Construction on Flagler Beach’s much-anticipated Margaritaville Hotel downtown will begin in September and take 18 months, with sidewalk and street closures along the way, project officials told a crowd of some 80 people this afternoon at City Hall.
Manoj Bhoola, the developer and manager of Ormond Beach-based Elite Hospitality, and his general contractor, Jeremy Bain of Maitland-based Welbro Building Corp, presented their plans to an audience eager to hear about how the largest construction project in modern Flagler Beach’s history will mesh with residents and businesses around it for a year and a half.
Other than a few grumbles about parking and some concerns about businesses around the project area, which will be impacted by limited parking, the crowd was appreciative of the project and applauded a couple of times, complimenting Elite and its long, local history. One audience member quipped that she was happy there won’t be a tire store on the parcel, which until the early 1970s used to be the site of a rather large hotel.
South Central Avenue between SR 100 and South 2nd Street will be closed to traffic for the duration of the project. But the sidewalk along Veterans Park will remain open.
Work days will be Monday through Fridays. Saturdays may be used to make up rain days. “Honestly, I have a hard time getting people there five days a week, so Saturday is not an option,” Bain said. Work hours will be from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Concrete pours will be done in early morning, so as not to interfere with business, and on First Fridays, when the city hosts its monthly festival downtown, work will stop at 4 p.m. Construction workers will park behind the water tower behind Flagler Avenue, walking two blocks to the job site.
There will be no way to minimize noise during work hours, but water trucks will seek to minimize dust. Working at night is not feasible for the developers, “it’s going to take you a lot longer to do that,” the contractor said, citing the difficulties of securing workers even for daytime hours.
If there is a hurricane, the contractor has a written policy that defines what it will do and how it will do it. “We’re not going to run off and abandon the project,” Bain said.
Safety will control the project for construction workers and the public. That’s why there’ll be a 6-foot privacy fence around the project, and why sidewalks will be closed. The contractor has logged 35,000 man hours without a “lost-time incident,” Bain said.
Veterans Park will still be used for public activities during construction, but parking along Central from Moody to 2nd Street will be closed: that will be a staging area for construction. Once the project is done, there will be more street parking.
There will be three gates for truck deliveries, entering from South Daytona Avenue, exiting on State Road 100. Gate 3 will be on 2nd Street and will be used more minimally. City Commissioner Jane Mealy is worried about the potential dangers of trucks exiting the project area onto 100.
Traffic flow will continue through 2nd Street and Daytona. But the sidewalk and parking will be eliminated on South Second Street during construction.
The hotel will be three stories, 84,000 square feet, with 100 rooms, a restaurant, a meeting room, a fitness room, a pool with a tiki bar, a rooftop terrace, and retail outlets. The restaurant will be run by Elite Hospitality. Guest parking will be no charge, once the hotel is open. The hotel will have close to 25 employees, the restaurant about 60 employees.
The requirement for the hotel is to have one parking space per room. It is providing for 80 parking spaces on site. In fact, the majority of the hotel’s parcel is taken up by parking. But the balance of the required parking spaces will be on-street parking.
As for room occupancy and room cost, Bhoola said “FlaglerBeach doesn’t have any comparable hotels for me to look at and anticipate,” but said he anticipates occupancy will be around 65 percent. “It’s a big gamble for me and my family. But we like 65 percent.” Room rates will be around $225 on weekends, weekdays may be less. A 20 percent discounted rate would be offered to local residents, at least at the start.
Early designs of the hotel had implied that the area of the beach in front of the Veterans Park parcel, which actually belongs to the hotel, will be a private beach. That’s not the case. The only thing the hotel developer is planning for right now is a new walkway to the beach. But the walkway, which won’t be built in the first several years anyway–and hasn’t been designed–would be usable by the public, as will the entirety of the beach, as it is now.
“There’s already parking issues, and not a shovel has been put into the ground,” one audience member said.
“The parking will be a problem, there’s no doubt about it, at some point in time,” Larry Torino, the city’s recently retired planner who is still involved in the project, said. But parking issues are typical of coastal communities. “When you’re trying to accommodate economic development in a very compact area, to devote 65 to 75 percent of your land area to accommodate cars is very hard to justify.”
The contractor has built numerous, large hotels, from the Embassy Suites in St. Augustine to Rosen Inn’s Shingle Creek in Orlando. It built schools in half a dozen counties in Florida. And it builds industrial properties, including distribution centers, one of them for Amazon.
The city will attempt to help affected businesses, especially on South 2nd Street.
