- October 5, 2026
The Flagler County Planning and Development Board unanimously denied a special exception for the long-planned Shape of Water restaurant in the Hammock on Sept. 8, with parking and the viability of the site plan at the center of the board’s concerns.
The denial was without prejudice, meaning owner Brent Bruns can return with a new application and revised plan. Immediately afterward, the board unanimously approved a portion of a related variance request that will allow two existing structures on the property to remain within required setbacks.
The restaurant is planned for a 0.58-acre property at 5047 N. Ocean Shore Blvd. The project, owned by Hammock Enterprises LLC, was the subject of two separate requests before the board: a special exception allowing the restaurant and variances involving setbacks, a landscape buffer and outdoor seating.
Bruns has been working on the elaborate themed restaurant for years. The Observer reported in 2024 that Shape of Water was being designed as an intimate dining experience featuring waterfalls, lazy rivers, sculpted rocks and trees, a grotto and other handcrafted features. Bruns said at the time that French cuisine would be at the center of the menu.
County staff told the board that the property was originally granted a special exception for restaurant use in 2018. The approval however, was tied specifically to Hammock Enterprises LLC. When the property was transferred to Bruns in 2019, the special exception expired. County staff did not discover the issue until learning that special events were being advertised at the property. Bruns transferred the property back to Hammock Enterprises in April, but the original special exception remained expired, requiring him to apply for a new one.
The new proposal would convert a home built in 1959 into a commercial kitchen while preserving a cottage dating to 1940. The property also includes cave structures, waterfalls, faux trees, a lagoon with bridges, elevated structures and an outdoor gastropub.
Parking became the central issue during the nearly two-hour discussion.
Staff said the plan provides 10 parking spaces, limiting the restaurant to 350 square feet of seating area under county parking requirements. Staff proposed restricting the restaurant to three four-top tables, five two-top tables and three bar stools.
Bruns told the board the restaurant would operate by reservation and would focus on small parties.
“This is sweetheart dining. This is twos and fours reservation only,” Bruns said. He said the restaurant would schedule three reservation periods each evening and described the project as a high-end French restaurant. He also said he eventually hopes to acquire additional property for parking.
Bruns said he has spent eight years building the restaurant and estimated that he has put about 21,000 hours of his own labor into the project. He said the current permitting issue stemmed from the way the original special exception was approved.
Several nearby residents opposed the restaurant during the public hearing, raising concerns about parking, traffic, noise and the potential effect on the surrounding neighborhood.
One resident whose family owns property in the adjoining neighborhood said she feared customers would end up parking along roads, grass or sidewalks when the restaurant's spaces were full.
“We see a lot of problems that can occur from this restaurant going in,” she said. She also raised concerns about emergency access, lighting and music from the property.
Another speaker, representing Scenic A1A PRIDE, said the limited parking could create a traffic hazard along A1A. He also questioned how delivery trucks could be accommodated at the property.
“This is a huge traffic safety problem in a 50 mile per hour zone on a curve,” he said. He argued that insufficient on-site parking could push vehicles onto the Scenic Byway.
A resident who lives directly behind the proposed restaurant also raised concerns about overflow parking reaching the neighborhood and amplified music from events at the property.
“There's no parking there. So the overflow is coming over to us and we're dealing with it,” he said. He told the board he had heard amplified music during events at the property.
Another speaker questioned whether a reservation system would prevent parking problems if walk-in customers arrived or diners stayed beyond their scheduled reservation.
“Talk about a reservation system all you want, but any business person knows that, you know, it's hard to say no to like walk-in customers,” he said. He also raised concerns about customers potentially parking across A1A and crossing the road on foot.
Bruns disputed concerns that restaurant customers would park in the neighborhood behind the property, saying there was little available space there for vehicles. He also told the board that boats, a tent and other items currently on the property would have to be removed to make room for the planned parking area.
The board ultimately voted unanimously to deny the special exception because of concerns about parking and whether the site could realistically support the restaurant. The denial does not prevent Bruns from coming back with a revised plan.
The denial passed 5-0.
Board approves limited setback variances
The board then considered Bruns' related variance application.
Because the restaurant special exception had just been denied, staff said two portions of the original variance request — involving the 40-foot front landscape buffer and the outdoor seating requirement — no longer applied. Those issues could return if Bruns submits another special exception application for the restaurant.
That left two setback requests. One involved the outdoor gastropub structure, which staff said was built without a permit and required a 7-foot variance from the minimum 10-foot south-side setback. The other involved the cottage dating to 1940, which required a 22-foot variance from the minimum 25-foot rear setback.
Staff said the cottage predates the county's Land Development Code. The gastropub structure did not, but staff said the applicant appeared to have acted in good faith based on his understanding that structures could be placed in line with the existing cottage.
The board approved the setback variances, allowing the two existing structures to stay where they are. The approval only applies to those structures and does not allow new structures to be built within the setback area.
The variance passed unanimously, 5-0.
The decision leaves Shape of Water without the special exception needed to operate as a restaurant, but Bruns can return to the county with another proposal addressing the concerns that led to the denial.
