requested a reduction to 33 parking spaces plus bike racks and a shared‑parking agreement with the neighboring Deborah Jean's Coffee.
Applicant representatives said they had tried to preserve a large oak canopy and that shifting the building to provide additional spaces would require removing the tree. The applicant said they had applied to connect to city sewer and planned not to build on septic. The investor and builder also said the existing property historically operated as a restaurant and that overflow parking along A1A and nearby streets has been common.
Many Hammock residents and association representatives urged denial, saying the proposed seating and employee counts are understated, shared parking is not a durable guarantee and on‑street parking would create safety problems. Speakers cited past cases in the Hammock where outdoor seating or incremental expansion led to enforcement issues.
During deliberations several commissioners said they lacked confidence in the applicant's employee‑count estimate; one commissioner asked for industry‑standard employee figures and for staff to verify the number of legal on‑street parking spaces available near the site. Commissioners agreed to approve the surface‑material waiver (voice vote) but to continue the off‑street‑space waiver to the April 6 meeting to give the applicant time to provide supporting documentation.
The continuation was adopted by roll call with the four voting commissioners present concurring; the surface‑material waiver was approved earlier in the same meeting.
