A public meeting was held last night for the purpose of discussing the
Operating Agreement between the Village of Palmetto Bay and Smokez BBQ aka Pig Floyd, a food establishment located at 7271 SW 168th Street and 7253 SW 168th Street in Palmetto Bay.
Community and Economic Development Director Maria Pineda opened the meeting by welcoming all and explaining the purpose of the meeting. Village Attorney John Dellagloria followed, explaining the intent of the meeting which was for the owners of Smokez BBQ to meet with and hear from the residents of the area and address their concerns. Attorney Dellagloria clarified that the meeting was therefore not for Council member or staff discussion.
During the meeting owners Marc Buoniconti and Pat Sheehey addressed the neighbors’ concerns and issues namely; excessive noise, smoke, and parking issues. Marc and Pat led a presentation for all attendees explaining all concerns and how they planned to mitigate them or are currently mitigating them, which include:
- Installing smoke scrubbing system to reduce impact of smoke on the local community
- Implement a new point of sale system to reduce loudspeaker noise for order alerts
- Installed sound meters and real-time sound displays to ensure compliance with noise level ordinance
- Engaged in a parking agreement with The Deering Estate for additional parking spaces
The owners indicated that the pending items will be in place by the end of April and reaffirmed their commitment to the community and their intent to comply with the operating agreement. “The Village of Palmetto Bay has been very welcoming and very able to approach the business idea,” said Marc Buoniconti. “We want to thank the whole Palmetto Bay community for being so supportive.”
The meeting was then opened for public comments. Approximately 10 comments were submitted by form and 25 others were heard live; with over 20 people speaking in person at Village Hall and 5 in the virtual lobby. Some of the speakers expressed concern primarily over the noise and smoke issues, while others spoke in support of the restaurant, its food and sense of community. Neighbors in the immediate area are expressly against the nightly noise for so many nights weekly and are looking for a resolution to the issue.
Upon the conclusion of the public comment period, Director Pineda addressed the attendees once again explaining the operating agreement between the Village and Smokez BBQ to be implemented. The Village made clear its intent to set timelines for implementing the solutions and its intent to monitor and enforce the Village code as required and needed on behalf of the Village residents.
The Community Meeting allowed everyone the opportunity to voice their concerns as well as the benefits the establishment brings to the community. Manager Marano concluded the meeting by thanking residents and all who came out as well as the Smokez’ owners, Marc and Pat. In Pat’s final comments, he agreed to reduce the number of nights they would play music and made another commitment to work directly with each resident in the area to improve the circumstances surrounding the concerns and issues of the residents. Mayor Karyn Cunningham, Councilman Steve Cody and Councilwoman Marsha Matson were also in attendance.
