- October 5, 2026
The proposed Project Butterfly landfill returned to Bunnell City Hall on Sept. 14, this time before the City Commission, as several residents urged city leaders to stop the project.
But commissioners did not discuss the landfill during their first meeting since the Bunnell Planning, Zoning and Appeals Board voted 3-1 on Sept. 1 to approve a special exception for the proposed Class 1 landfill.
Project Butterfly was not on the City Commission's Sept. 14 agenda, and the residents' concerns were raised during the meeting's general public comment period.
After the speakers finished, Bunnell Mayor Catherine Robinson told the audience that commissioners had listened to their concerns but would not respond because the issue was not before the board.
"It is not on our agenda, so we are not going to discuss the landfill," Robinson said. "But certainly we are listening to what you had to say, and it's the first time this has come up to us."
Residents raised concerns about the landfill's potential effects on nearby farms, groundwater and Bunnell's rural character.
Brittany Kinney, whose family has farmed in the area for generations, asked the commission to support an appeal of the PZA's decision. Kinney said her family's farmland is near the proposed landfill and argued that the project conflicts with Bunnell's efforts to preserve agricultural land.
"Our rural way of life is being threatened,"Kinney said. She asked commissioners to protect nearby residents on well water and thousands of acres of surrounding farmland.
Other speakers questioned whether the landfill fits the community's vision for Bunnell. Chelsea Herbert, the lone PZA member to vote against the special exception on Sept. 1, spoke as a Bunnell resident and business owner.
Herbert said residents are frustrated with the direction of development in the city and said growth does not have to come at the expense of Bunnell's identity.
"This is not who we want to be," Herbert said. "We can grow and we can develop responsibly in a direction that is beneficial and increase economic vitality and creates jobs without being a dump."
The PZA approved Project Butterfly's special exception after a packed Sept. 1 meeting in which residents and Flagler County officials raised concerns about groundwater, agriculture, traffic, odors and the amount of time the public had to review the proposal.
The project calls for a Class 1 landfill on approximately 610 acres at 518 County Road 45 west of Bunnell. The property is currently used as a sod farm and is zoned Agriculture and Silviculture. City staff has said a solid waste management facility can be considered on the property through the special exception process.
The PZA approved the special exception 3-1, with Herbert casting the lone dissenting vote. The approval does not allow construction to begin. The project would still need additional state permitting and city approvals, including major site plan approval.
While commissioners did not debate Project Butterfly on Sept. 14, the controversy surrounding the Sept. 1 hearing surfaced again later in the meeting when Bunnell Police Chief Dave Brannon raised security concerns.
Brannon said the PZA meeting became contentious and emotional and that, at the end of the meeting, a man sitting in the front row attempted to rush toward the dais.
"I had to physically get in the way and stop him from doing that," Brannon said.
Brannon asked commissioners to consider placing a physical barrier, such as retractable stanchions, near the dais to make clear that members of the public are not permitted to approach it.
He said residents have a constitutional right to address their government but that the city also has an obligation to protect commissioners, board members and staff.
"What I can't do is let folks get physically violent with our commissioners, board members or other staff that are here because they don't like the issues," Brannon said.
Robinson told Brannon the commission would take the request under advisement.
The landfill issue is expected to come before the City Commission through another route. Earlier on Sept. 14, the Flagler County Commission reached a consensus to appeal the PZA's approval of the special exception. The appeal will send the matter to the Bunnell City Commission for review. County commissioners cited concerns about compatibility, comprehensive plan issues and the limited amount of time the county had to review the proposal before the Sept. 1 hearing.
