ORLANDO, Fla. — A section of A1A in Flagler County shut down due to a washout over the weekend is back open, but concerns remain among homeowners and business owners along Flagler Beach.  

Heavy rain on Sunday forced FDOT to close that section of roadway, and it remained closed for more than 24 hours.

What You Need To Know

  • A section of A1A in Flagler County shutdown due to a washout over the weekend is back open, but concerns remain among homeowners and business owners along Flagler Beach

  • Heavy rain on Sunday forced FDOT to close that section of roadway, and it remained closed for more than 24 hours

  • The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers is planning a major renourishment project over 2.6 miles of coastline in the area, which is expected to begin by early 2024

  • There was also a section of A1A in Ormond-By-the-Sea that closed due to a washout on Sunday, but FDOT reports that section of A1A was also reopened

FDOT crews were able to build the sand and dirt back up along the roadway, but it’s far from a permanent fix.  This entire coastline is remains vulnerable until a major project can get underway to rebuild the entire section of coastline.

Jamie Bourdeau values each and every customer, mostly locals, who come into Beachfront Grill in Flagler Beach.

“They mean the world to us, they’re all friendly people and they’re nice,” said Bourdeau.

But getting to his restaurant on A1A has been interesting for his customers at times over the last several years due to storms and washouts. 

The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers is planning a major renourishment project over 2.6 miles of coastline in the area, but private property owners impacted all had to sign off on the project. 

Bordeau says it’s taken a while for all the individual property owners to sign off on the project.

“Hopefully it will be sooner rather than later,” said Bourdeau.  “I think all the pieces are in place for the first time ever - we’re just waiting for everything to finally happen.”

In the nine years he’s owned his bar and restaurant, he says several storms have taken a toll on his building.  A battered roof will be replaced soon.

“They say it’s just another day in paradise – well paradise comes at a cost,” said Bourdeau.

“And so there’s days where you wonder if that thing is going to breach.”

His eyes are focused on the beach, and when work will begin to add more protection between the water and his business.

“Hopefully we can get that done and get it to where the beach is stable, and we stop losing the erosion that goes with it,” said Bourdeau.

Bourdeau says the beach renourishment project is expected to begin in either late 2023 or early 2024.  So he and many others in the area are crossing their fingers the area doesn’t get hit with any major storms before then.

There was also a section of A1A in Ormond-By-the-Sea that closed due to a washout on Sunday, but FDOT reports that section of A1A was also reopened.