The Palm Coast City Council is divided over a modest program to fund public art installations that would require larger developers to devote half of a percent of the value of their project to the arts. One council member calls it “awesome.” Another says it “makes no sense.” A third is “torn.”
Real Estate & Development
Company Building Data Center in Palm Coast Clears Undersea Cables’ Final Hurdle in Flagler Beach
Flagler Beach’s South 6th Street will soon be the landing point for up to six of the 600-some transatlantic data cables that form the backbone of the internet. The cables will then snake underground, across State Road 100 and into Town center, where DX Blox, the Atlanta-based company, will build a “cable landing station,” or a data center, near the intersection of Town Center Boulevard and Royal Palms Parkway.
‘Significant Reservations’ About Approving 2,735 Homes at Veranda Bay as Development Advances on 4-1 Vote
The Flagler Beach City Commission is slowly moving toward approval of annexing Veranda Bay, the 900-acre development along that could potentially double the population of the city, change its character as a small town and upend its political center of gravity. But commissioners are pushing back against the number of homes, which could be a deal-breaker. The developer has made several concessions and is continuing to negotiate, but the total number of homes has so far been a hard line.
Touch-and-Go Noise Around Flagler County Airport: Residents Hear Facts, and Contempt
A group of residents surrounding the Flagler County airport in Palm Coast have for years complained about the constant stream of touch-and-go student flights, about noise, about pollution, and about the county’s own dismissive attitude toward them. On Monday, the group got more of the same, with at times overt contempt from Airport Director Roy Sieger.
Palm Coast Council Wants Another Re-Write of Vacation-Rental Ordinance, Pushing Approval to Next Year
Four months after it directed its attorney to draft it, the Palm Coast City Council again delayed approving the city’s first-ever vacation-rental ordinance as numerous issues and new proposals arose after the latest draft, which was due for a first read on on Tuesday. Instead, the council agreed to table it and schedule another workshop in December or January, when three new members will be on the council. That means the council will barely have time to approve the ordinance before the state Legislature again tries to pass a law that invalidates local ordinances.
School Board Rejects Developer Interested in Building ‘Specialty Retail Center’ on Palm Coast Parkway Property
The Flagler County School Board this evening will again formally reject a developer’s interest in buying the district’s old 7.2-acre Corporate One property at the southeast corner of Palm Coast Parkway and Corporate Drive, a 7-acre site that used to be one of ITT’s headquarters, in the early years of developing Palm Coast, before the board bought it for $3.5 million. It was not one of the board’s wisest decisions.Tailwinds Development, a company that specializes in building retail commercial shopping centers, was interested in the acreage.
Palm Coast Says It Has No Control Over Burn Piles on Lands Cleared for Development But Will Seek Attorney General’s Opinion
For years Palm Coast has had an ordinance giving it authority to control where and when burning takes place. The ordinance conflicts with state law, which reserves that authority exclusively to the Florida Forest Service. Rather than approve a new ordinance just yet, the Palm Coast City Council has agreed to seek an Attorney General opinion on what regulatory authority the city could seek within the law.
Fire Station 22 Will Survive as Historic Building, with 90-Space Community Center Parking To Be Built Around It
The Palm Coast City Council on Tuesday voted on a $3.3 million plan that would preserve the old fire station and look to “adaptively reusing the building to serve alternate functions,” in the words of city architect Eric Gebo, while creating 90 new parking spaces as overflow for the nearby Community Center. The 138 parking spaces at the Community Center have proved insufficient for the number and popularity of activities and events there. On average, seven meetings a month are turned away from the center for lack of capacity.
Flagler Beach Hears Substantial Opposition to Veranda Bay Annexation as Developer Counters: ‘I Have Agreed to a Lot Here’
More than two dozen people in an audience of 60 spoke against Flagler Beach’s annexation of the 2,700-unit Veranda Bay development as crafted in a special workshop Tuesday evening. Three commissioners raised substantial concerns as well. But none of it appears to be a deal-breaker as the developer agreed to continue negotiating, and to make several pledges and concessions.
Judge Rejects ‘SLAPP’ Suit by Veranda Bay Developer Against Opponents Who’d Challenged County’s Approval
Rejecting what he saw as an attempt to silence an advocacy organization’s right to challenge development, Circuit Judge Chris France on Friday ruled in favor of Preserve Flagler Beach and Bulow Creek, ending a year-and-a-half-old lawsuit filed against the group by Palm Coast Intracoastal. France termed PCI’s action a SLAPP suit impermissible under state law, handing the grass-roots group a major victory against the chilling effect of such lawsuits on speech and participation in matters of public concern. PCI is under the umbrella of SunBelt Land Management, the company overseeing Veranda Bay near Flagler Beach.