The Palm Coast Planning Board last week approved two commercial enterprises that may add upwards of 50 jobs in the city’s core commercial center along Palm Coast Parkway—an assisted living facility for dementia patients, and yet another tattoo “studio,” at least the third along the Parkway approved in recent years. Some of the planning board members approved the studio enthusiastically.
They had little choice: “The courts have held that tattoo parlors are a First Amendment use, the same as any kind of free speech,” city and Planning Board attorney Kaiti Reischmann said. “It’s considered to be art, so the courts will look very strictly upon any restrictions on tattoo parlors.”
Dustin Singleton’s Tattooing, Body Piercing and Other Body Art will open with about six tattoo artists and body piercers in Unit 3C at 25 Pine Cone Drive, an office and professional-commercial condominium complex. The store will be neighboring an accounting service, an orthodontist and a hair salon, among other businesses.
In the city’s planning staff’s view, Singleton “found a very appropriate location for this use,” Senior Planner Ida Meehan said, “given the fact it is built out, it is surrounded by office, commercial and retail uses, it’s not in the vicinity of a neighborhood, it’s within an existing building that’s code compliant.” Singleton sent out solicitations for any objections but received none.
Nevertheless he had to appear before the planning board—but not City Council—to get a special exception for his business.
“We have what we call special exceptions for specific land uses such as tattoo studios,” Ray Tyner, the city’s planning director, said. “A special exception, we don’t have a whole lot of them, but those are uses that, you know, yeah, maybe appropriate for this land use and may not be appropriate for this land use, so this special exception has specific criteria within our Land Development Code.”
Typically special exceptions would come with additional restrictions or requirements (Tyner gave an example of larger buffers to muffle the noise from a dog kennel). But city planners in this case proposed no additional restrictions or requirements. The studio, Meehan said, is “consistent with the public interest” and city land uses.
And it’s adding to a canvas of tattoo businesses along Palm Coast Parkway: Devoted Tattoo Studio just got its storefront sign, above what used to be the bagel shop. Chance Hancotte’s Wild Blue Tattoo has been in business for a bit over a year at St. Joe’s Plaza, suggesting that of anything, there may be a glut of skin ink in the making along Palm Coast Parkway.
The assisted living market has been almost as competitive. An assisted living facility is going up at 144 Cypress Point parkway, called Starling Assisted Living. That one, approved earlier this year, is a 74-unit, 86-bed facility in a single two-story building, with some of the units possibly designated as memory care, or for locked-down dementia patients. It is the latest in a steady onslaught of such facilities in the city and the county.
On Nov. 16, the Palm Coast planning board unanimously approved yet another, an exclusively locked-down dementia-care facility called Watercress Memory Care, a 4-year-old, Vero Beach-based corporation that has four such facilities open and two under construction. Palm Coast’s would be its third. It will be a redevelopment of the parcel at 2 Corporate Drive, which will be turned into a 46,000 square foot, 68-unit, 70-bed facility on just under 4 acres, south of westbound Palm Coast Parkway. The proposal—now ratified—does not need to be approved by the city council.
The facility is projected to employ 50 people, primarily drawn from the local workforce, its owners say. The single-story building will have two interior courtyards, no fencing—as it is deemed unnecessary in a locked-down facility—and some 50 parking spaces, but traffic on its adjacent streets is expected to decline dramatically,” according to a planning report, not increase, because of the nature of its business: Employees aside, people in memory care facilities tend to be more often forgotten than not by their families.
The parcel was previously the site of a 17,000 square foot office warehouse built in 1984.
Layla says
Has the planning board had any prior experience? Just how many tattoo parlors, nail salons, and mattress stores does one small need? It would be nice to have them approve something which the majority of citizens here can actually use for a change.. It looks like that is not going to happen anytime soon.
Greg says
“And yet another assisted living facility”
The writer must not be in the market for trying to find suitable and affordable living facilities for his or her parents. Very few rooms are available now which drives up the price senior citizens have to pay. You would be surprised at what the cost is . An average room runs ~ $4000 a month. More facilities will make it more affordable and give them a choice.
Geezer says
How convenient to have a tattoo parlor next to the assisted living facility.
There’s Harley-Davidson tattoos, and you can get a Jazzy or Hoveround tattoo.
Location, location….
Mark says
Obviously there is a need for more tattoo parlors, if not it would go away by itself. You know, supply equals demand.
YankeeExPat says
You are so correct Mr. Geezer
Unfortunately for the “Clapper” and “Life Alert” crowd, the “Loud Pipes Saves Lives” Mantra doesn’t work out so well for the Electric Senior Hog Rider. Many a customers in Winn Dixie and Publix bear the scars of an errant ankle or foot collision with the Members Only jacketed Outlaws of 10% discount card. These AARP Hooligans will take no quarter for whippersnappers that take all the good spots in the parking lot.
Jack Howell says
Got to love the Planning Board. These are the idiots who approved the traffic patterns within the Island Walk shopping center. Pure genius!
