Homeless Shelter Annex And Ocean Center Parking Agreement Approved By City

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Daytona Beach, FL - Update: Daytona Beach may now move forward with the construction phase of the First Step Homeless Shelter, and the City now has an agreement with Volusia County over Ocean Center Parking.

On Wednesday, The Daytona Beach City Commission approved 7-0 the Interlocal Service Boundary Agreement for the City to annex and develop the 663 acres of land that is expected to be used for the site of the 100-bed, 24-hour First Step Homeless Shelter off of International Speedway.

"This First Step program with this shelter is wonderful. It will get the people off the street that don't want to be on the street," said Volusia resident Doyle Lewis.

Now that the annex for the shelter has been approved, the shelter is expected to open at the end of this year or early next year.

Later during Wednesday's meeting, The City also unanimously approved its agreement with the County over parking at Ocean Center, the 200,000 square foot tourism center at 101 N. Atlantic Ave in Daytona Beach.

The City will be allowed to use the south lot for Peabody Auditorium events when the lot is not needed for Ocean Center events. The City will also be able to use the Main St. parking lot for any purpose as long as it is not needed for an Ocean Center event, and it would not owe any money to the County for use of the lot.

Commissioner Kelly White said the agreement over the use of the Main Street lot could be a step in the right direction for new opportunities to plan for city events. "As we move forward, we really need to think about how we orient buildings and excitement to (Main) street. We really need to think about keeping and livening the pedestrian experience on those streets because that's really how they were built," said White.

Earlier Reporting:

The Daytona Beach City Commission meets Wednesday night, and two major items on the agenda are a plan to annex the land that is expected to be the future site of the First Step Homeless Shelter and an agreement over Ocean Center parking.

The City plans to adopt an ordinance in order to annex and develop approximately 663 acres of land that is currently owned by the City in the unincorporated area of Volusia County. That property is planned for the construction of the 100-bed, 24-hour-hour, full-service homeless shelter off of International Speedway.

Funding for the shelter is already in place. Both the City and the County have committed to contributing $400,000 for the next five years toward the project, and the County has committed to fronting an initial $2.5 million for construction costs.

The annex of the land for the project is all part of an Interlocal Service Boundary Agreement (ISBA) between the City and the County. The ISBA says that the City would be responsible for providing law enforcement and fire services for the shelter. The City would also have the authority to plan for the shelter and issue building permits. The City is expected to approve the agreement on Wednesday.

For earlier reporting on the First Step Shelter agreements between the City and the County, click here.

Another item on the agenda for Wednesday night is an agreement between the City of Daytona Beach and the County over uses and money flow for the parking areas at Ocean Center, the 200,000 square foot tourism center at 101 N. Atlantic Ave in Daytona Beach.

The agreement allows the City to use the south lot for Peabody Auditorium events when the lot is not needed for Ocean Center events. It would also allow the City to use the Main St. lot for any city purpose, as long as the lot is not needed for an Ocean Center event. The City would be responsible for all operations and costs but would not owe any money to the County for use of the Main Street lot.

This agreement would confirm an understanding and cooperation between the City and County over the lots. The County has already approved its version of the agreement at its meeting June 15, and the City Commission is expected to approve its version Wednesday night.

For earlier reporting on the agreement over Ocean Center parking, click here.

Copyright Southern Stone Communications 2017.

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