- January 14, 2025
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Last October, concerned neighbors filed an appeal over a proposed valet overflow parking lot to be utilized by the Bronx House Pizza restaurant in Hammock Beach.
Approved in September 2024, the Flagler County Planning and Development Board reviewed a modification of a special exception for the restaurant which some residents on Sanchez and Hernandez avenues said lacked their input, is not an approved use within the Residential/Limited Commercial Use zoning district, raises safety concerns and is being proposed amid persistent noise level violations.
On Monday, Jan. 13, a group of these citizens went before the Flagler County Board of County Commissioners, asking members to approve their appeal and overturn the planning board's approval to modify the proposed 20,000-square-foot parking lot's special exception.
"We are frustrated, exhausted, and quite frankly, fed up with the ongoing disregard for our neighborhood, our rights as residents and the lack of enforcement that has allowed the situation to spiral out of control," citizen Leah Groom said."From the very beginning, the introduction of this business has been nothing short of disruptive."
Ultimately, the commission voted 3-2 to deny the appeal and uphold the planning board's special exception modification approval. Commissioners Greg Hansen and Kim Carney voted against.
Board Chair Andy Dance said he may not agree with the planning board, but that the commission was there to clarify whether or not the planning board went through with appropriate processes and completed its due diligence.
"Part of what we have to do is judge based on the parameters legal has given us because we're trying to avoid additional legal issues," Dance said.
However, he said was "perturbed" on a few issues, including using the parking lot for employee parking and the creation of a safety issue with people parking in the right of way.
Groom, who filed the application for the appeal, said the influx of cars from Bronx Pizza has "created a nightmare" for local residents trying to park on their own streets, citing employees and delivery drivers as the main people who park on her residential street. She argued that if the restaurant forgoes its beer garden plan and extended outdoor seating, it would have enough room within its existing parking to accommodate all customer and employee cars.
"This would resolve much of the parking issue without causing further strain on the surrounding community," Groom said.
The appeal noted two instances where law enforcement was called by neighbors due to noise violations. One took place on Sept. 21, 2024, for a beer garden event, and the other happened on Oct. 5, when the restaurant had a DJ onsite. The latter event, the appeal states, also led to 50 motorcycles parked on the corner of 17th Road and A1A, with another 50 in their parking lot and extended lot to the north.
Groom also argued that the proposed parking lot is not an overflow lot, but rather a standalone lot, which is prohibited in the zoning district.
Bronx House Pizza founder Bruno DiFabio said Groom painted an unfair picture of his business; its owners are all Palm Coast residents themselves, he said, and the restaurant has donated $100,000 to charity, dollars of which stayed local in 2024.
"That doesn't sound like corporate greed to me," DiFabio said. "I personally invested my entire life savings in this. When would it be appropriate for me to get some of my money back?"
Carney said she didn't understand why the lot wasn't considered by the planning board as a standalone lot.
"You take cars, you put it on a piece of property, and you go home when you're done," she said. "It's a parking lot."
Adam Mengel, Flagler County Growth Management director, explained that the parking lot was not considered as a standalone lot because it will be owned by a business, and therefor linked to it.
"Pizza business is there, the parking lot is there," Mengel said.
Carney said the issue was about "as clear as mud."
County Attorney Al Hadeed said that reasonable people may have different opinions on what constitutes a standalone parking lot — however, official records link the parking lot land and the existing pizza restaurant together.
"So they operate together," Hadeed said. "We've all valeted cars in the past, and they usually are off-site. That's usually how valet works."