DaveT says
assisted living facility for dementia patients I have NO problem with this.
FlaglerLive says
Other media might report unknowingly. We usually do not. The writer quite recently experienced the labyrinth that is the assisted living facility landscape in Flagler and Volusia, where both his parents went through roughly five facilities each, together and separately, over eight years, resulting in a first-hand, often disturbing, always expensive experience the writer would have very much rather deferred to a much later age, when senescence probably makes it a little easier to bear. There is no doubt that the market is ripe for many, many more facilities in answer primarily to demographic rather than qualitative demands. Experience suggests that there is somewhat more doubt that, as with so many lightly regulated industries, particularly in health and elderly care, more choice equates either to more affordable or better quality care.
Geezer says
YankeeExPat:
So funny! That’s one of my favorite episodes.
“Hey you dented my ride!”
Anonymous says
It’s simple: Supply and Demand.
Dave says
Why wouldn’t a tattoo parlor be approved ?,and each tattoo parlor isn’t the same as the next, it’s all about the artists work and who’s style you like more
Amanda says
You must be old school. A tattoo parlor is a change for the better. A lot of the youth in Palm Coast have resorted to drugs and alcohol because there isn’t much else to do. While the generations before us may feel as if body modification is disgusting or abominable the “millennial” generation find it artistic and as a place to express oneself. What other businesses would you like to see more of? How about some more golf courses or doctor offices? More pizza places or boutiques that no one actually buys from. How about we cater in this town a little more towards the youth and their expectations and get some of these “kids” spending their money on something other than marijuana and prescription painkillers.
Wild Blue Tattoo says
Im happy to announce Wild Blue Tattoo has been an established Tattoo Studio in Palm Coast since 2014!! Its good for Palm Coast to have more tattoo shops. There are a plethora of illegal home tattooers in Palm Coast, despite it being a felony to do so. With no enforcement to shut them down, opening legal establishments is the only way to educate the community and encourage them to make responsible tattoo choices. Competent tattoo shops will reduce disease transmission (Hepatitis C is now alarmingly skyrocketing due to home tattoos) and reduce the community’s expenditures handling a worsening epidemic. Its always better for a city to encourage legal business practices rather than turn a blind eye to the illegal ones. At Wild Blue Tattoo we strive to meet the highest standards of the industry and have built a reputation by doing so. Thank you to all my customers from Palm Coast and around the country!
Tatoo lover says
“Yet another tatoo studio”? It’s only the third one in the city. You act like it’s another gas station or bank that’s on just about every corner of Palm Coast. I’m almost 50 years old and have 1/4 of my body covered in tattoos. The author sounds like an 80 year old that still thinks tattoos are taboo and the studios are frequented by only biker gangs and degenerates bringing a bad element to the city. The P&R sections are where the bad elements of Palm Coast hang out..
Anonymous says
Now this is what I call bringing jobs to the area!! Now, lets open up the STD clinic and the POT dispensary.
USA Lover says
And I was hoping for another Wendy’s,McDonald’s,or Dollar General. Rats!!
Sw says
Stop covering yourselves with tattoos and there wint be parlors.
annonamoys says
tattoos!!! i saw some big body builder looking guy the other day with tattoos all over his face and neck wow just more of what we need here!! scary
Bill harvey says
I think I would rather have my kids spend their money that they earned during the summer months on tattoos and save it for college. I guess its time to consider looking again where to live . Palm coast is not going anywhere as far as descent jobs. Take a good look at town center, nothing there. This is a stagnant city as far as any worthwhile businesses to make a living
Geezer says
How about a methadone clinic?
I can see it now: “Town Center Methadone Clinic”
Walk-ins and stagger-ins welcome!
We do methadone right!
JM says
Why is everyone so uptight about the addition of a tattoo shop? I think there is only like (2-3) in the entire county.. The location of the tattoo shops are all hidden and tucked away anyways. I wouldn’t be so happy if they were all right there in your face, but they aren’t so not a big deal..
I personally think that an assisted living facility in that location is a horrible idea.. You waste prime-time land for another assisted living facility? Wow.. Couldn’t they have chosen a different spot for these facilities, somewhere off HWY 1.. Just batch them all together in the woods somewhere.. Not on prime commercial land in the middle of everything!! You drive through Palm Coast and think this place was created by Bankers, McDonalds junkies and Rehab enthusiasts.. It’s actually quite embarrassing..
People come to visit you and the only thing you can say is:
“Well, we can either drive an hour to go do anything OR better yet we can go tour all the rehab and assisted living facilities! Oh, don’t worry about finding a bank to withdraw money there’s a 1000 of them even ones you never knew existed! We can even stop by one of the several McDonalds here to grab a bite to eat AND on the way back home we can swing by one of the 100 Dollar Generals and get some plastic cups, napkins and a package of pens and pencils!!”
Such poor planning and random at that.. This planning board is horrible..