Mealy remembers the days when residents thought “the world was ending” after that area had been torn up and left vacant. Now the re-imagined downtown, so long only imagined, will be reality. “Everybody thinks this hotel will bring great business to the city,” Mealy said. “And I do believe in a walkable downtown. That was out goal.”
”CoFB
”]
Richard Smith says
I’m sure the Flagler Beach residents can’t wait for this.
pete says
Not the place for it,vote it down
Jordan D. says
Where were you when this was approved over a year ago! No one complained at the Commission and PARB meetings then. Sheesh
pete says
Have the permits been pulled yet? If not it can be stopped, and needs to be stopped NOW
Denali says
The actual building permit is at the end of a long string of events. This has gone through several committees, zoning reviews, planning department input was given and then been granted legal approval by your city fathers/mothers. Unless you are willing to financially tank the city, it is a done deal. These developers are in it for the long haul and have invested millions to this point. They would not take kindly to the city saying “Oops, we changed our mind.”
Regardless, a building permit can only be denied for very specific legal issues such as false statements made in the application or misrepresentations of certain facts. Any technical construction/FBC issues can and will be addressed through design changes – not your desires.
pete says
It’s not saying much for the planning department and all involved. This needs to be stopped and it’s time to get rid of this bunch of crack heads. This is just the start of a big mess for Flagler Beach and ends up like the City Of Palm Coast. And for the developers and the city it would be a good lesson learned that you need room to build. Save the beach town
mark mirliani says
How can this possibly end well?
jim lang says
Pete I’m with u.
pete says
We need to all go to the new City Managers Office and raise the roof. This has got to be stopped before Flagler Beach is taken over and ends up in a mess like the City Of Palm Coast.
Casey Merritt says
I am a third generation Floridian and a resident of St. Petersburg. I have enjoyed visiting Flagler Beach over the years because of it’s old Florida feeling. I have watched St Pete literally explode with building, over building, with no regard for the local population. When I visited this past weekend I was very distraught to see the beginning of the construction of the Margarittaville hotel. Believe me, this is just the beginning. Protect your city of small businesses, local restaraunts, coffee shops, bars etc. I find it interesting that corporate greed for beachfront property under the name of Jimmy Buffet, whose whole persona and musical career was about old Florida before it was overtaken by concrete and asphalt.
The Sour Kraut says
We will never use the hotel rooms, but most definitely will try the restaurant and bar. I think this will be an overall win for Flagler Beach. The city does need to figure out where to add more parking. Even if a shuttle bus/van service was needed on weekends.
pete says
Starting out with a problem of parking is only a start. What about the water and sewer is the city system going to handle it, Still say not it’s too big for the space its going in.
C says
They need a parking garage
marlee says
Will the roof top terrace be any part of the bar or an access from the bar?
If so, just wait for the sound to carry…check it out.
noisy drinkers? music? food smells? night lighting?
The dude says
You’ll just have to run the gauntlet of the MAGA loons and their “FUCK JOE BIDEN” flags to get in there.
No thanks.
Concerned Citizen says
OMG. Right?!? Those two stores with all their obnoxious t-shirts and flags just across the street from the biggest tourist draw on the beach is just so tacky!! Maybe it’s trying to appeal to the biker set, but it’s a bad look for a town trying to progress into a “modern beach community “.
Laurel says
Well boys and girls, kiss your last little, beach hometown in Florida good bye. Developers win again.
Money talks, locals walk. Welcome to the no parking, crowded mess like everywhere else. Uniqueness gone forever.
Money hungry people have no souls.
dave says
OH what fun for TOURIST and the pits for locals. NO parking, more traffic, the noise and if A1A doesn’t fall into the ocean, what about beach access.
Sara King says
100 rooms and 80 parking spots?!?! No extra parking for visiting guests or the other people that happen to share a room or the people you want to draw to your restaurant and shops? Have they tried to park at one of our local restaurants/shops now? Or simply tried to find a beach parking spot on a regular day more less a weekend? There’s already no space for any extra and I would personally be pissed if I pulled into my hotel, and there was no place for me to park and I had a circle round and round, trying to find a spot as I do with the restaurants here, not to mention having to drag a suitcase with me. As a native to Flagler beach I have seen our beach town change drastically, some of it I love but the parking situation I HATE! We really need solutions BEFORE this hotel opens or we are just adding to the chaos that has already befallen our little gem of a town. Not everyone is a bike ride away…. For sure not the ones you are bringing in. I’m for smart growth… if I have to circle and circle to find a spot I give up and go home or drive wayyyyy down the beach which has been harder and harder or find a place to eat where parking is not a nightmare! We have to have room for the people that are already here, more less the people you want to bring in and making locals pay for parking is NOT the answer. More overflow parking lots are for sure overdue as it currently stands.
