The City of Marathon’s Planning Commission recently gave its stamp of approval for two projects in Marathon: a new 5,200-square-foot convenience store and gas station where the Circle K and boarded up Burger King are now, and a 15,200-square-foot research and education center for the Florida Keys Aquarium Encounters. The Marathon City Council will hear about both projects, and give the final yay or nay, at a future meeting.
There’s also a glimmer of interest in the former Kmart store in Marathon. Floor & Decor has submitted a request to the City of Marathon for a “pre-application concept meeting,” though a date has not been set. A spokesperson for the company, headquartered in Georgia, declined to comment. Floor & Decor has multiple locations in South Florida and sells flooring as well as bathroom cabinets, sinks and shower doors.
Circle K
The Circle K Corporation has submitted plans for a large convenience store and 14 self-service fuel pumps on the east end of Marathon. The project would spread across Circle K’s current location, as well as the former Burger King that has been boarded up since Hurricane Irma in 2017. The convenience store would be constructed at the back of the Burger King lot, with the gas pumps in front. The plans show open space, or maybe a stormwater retention pond, close to the Coldwell Banker Schmitt building, with the new construction on the other, east, side of the lot.
Earlier this year, the Marathon Council gave its approval for a similar convenience store and gas station — this one owned by RaceTrac — to be constructed across Overseas Highway from Marathon Community Park, where Fairway Market and other businesses like South Sea Boat Trailers are now.
Aquarium
The plan for a new education and research center for the Florida Keys Aquarium Encounters is generating interest, especially among homeowners of Seawatch condominiums. The aquarium plans to build a two-story 15,200-square foot building on the land it owns between its current developed attraction and the condos, all of it fronting Vaca Cut.
“This is Phase 2 of Aquarium Encounters,” said principal Ben Daughtry. “This has been a dream of mine and will increase the variety of things we can do.”
Daughtry said the new space would have office space, holding tanks for live animals and space for coral restoration and propagation. It would also feature a classroom and wet lab where kids and adults can learn.
“It would also give us more room to work with manatees, work that we have been doing for the past two or three years,” Daughtry said.
In order to avoid disturbing the wetland environment, the aquarium has asked for a variance on the setback from 50 feet to an average of 25 feet surrounding the building it proposes to build. According to the city, it has approved similar variances for Fishermen’s Community Hospital and Coco Plum Wastewater.
Daughtry and the board of the Seawatch Condominium Association have already been in talks.
“We know what Ben wants to do and we just don’t support this activity and this structure in that location at all,” said George Conniff, president of the association. “The structure is not tiny … and it will be located 15 feet from our fence and about 55 feet from one of our towers. It will totally change the pastoral nature of our community.”
Conniff said the board has questions that can’t be answered because there is no architectural plan submitted at the time of the City of Marathon Planning Commission decision, nor is it required. The board also has concerns about parking, traffic and impact to flora and fauna, he said.
Daughtry said the plans aren’t finalized but the new building design will be in keeping with its mission — research and education — but not like the tiki buildings currently on site.
“It won’t be a tiki hut. We’re envisioning ocean or earth tones to blend in with the environment,” he said.
Florida Keys Aquarium Encounters opened in the summer of 2014. Dynasty Marine, its sister company that is permitted to capture and sell live marine animals to entities such as aquariums, was formed 38 years ago. Daughtry said the aquarium is on track to receive 60,000 visitors this year. The expansion would not attract more visitors.
“It’s just something more to explore while at our facility,” he said. Daughtry said he would like to build a wooden walkway over the wetlands to connect the two parts of the aquarium.
Conniff said Daughtry is well-liked in Marathon and has its support. “Ben has the advantage in these circumstances, politically,” Conniff said. “But I think there are a plethora of reasons to give us a good legal argument.”
Conniff said the board is undecided whether to air those legal arguments at the upcoming Marathon Council meeting.
“I’ve spent my adult life at Dynasty Marine and the aquarium in order to help educate the public about the amazing creatures that we have here in the Florida Keys. That reputation has been attacked on social media since the Phase 2 has become public,” Daughtry said. “I hope that my more than four decades of living in the Keys, plus three decades working to help educate tens of thousands of people, doesn’t get lost in the comments from the keyboard warrior, social media world we live in today.”
