Nest Bakery seating plan draws 60+ public comments over parking; planning staff propose public parking improvement solution

David Cook, Planning Manager, told the commission the Nest Bakery on Sunset Lake and Lewis Road applied this year for a conditional use permit to allow interior seating where the restaurant previously had none. He said interior seating triggers off‑street parking requirements under the land‑use code, and the bakery’s site has no room for on‑site parking.

Cook said the county received more than 60 public comments after a mailed notice and social‑media attention. To resolve the parking requirement, staff proposed a solution in which the business would fund and help maintain a parking area on adjacent public land (Sunset Lake Park) that would remain available to the public and not be exclusively for the bakery. The county would forward a resolution and the commission’s recommendation to the Board of Commissioners, which would decide whether to grant a defined area of public land for that improvement.

Commissioners and commenters raised traffic and safety concerns about roadside parking and whether a small number of interior seats (estimated at roughly five to ten) should change how the business is regulated. Cook explained the difference is procedural: the land‑use code requires off‑street parking based on number of seats because seated patrons tend to occupy spaces longer than transit customers.

Why it matters: the case highlights how code parking requirements can affect small coastal businesses and public land use when private enterprises seek to alter service models. It also shows a staff approach that pairs private investment with public benefit rather than granting exclusive private rights on public land.

Next steps: the conditional use permit will be reviewed by the Planning Commission and staff will prepare a resolution and recommendation for the Board of Commissioners; no final board action had been taken at the time of the meeting.