Flagler Beach considers recycled, composite decking for pier's new boardwalk

Flagler Beach already partners with the company, Trex, to sell its collected film plastics to Trex for recycling. Trex then turns that film plastic into composite materials for its decking products.


A rendering of the new pier design by Moffatt & Nichol. The first 100 feet of the pier will be preserved and reinforced. Image courtesy of Moffatt & Nichol
A rendering of the new pier design by Moffatt & Nichol. The first 100 feet of the pier will be preserved and reinforced. Image courtesy of Moffatt & Nichol
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A film plastic recycling company is interested in creating the boards for the Flagler Beach pier rebuilding.

Trex is a film plastic recycling company that turns the plastic into composite decking. Company representative Kellie Driscoll spoke to the Flagler Beach City Commission on Feb. 8 about Trex’s interest in the pier reconstruction.

Flagler Beach partnered with Trex in 2023 to sell its film plastic to the company. Trex provided the city receptacles and, once the city collects enough tonnage in plastic, sends out a truck to pick it up and pay the city for the plastic, creating revenue from the trash.

“I think it would be a really good story for, you know, people that are bringing their plastic bags and then seeing it on the boardwalk,” Driscoll said.

Flagler Beach is currently perusing a grant from the Flagler County Tourist Development Council’ capital project funds. The grant will seek to replace the current oceanfront boardwalk and construct a promenade to the south of the city' s A-frame and pier, commission meeting documents said.

The TDC’s capital project funding can be used, among other things, to improve, remodel or repair publicly owned and operated facilities, like the pier, according to the TDC’s website.

Driscoll said the recycled boards are made of 95% of recycled materials. The deck boards are made of polyethylene film — the plastic in grocery bags, bread bags and ice bags — and then mixed with reclaimed sawdust.

The boards are then covered with a “shell” that resists fading, staining and mold growth, she said.

City Manager Dale Martin said Gabriel Perdomo, Moffatt & Nichol project manager for the pier’s reconstruction, is working on the proposal for the TDC grant.

“So hopefully we'll be calling Trex again once we get the TDC grant and move forward the project,” Martin said.

 

author

Sierra Williams

Sierra Williams is a staff writer for the Palm Coast Observer covering a variety of topics, including government and crime. She graduated from the University of Central Florida in 2021 with her bachelor's degree in print/digital journalism and a minor in political science. Sierra moved to Palm Coast in September 2022 and is a Florida native from Brevard County.

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