Lexie says
To say nothing about staff parking. Where are they going to park if there aren’t enough spots for the guests?
pete says
Another very good point.
pete says
This is like putting 10 pounds of crap in a 5 pound bag
pete says
If the land is too small and not enough room for parking it should not have been approved. Why should the city provide parking lots for them and the tax payers pay for it.
Mona says
Same way they approved Goodwill and new hospital in Palm Coast.
jeffery c. seib says
What a mistake. I guess the family that sold the land for this are getting a medal from Flagler Beach and a ton of money, but I would give them the booby prize. This will end the Flagler Beach everyone knows as it exists now. Constantly packed ten times what is there on a crowded weekend right now, traffic jams going across the bridge, and what nobody is saying the beach at the boardwalk and pier will be NO Trespassing for regular beach users only hotel guests. How low can you go for money? A million little Daytona style junk joints everywhere for us all except those staying at Margaritaville. Goodbye small town ambiance.
RichardSmoker says
Read the article. The beach and pass overs are open to all.
jeffery c. seib says
Yes, but at the beach the hotel will have umbrellas and lounge chairs set up for guests. Will I be able to use those? I don’t think so. But, yes, the ordinary beach goer will be able to walk on their beach to get somewhere else. Wow!
Bill says
Terrible idea!!!
Ray says
this is heartbreaking, we don’t need a damn hotel, this should’ve been a parking garage. i’m disappointed in this town.
feddy says
More money for the kickbacks for a hotel than a parking garage,
Viola says
They should make a parking garage under the hotel like the Embassy Suites in St Augustine Beach.
DMFinFlorida says
@ Viola
I could be wrong but I’ve been following this story since it first started and I believe that one of the original designs did have an underground garage. BUT … along comes a hurricane, washes out part of A1A (yet again) storm surge floods inland, and you have a garage full of sea water. You just can’t park 100 cars below A1A/SR100 and not expect a problem.
Tracy says
The worst thing for Flagler Beach! Not only parking & traffic..TRASH will continue to grow. The restrooms on the pier are not kept clean now. Sad that $$$ is so much more than quality of life in Flagler Beach.
Sandra G says
Very sad to see this. My late husband loved Flagler Beach, and my son and I still make it a point to stop there overnight when in Florida. Love the old Florida vibe, the shops, bars and restaurants, and the beach is so nice to walk on. Wish there had been more consideration given to a smaller hotel, less commercial in the sense that it would be unique and locally owned. The too small parking lot is a serious issue; I feel for those who live there year-round when the rooms fill up and there’s no place to put the cars.
pete says
Well good old FB will be gone, it’s sad to see this but that’s what is running the town a bunch of people that don’t know what they’re doing. This is going to hurt the hotels and motels owned by local people. Its like WALMART moving in and putting out the little guy.
Ronald Justice says
Well Pete you talk a big game. Where was you when Freida Zamba (sorry spelling may be off) sold this lot to the city years ago? She’s on the first phone book in flagler county during the 90’s. Great female surfer from what I’ve heard. I actually had that copy. You? Was you here back in the 70’s when this city had a hotel in that exact spot? No? Didn’t think so. Where was you when this was brought up? At any meeting’s? No. Didn’t think so. Where was you when all this was approved? At any meetings? No? Didn’t think so. So why the big deal now when you don’t even bother showing up at meetings and voting? I am assuming you did vote? No. Didn’t think so. There is a big thing going on with the new pier now if you read about here? Will you show up at the meetings or wait until it’s all done then whine here?
pete says
I wish I could be at the meetings but i work out of the country and only get back to the states 4 times a year. I own property in flagler county and hate to see the mess it’s in. PC and now FB all this is from poor management and having control of the money.
jeffery c. seib says
The truth of it is, it would not have mattered if Pete had attended and spoke out at every single meeting, even the ones with a sort of hidden agenda to approve this monstrosity. It’s all about the money. Big dreams of the Flagler Beach officials to bring this town into the Margaritaville future. This will be done, as in Palm Coast, over and over again, unless and until the residents begin to not vote on the basis of ads by the candidates and put into office folks that want a different pace for other cities since Flagler Beach is about to change.
pete says
Thank You very much. Its just one big mess.
Brian says
Miss the school bus this morning?
L says
Frieda didn’t own that lot. Zoe Frassand did.
