- April 19, 2024
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A pipe empties treated wastewater into the middle of the Halifax River at Melrose Park. Photo by Wayne Grant
The Planning Board, at their Jan. 12 meeting, recommended a land use change and rezoning for land at 1268 W. Granada Blvd. recently annexed into the city by a City Commission vote.
The landowner has expressed interest in extending the Shoppes on Granada plaza which is adjacent to the property on the west side, according to Laureen Kornel, senior planner for the city. A plan for development, called a site plan, has not been submitted.
Ormond Shoppes includes a Panera Bread and Pie Five.
“There are no additional entitlements.”
LAUREEN KORNEL, planner, on rezoning
If approved by the City Commission in two readings, Feb. 21 and March 7, the land use of the 1.75-acre property would be changed from the county’s “urban medium intensity” to the city’s “residential, office, retail.” The zoning would be changed from the county’s “urban single-family residential” to the city’s “suburban boulevard.”
Kornel said commercial development was possible under the county zoning, and state law requires that annexed land receive similar zoning.
“There are no additional entitlements,” she said.
The request for annexation was made by the owner.
The property is located on the south side of West Granada Boulevard about 950 feet east of Seminole Drive. The property was a Volusia County enclave before the annexation, surrounded on all sides by the city of Ormond Beach. Currently, there is a single-family home on the site.
The city has approved a joint participation agreement with the Florida Department of Transportation for the landscaping of North U.S. 1 from Airport Road to Lincoln Avenue.
FDOT will provide $800,000 toward the installation cost. The city is responsible for installing irrigation, at a cost of $200,000. City staff estimates that maintenance of new the median will require $20,000 annually.
Work is expected to begin in November.
This project will complete beautification efforts along the entire North U.S. 1 corridor, the northern gateway to the city, long sought by many government officials and members of the business community. The landscaping from Interstate 95 to Airport Road was completed with a grant from FDOT plus local private and government contributions.
The median on North U.S. 1 is not elevated and serves as stormwater collection for the roadway. For this reason, FDOT standards require that only trees that will not grow larger than four inches in diameter be installed because they need to break away when struck by a vehicle.
The new landscaping project will stop in the Lincoln Avenue area because that’s where a raised median is in place.
Over the past 10 years, the city has had several Joint Participation Agreements with FDOT to fund landscape and irrigation beautification projects on state rights-of way. Projects include landscaping in the medians along Granada Boulevard, Nova Road, State Road A1A and the side slopes of the Granada Bridge.
The city is seeking bids for replacement of the wastewater outflow pipe that enters the Halifax River at Melrose Avenue. The estimated cost is $720,000.
The pipe extends 1,000 feet into the middle of the river to empty the effluent into the channel, the deepest part of the river.
The city produces about 32 million gallons of wastewater every week, and about 27 million gallons are reused for irrigation. That leaves about five million gallons every week that is released into the river after being treated to standards set by Florida Dept. of Environmental Protection. An FDEP spokeswoman said the standards depend on the quality of the local groundwater and are set so the discharge has minimum negative effect.
The outfall pipe has several broken sections and has become separated from the diffuser at the end of the pipe. The result is that the treated effluent is now released in the shallow water before the channel and creates a large boil.
A diffuser lessens the impact of the water; for example a hard flow could cause scouring.
The pipe was installed 44 years ago when the wastewater treatment plant on Wilmette Avenue was constructed. The new pipe will be 36-inch high-density polyethylene piping
This project was budgeted in the city’s five-year Capital Improvement Program for construction this fiscal year.
