- November 23, 2024
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Beer flowed as the kilt-adorned Daytona Beach Pipe and Drums band marched their way through the crowd to kick off the ribbon-cutting ceremony at Fletcher’s Irish Pub and Brewery in Holly Hill on Friday, Sept. 16.
Owner Bill Fletcher, of Ormond Beach, smiled as he matter-of-factly referred to the property’s troubled past. There have been multiple restaurants that failed at 745 Ridgewood Avenue — his pub’s current location.
“We are not going anywhere,” Fletcher said. “We are established. We have a great community around us. You can see just from everybody that’s here from Daytona to Palm Coast, Holly Hill to Ormond. We are all melting out here together. Thank you guys, and looking forward to a great future.”
Holly Hill Mayor Chris Via presented Fletcher with a certificate of congratulations and a Community Redevelopment Agency grant at the grand opening. The CRA grant program was implemented to encourage business owners to invest in the “appearance and functionality” of their property by offering 50% reimbursement of the “eligible project cost,” up to $10,000.
“I want to say congratulations to this man and thank him very much for coming to the great city of Holly Hill,” Via said. “Small businesses are the heart of any economy, and it’s great business owners like Bill that not only just go do business but also care about the community that they are serving.”
Fletcher recently hired a brewmaster and is working through the Florida state requirements to operate a brewery. The next step is to purchase the equipment and begin brewing small batches for tasting purposes only, to determine potentially successful recipes by the end of the year. He hopes to launch the brewery on Saint Patrick’s Day.
“I want to say congratulations to this man and thank him very much for coming to the great city of Holly Hill. Small businesses are the heart of any economy and it’s great business owners like Bill that not only just go do business but also care about the community that they are serving.”
CHRIS VIA, Mayor of HOLLY HILL
Patron Erik Martin, a state search and rescue EMS responder, met Fletcher two years ago after competing in his first Scottish Highland games. Following the competition, the athletes headed to Fletcher’s Irish Pub in Ormond Beach to “get their Guinness on”.
“Bill is just an amazing guy all the way around,” Martin said. “This place is just as awesome as his original location in Ormond, and I couldn’t be more proud to be here to support him and his new venture with his brewery.”
The ribbon-cutting ceremony was Fletcher’s kickoff to executing longterm plans. He is preparing for his first year as a venue for Biketoberfest and working through the logistics of the third-annual Shave for the Brave event, which benefits the Live Like Cameron Foundation. New to his charitable ventures is a collaborative effort with a tattoo shop. The shop will offer various cancer awareness-themed tattoos for $50 and donate all proceeds to the foundation.
Fletcher said he was thankful his second location got off to a slow start. He is exactly where he wants to be right now — open five days a week with a full menu, a brewery in the works and the right staff.
“I could have flooded it with inadequate staff, but I didn’t do that,” he said. “I wanted to have the key staff that would be able to execute the vision the right way. Now we’re pretty solid. I’m not saying we’re over the hump, but there’s a light at the end of the tunnel, and it’s not a train.”
