Future Hammock Restaurant Wins Parking Reduction Despite Strong Opposition From Residents and 2 Commissioners

A divided Flagler County Commission approved the request by a future Mexican restaurant in the Hammock to provide fewer parking spaces than required by code. 

Commission Chair Leann Pennington and Commissioners Kim Carney and Pam Richardson voted for the allowance. Commissioners Andy Dance and Greg Hansen voted against. Hansen and Dance have been on the commission a combined 16 years between them, and have been on the receiving end of complaints by Hammock residents overflowing their parking for lack of assigned spaces. 

Pennington, Carney and Richardson have been on the commission fewer years but Pennington spoke of other restaurants–she mentioned The Shape of Water–overflowing with parking. Richardson was also aware of issues, and said “this is a bigger step than just this location.” (The county is preparing legal action against The Shape of Water.) 

The new restaurant will be called Modern Mexx at State Road A1A near Milwaukee Avenue, where Fusion 386 used to be. It is co-owned by Mike Goodman (a county planning board member) and Bruce Garrison. Goodman is an owner of Bronx House Pizza and Captain’s BBQ at Bings Landing, the county park, both in the Hammock. Bronx House Pizza had its issues with parking until it resolved them after buying four lots for overflow parking. 

In mid-March when Goodman and an associate first appeared before the commission, the commission tabled the request and asked for more clarity on a number of issues, among them the size of the restaurant, its staffing ratio, which commissioners did not believe, and what else the restaurant could do to comply with the parking requirement. 

The seating area was scaled down from 1,800 square feet to 1,500, still seating 92 people, the bar included. The restaurant would have a full liquor license. Staffing was increased from the less than credible five employees to nine. Two parking spaces were added, but the request remained for a six-space reduction, from 39 spaces to 33 spaces. Alternately, the owners would move the parking area 29 feet farther back from State Road A1A, but would take out an old tree to do that.

That’s what the discussion revolved around: the tree. The owners could take it out and not have to appear before the commission. The tree is not considered historic. They could remove the tree on their own, without special permission. They just don’t want to do that. 

They have an agreement with nearby Debra Jean’s Cafe (at 5927 SRA1A) to use the parking lot there since Debra Jean’s closes in late afternoon. 

“Our code is outdated compared to other local jurisdictions,” Chuck Merenda, the acting growth management director, told commissioners. Other jurisdictions would allow leased parking, for example, and would accept parking studies that diverge from the local code. “We don’t allow any of that in our code, and I believe they do have leased parking next door, but we don’t count that as parking spaces.” 

To Pennington, protecting the tree counted in the owners’ favor, as did the parking at the coffee shop. “They’re trying to do the right thing,” she said. 

“What happened to that 300 square feet?” Hansen asked Bruno DeFabio, the restaurant operator of that diminished floor space.  

DeFabio wasn’t precise, speaking of “different things that we’re looking at,” from sanitation to recycling to a special sort of oven that would make the space more “efficient.” Half the back of the house will be dedicated to the kitchen and “back of the house,” as opposed to the usual 33 percent. That can’t be converted to seating in the future. 

“I ask that because we’ve been burned a couple times by approving parking for X number of square feet,” Hansen said, “and as soon as the restaurant opens and gets going, they expand their seating without consideration to the parking, and then we have a parking problem. So I understand. I don’t want to see that happen with this restaurant.”

DeFabio  said it won’t. Rob Merrill, the Cobb Cole attorney now representing the owners,  seconded him, assuring the commissioners that the building plan will show that layout. Dance was still not confident that the parking layout would result in the sufficient number of spaces, even as now proposed. 

Residents were sharply opposed to granting the parking allowance, among them the Hammock Community Association and Scenic A1A Pride. Dennis Clark of Scenic A1A scoffed at the claim that trees were being preserved, saying almost a dozen are being removed, while the planned 3,000 square foot building would call for 49 parking spaces. Several others spoke in opposition, among them Lynne Bravo Rosewater, a psychologist, who said–in reference to Bronx House–that “the best prediction of future behavior is past behavior.”

The commission will not review the site plan. That’s reviewed administratively only. 

“My fear is that we’re not getting an accurate representation here of what’s ultimately going to be built,” Dance said, prefacing his motion to turn down the requested exception. His motion was rejected, 3-2, before the motion to approve the exception passed, with a request to preserve the tree. “I’d rather have the tree gone and have more parking,” Carney said. 

There is still a chase the owners will yet again appear before the commission once the plan is further ahead. 

Earlier, DeFabio, the restaurant operator, had described what’s ahead: “Modern Mex is a refined, full service Mexican restaurant built on discipline, simplicity and execution. It’s not a high volume concept. It’s not a fast turnover restaurant or a traditional large menu operation where you might see combo plate concepts. We’re not offering dozens of combinations designed for speed and volume. We are not building something that relies on constant turnover to succeed.  Instead, we are focused on a tight, curated menu built around quality, consistency and control. That means scratch prepared items using high quality ingredients, a deliberately limited number of dishes so that each item can be executed properly every time it’s going to be a menu that is built around composed plates that reflect a more modern and elevated approach. So, not to say anything bad about Salsa’s or those type of Mexican restaurants, but that’s not what we’re getting here. We’re intentionally avoiding menu bloat, because larger menus don’t create better restaurants. They create inconsistency, and inconsistency can lead to operational stress, slower service and a worse guest experience.”