- April 16, 2024
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A group of Ormond Beach residents are still fighting to delay the demolition of the 56 N. Beach St. church.
In May, the City Commission voted 3-2 to demolish the church and turn it into a shell parking lot. The city purchased the property in 2018 for $729,000, and the parking lot is estimated to cost $125,579. Community members and organizations — including Ormond MainStreet — have continuously asked the commission to delay the church’s demolition for six months to allow them to find a way to redevelop the property. Only Commissioner Dwight Selby and Mayor Bill Partington voted against. In order for the vote to be reversed, a commissioner who voted in favor of the demolition would have to change his or her mind and call a special meeting.
“I can assure you if I was on the other side of that vote, that I would have flipped my vote just in respect and because I want the community to have the conversation,” Selby said.
Citizens have since started an email campaign. As of Tuesday, June 15, 28 emails have been sent to commissioners, according to the city. The church is undergoing a rodent abatement process, to last about 30 days. A demolition permit has not been issued.
For resident Rita Press, a longtime community activist, the commission owes the citizens the courtesy of hearing them out.
“It’s disrespectful to the citizens of this community when you do it during COVID, no one knows about it, and won’t give us six months to explore options, and there are a great deal many options to be explored,” she said.
Among the parties interested is Salty Church, who have proposed covering the cost to waterproof the building, renovating it, with a vision to lease it from the city to restore it as a church.
Linda Williams, founder of Civil Discourse and Common Ground, said they aren’t taking sides on the issue, but want to bring the community together to figure out a best use for the church. A Civil Discourse meeting will be held at 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 22 at Salty Church, at 221 Vining Court, to discuss the church.
Press said there is enough parking in the downtown and that it’s not a good use of taxpayer dollars.
“Once [the church] is gone, it’s gone forever,” Press said.
The Daytona Truck Meet took place from Friday, June 11 to Sunday, June 13, and in that time, the Daytona Beach Police Department and assisting agencies performed 1,111 traffic stops and issued 940 citations.
That is a 1.68% decrease in traffic stops and a 13.1% increase in citations compared to 2020’s event held in September.
The agencies who assisted DBPD in policing the event include the Volusia Sheriff’s Office, Volusia County Beach Safety and Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
Ormond Beach Police did not have any details that targeted the event, but over the weekend, they did issue 87 citations, 100 warnings and 17 trespass warnings, according to its public information officer.
The Volusia County School Board will review eliminating its uniform dress code at its next meeting on Tuesday, June 22.
If the board chooses to proceed in this direction, the district would advertise the proposed amendments for a fure public hearing.
The Ormond Beach Planning Board meeting on July 8 has been canceled.
