- October 10, 2024
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The Flagler County Commission will discuss a tentative settlement for its lawsuit with Captain's Bait, Tackle & BBQ in a closed-door meeting Nov. 6.
Representatives of Flagler County and Captain's have potentially reached a settlement agreement during a mandatory mediation on Oct. 27. The commission will hear and debate the settlement details in a closed-door meeting on Nov. 6, with only the commissioners, county attorneys and administrators and a court reporter in attendance, according to a County Commission meeting document.
Florida Statutes allow for closed-door, executive session meetings to discuss pending litigation involving the county. A transcript of the closed-door meeting will be available after litigation is finished, the meeting document said.
A trial was scheduled for February 2024, but Civil Circuit Judge Christopher France on June 29 ordered both parties to attempt another round of mediation after the case was passed to him from Judge Terence Perkins.
The restaurant has leased the building at 5862 N. Oceanshore Boulevard from Flagler County since 2011. From 2015 through 2018, the original complaint Captain's BBQ filed states that the building had multiple "structural deficiencies ... beyond normal wear and tear, and not caused by a lack of maintenance or repair."
In November 2018, the County Commission voted to approve an amended lease agreement allowing the owners of Captain's BBQ to build a new building, at the cost of the restaurant owner, according to court documents.
The decision triggered an outcry from Flagler County residents and weeks after the original vote approving the new lease, new county commissioners were sworn in, and the commission voted 4-0 to reconsider the lease.
The restaurant owners filed the lawsuit against Flagler County in June 2019, citing a breach of the amended lease agreement with the county. The complaint alleges the building at 5862 N. Oceanshore Boulevard is in disrepair and that the county's actions since approving the amended lease in November 2018 violated the terms of the lease.
While county commissioners consider the settlement and until the final settlement documents are prepared, both parties have jointly filed a 60-day stay in legal proceedings, according to court documents.