Tom says
Visit,enjoy cherish Flagler Beach, but don’t build there, because.. sprawl always supplants nature and farms with asphalt,concrete,steel,plastics,glass, dangerous chemicals in high concentrations,noise,light and traffic.. please live in developed:redeveloped areas … God Bless Florida
Linda says
According to the Flagler County Property Appraiser web site, The City of Flagler Beach owns the Veterans Park. As far as meetings go, I only remember one, and that looked like a mock meeting that had guest stars approach the dais and praise the project, property owner all the way down to the homemade or natural soap Zoey Frassrand was going to insist on having the owners provide at the hotel!! It was a joke
Celia M pugliese says
FB government with Flagler County’s help given the larger ad valorem tax share (Palm Coast 24% to county 44%) should provide nearby parking and a colorful fun shuttle (with room on front bumper for surfboards, bicycles and large items) free ride for county residents only. Maybe proven tourist can be charged a minimal fee to use the public parking/shuttl exempting the Flagler county residents as we know many of our kids and not so, surf in FB on minimal personal budgets that should be provided a free parking shuttle card. Also maybe the restaurants and bars along A1A can collaborate with the parking and shuttle minimal fee as many times they loose customers as happened to us, over lack of parking available. We would have contributed happily to a minimal fee of parking and colorful shuttle if available just to enjoy the Golden Lion, Finn’s , Tortugas or the F. Pelican on busy weekends or holidays. Maybe the shuttle can be available on busy weekends and holidays only as needed to keep cost down to start with. FB should also adopt what I saw yesterday in Saint Augustine driving beach front A1A that the city now provides orange flags for pedestrians crossing A1A safer, to be more visible to traffic, as the orange flags are for Traffic to Stop for Pedestrians. Was so nice to see entire families with their beach chairs, umbrellas and coolers crossing confident with their little one’s traffic busy A1A.rushing back given the rain storm. Is needed in Flagler Beach Mr. Cooley, as I see often families dangerously dogging traffic avoiding to be hit going or coming to the beach, some pedestrians I recall were killed in that section of A1A in the past.. Those St Augustine orange traffic stop for pedestrians flags are located in both east and west side of the road in like cup holders for beach goers to use and leave. Maybe strategically located cameras monitor the activity and compliance which will be totally justified, if saves just one life. I could not take a picture to post here because I was driving and was a downpour at the time. But Mr. Cooley and the FB council should drive there and see and consider these orange flags for pedestrians, specially after this hotel will bring more visitors to the area. I would advise the city of Flagler Beach that now they can apply for Federal Funds that are to promote clean environment with Bidenomics that fund electric vehicles charging stations that can be installed also in the parking garage to generate income to offset the parking and shuttle service cost and maybe can include funds for that parking land and maybe building if several floors parking to keep cars wasting/using gas and contaminating beach environment…while hopeless looking for parking. Imagine EV colorful ocean images touristic looking shuttles that will be fun to ride with open windows that can be closed in case of rain! Maybe pass the idea to Tesla’s Elon Musk, Ford or GM to provide them at discount with current federal grants available. I believe at the moment with Bidenomics the shuttles and parking land and building can be achieved with feds grants and overtime will fund itself with minimal fee charged. Will also created some jobs inn FB. Think about it asap!
pete says
Bad idea Its not the City’s or the County’s or the tax payers problem. BOTTOM LINE the building is too big for the location and it should have not been approved and needs to be STOPPED and can be.
Celia M pugliese says
By the way the shuttle and parking garage can generate revenue selling ads by closed tv circuit advertising to visit the local restaurants, bars and local businesses on garage and shuttles and also displayed inside of shuttle businesses ads…for revenue.
dave says
The greed of the City of Flagler Beach is upon us. A developer shakes those dollar bills in the faces of the city and all logic goes away. But that’s ok, they will deal with the issues as they occur.
bill says
during bike week, the hotel can be utilized as a brothel. or I have an idea we can build another storage facility. God only knows how we need them. this way the lawyers, the real estate people business people , politicians in the county can have more investments and clog up the city with more storage facilities. We can call this county the capital of storage facilities.
GT says
I got a $100 parking ticket down there wait till they hand out a few of those that should be good for business.
Dawn says
The draw to Flagler Beach has always been the small town feel. The hotel and McMansions being built have killed that small town vibe. I’m broken hearted at the loss of the small town I’ve known, loved and lived in for most of my life. My understanding of past city counsel members is that nothing commercial would be allowed on this side of the bridge. Palm Coast was supposed to grow and expand not Flagler Beach. Greed killed the small town!!