- May 10, 2024
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A Caliber Car Wash is coming to the southeast corner of State Road 100 and John Anderson Highway in Flagler Beach.
"Everything we've asked them — architecturally, landscape-wise, building orientation-wise — they've accommodated the city."
— LARRY TORINO, city planner
Despite some opposition from area residents, Flagler Beach city commissioners voted unanimously at a March 24 meeting to approve a site plan application for the proposed car wash.
Resident concerns, City Planner Larry Torino said, were related to three issues: noise, access into the facility, and the orientation of the building.
Each has been addressed, Torino said.
A noise study showed a decibel level below 65 at a point 70 feet from the car wash tumble, and "virtually zero" at the property line, he said.
Even so, he said, the city had encouraged Caliber to reverse the orientation of the building so that the exit of the tunnel would face S.R. 100 rather than nearby homes. Caliber had complied.
"Everything we've asked them — architecturally, landscape-wise, building orientation-wise — they've accommodated the city," Torino said.
Since John Anderson Highway is a county road, Torino said, the city and Caliber have coordinated with the county's planning department as well.
One resident, Angela Smith, spoke at the meeting, saying she though the car wash would bring too much traffic to the area.
"How will the traffic continue to be safe for bike riders and pedestrians with the increased traffic?" she said "... We are creating more traffic without making the necessary structural changes to support the customer base that Flagler Beach wishes to attract."
City Commissioner Ken Bryan asked whether cars entering the car wash property might stack up back onto John Anderson Highway.
Caliber Director of Development Dan Brown said that Caliber expects 26 cars per hour at peak hours, and that the car wash will be able to accommodate a line of cars 18 vehicles long between the entrance to the car wash station and the driveway.
But the business wouldn't want such a long line, he said.
"If you think about a Chick-fil-A and how quickly and efficiently they operate their drive-thru, that's our priority — it's more getting the cars, customers, in and out, not so much the best cleaning that's out there," Brown said. "More the convenience — quick in and out."
There will be three basic wash options, he said, and about 70% of guests have a membership. For members, a license plate reader will read their plate and promptly let them through.
"The expectation is you're consistently moving, you're not stopping and waiting on somebody to make a transaction," Brown said.
A bypass lane will allow people to exit immediately before the tunnel if they decide at the last minute that they don't want to enter.
Commissioner James Sherman asked about the possibility of adding a turn lane to prevent traffic from backing up.
Torino said that the car wash's expected impact on traffic is negligible.
Commissioner Ken Bryan asked whether the entrance area would be wide enough to add a turn lane if one is ever needed. Torino said that it is.
Torino said he was aware of resident concerns about the car wash's potential impacts on the nearby residential area, but that the property is zoned for commercial development and has been for many years.
"It has very liberal uses attached to it that are unrestricted, permitted uses by right," Torino said. "All it has to do is to be consistent and compliant to the requirements of our land development code. There's no other reason to to deny."
Bryan said he'd had some concerns about the car wash proposal, but trusted Torino's judgement and decisions.
"I think they're all in the best interest of Flagler Beach," Bryan said. "And though they may not always satisfy everyone, we do the best that we can in order to do what is right and what is legal. ... This is something, as a commercial property, that has a number of different kinds of uses, and I think this is probably one of the best."
