- April 26, 2024
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Officials from Volusia County and its cities will work toward a compromise before any community redevelopment areas changes occur.
BY MATT MENCARINI | STAFF WRITER
The Volusia County Council voted for a 60-day continuance before making changes to the designations of some of its community redevelopment areas, including two in Ormond Beach.
Before the item returns to the county's agenda, June 6, officials will attempt find a compromise that won't negatively impact any municipality.
Joshua Wagner, the county's District 2 representative, proposed the continuance, saying he wanted to preserve the relationship with the cities without doing “catastrophic” damage to the County Council 10 years down the road
Doug Daniels, Ormond Beach’s District 4 representative, supported the continuance, explaining that CRAs are one of the few economic tools that cities have, and counties have to recognize and appreciate that.
The only restrictions that should be applied to CRAs, Daniels said, are measures to ensure that CRA funds are not being used to supplement a city's general fund.
But Ormond Beach officials are concerned with the county's proposed formula, which would reduce the amount of funds cities receive for areas in need of restructuring and improvement.
Mayor Ed Kelley was critical of the formula, calling it “ill-conceived."
“Blight is not going to heal itself,” he said. “A distressed area is not going to heal itself.”
He added that the county is overlooking the benefit it gets from redevelopment within cities. Property values rise. The county, as a whole, becomes more stable.
Daniels echoed that the proposed formula wasn’t favorable to cities.
Any change to the CRA process could put the a potential CRA designation of the North U.S. 1 corridor in jeopardy. Blight in that area and a potential CRA designation were discussed during a Planning Board meeting in October and a City Commission meeting in November.
