Flagler County is challenging Bunnell’s approval of a proposed 610-acre Class I landfill near County Road 45 and State Road 100, turning a local land-use decision into a broader dispute over review, notice and the limits of municipal authority. County commissioners unanimously agreed to pursue an appeal of the Bunnell Planning, Zoning, and Appeals Board’s approval, according to WKMG.
Flagler County and Palm Coast lacked input or awareness before the vote. The application was handled internally by city staff, FlaglerLive reported. The county’s appeal now places the approval within Bunnell’s municipal review process; the precise legal outcome remains unresolved.
What the appeal can—and cannot—decide
Under Bunnell’s land-development process, the planning board’s decision was subject to administrative appeal. FlaglerLive states that the Planning, Zoning, and Appeals Board’s approval would be the final regulatory stop; an appeal to the Bunnell City Commission was available if the board rejected the application. If the city upholds the approval, Flagler County has said it may pursue Florida’s Chapter 164 dispute-resolution process before considering litigation, according to Observer Local News.
That procedural fight is separate from the technical approvals still required for construction. The special exception does not itself authorize landfill construction. The project would still face several additional steps before construction, Observer Local News reported.
A large project in a regional waste market
The proposed facility would include a 390-acre active disposal area, leachate storage tanks and landfill-gas flares, according to FlaglerLive. Plans place portions of the project near public roads and homes, while residents have raised concerns about groundwater, traffic, odors, agriculture and property values, WKMG reported. Those concerns are allegations and projected risks in the local dispute, not findings that the project would cause environmental harm.
The project also fits into a wider state waste-disposal system. A 2025 Florida Department of Environmental Protection capacity report includes a section on Class I landfills. That broader context does not establish a need for, or approve, the Bunnell facility.
The decision is still several steps away
Bunnell city staff recommended 20 conditions in pre-vote material. The economic benefits cited by the applicant—including projected construction spending and operating jobs—remain part of the debate rather than a guarantee that the facility will be built.
For now, the immediate question is whether Bunnell’s approval survives the county’s administrative challenge. Even if it does, the landfill would still need additional local and state reviews. The record described in the available reporting does not establish when those reviews would occur, whether the project would receive environmental permits, or whether construction will ultimately begin.
