The former Brick Pizza Hut location and a car-dog wash combination in Largo, Fla. (Photos: Shorebeat)
A developer in Brick is looking to bring a concept that was born in Europe, and made its way to Florida and some other states, to town – one stop washing for your four wheels as well as your four-legged best friend.
Indeed, an application to build a “car and dog wash” has been proposed for a hearing before the township’s zoning board later this month. Cornerstone South Brick LLC, which according to state business records is owned by township resident Robert Viani, will pitch the unique business idea to the board at its June 19 meeting.
The business would operate at 320 Brick Boulevard, a former Pizza Hut restaurant, near the intersection of the busy roadway and Lake Shore Way. According to a notice announcing the hearing, the company plans to develop the property with a car wash building, a structure of approximately 4,605 square feet, with improvements including vacuum equipment and dog wash, together with related site improvements such as parking spaces, signage, and landscaping.
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The application for the business must receive a “supermajority” of support before the zoning board, also known as the Board of Adjustment, since the distinctive dual-use enterprise is not specifically authorized to operate in the B-2 business zone. Thus, it requires a use variance for both the business idea itself as well as having two uses for a business on a single property. There are also a number of more minor “bulk” variances having to do with the layout of the parcel of land on which the establishment is proposed to the built.
A ‘dog wash’ at the Classic Car Wash in Largo, Fla. (Photo: Shorebeat)
Car-and-dog washes may be new to Brick, but they do exist elsewhere. A number of articles found online attribute the idea as having originated in Spain, which was where a company first introduced a fully-automated dog wash next to a similarly-automated car wash. Like a car wash, a (human) customer places his or her dog in an open-air basin and selects the type of wash their dog needs – from a simple wash, to a more “heavy duty” wash after a day in the mud or at the beach, or even an anti-flea and tick rinse.
The car-and-dog wash will take up approximately 4,605 square feet and include a vehicle vacuum area in addition to the two types of washes.
In the United States, the idea was first popularized in Florida, with one of the first businesses of its kind opening in Largo, Fla. in 2013. That business still exists today, and is pictured with this story.
A ‘dog wash’ at the Classic Car Wash in Largo, Fla. (Photo: Shorebeat)
A ‘dog wash’ at the Classic Car Wash in Largo, Fla. (Photo: Shorebeat)
A ‘dog wash’ at the Classic Car Wash in Largo, Fla. (Photo: Shorebeat)
Many of the variances the business must obtain have to do with the location of proposed parking areas, which would be located 7-feet from the highway right-of-way versus 20 feet as required, and locating a driveway 76 feet from an intersection instead of the 100 feet that is normally required. Variance relief is also required for flashing signs, signs with neon-style colors, and the general setup and number of signs traditionally located within a car wash that is not required for most other types of businesses.
According to an article that appeared on Patch.com about 10 years ago, the Spanish-based company that manufactures automated dog washes began approaching car wash owners to mate the two ideas together. In Tampa Bay area, where dogs commonly accompany their owners for days out on the boat and bay beaches – similar to the Jersey Shore – the idea caught on, with the owner of two car washes in Clearwater and Largo having adopted the concept.
For $7, a dog gets a 14-minute-long wash that includes up to four stages, the article said, including a shampoo, an option to add flea and tick remover, followed by a rinse and blow dry.
In Brick, the car wash would operate as most traditional car washes do.
The 1.4-acre site which housed the former pizza restaurant chain was sold for $1.5 million last fall. The existing building on the site was constructed in 1992.
A hearing before the zoning board on the application will be heard June 19, 2024, at 7 p.m. at the township municipal complex.
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