Italian eatery and Jacksonville staple V Pizza has filed an application with St. Johns County to open a new location in Palm Valley.
According to V Pizza owner Paul Scott, who invested in the overall brand with a business partner five years ago, the restaurant is still going through the “permitting phase” and is estimated to open in nine months. Scott said neighboring establishments are behind the V Pizza project and the permitting process has gone smoothly.
As written in a Neighborhood Bill of Rights notification, the business’ application with the county is for a “major modification to the Canal Boulevard Shops PUD to add restaurants (V Pizza) as an allowable use, revise waivers and provide for changes to the MDP text and map.” The major modification would amend the MDP map to change the overall site development configuration and reduce the building footprint from 8,100 square feet in two structures to 5,600 square feet in one structure.
Scott, a Ponte Vedra native, said he "stepped in" and offered to purchase the lot so he can open a business that would serve as an homage to Palm Valley.
"I live on Roscoe Boulevard," he said. "The exact lot that we're building on is already approved for a PUD with two commercial buildings on it.”
The address of the new V Pizza location would be at 154 Canal Blvd., between North Roscoe Boulevard and North Wilderness Trail, according to the county document.
The business’ application is set to go before the St. Johns County Planning and Zoning Agency Thursday, Feb. 15.
Story of V Pizza
The idea for V Pizza was born after a family trip to Italy.
"My business partner and I had taken our moms to Italy — just a family trip — we had a great time," Scott said. "We ate pizza and when we came back we talked constantly at how great the pizza was, the ingredients, how beautiful the oven was."
Later, Scott said he and his business partner were approached by someone looking for financial support for a pizza restaurant idea. After speaking with his partner, the two agreed to finance the business if they could offer authentic, Italian-style pizzas.
"We opened thinking we'd have maybe two or something," Scott said, "but the popularity of it has grown."
The most unique aspect of V Pizza, Scott said, is that the restaurant offers pizza made with ingredients imported straight from Italy.
"Every pizza that's served — approximately 85 to 90 percent of everything about that pizza comes from Italy," Scott said.
For more information on V Pizza, visit www.vpizza.com.
