- April 25, 2024
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Dear Editor:
Thank you to all candidates for sacrificing your time campaigning to become a servant of the people. Thank you for adding choice on our ballots — always a good thing. I appreciate your ear glued to the voices of the voters. Thank you for offering solutions.
And to my fellow voters, thank you for giving your time to listen to candidates. The more informed decisions we make on November 8th the better government we get in the years ahead. Thank you.
Joe Hannoush
Ormond Beach
Editor's note: Joe Hannoush is a candidate in the District 6 U.S. Representative race.
Dear Editor:
In reference to the recent letter to the Editor regarding the future Avalon Park project, I remember the vote 20 years ago very well regarding the 2,000 acres west of I-95 as I was the executive director of the Ormond Beach Chamber at the time. Many of our members felt that giving up control of the 2,000 acres along State Road 40 across the street from Breakaway Trails and Hunter’s Ridge was not in the best interest of Ormond Beach. That certainly seems to be the case today.
The St. Johns River Water Management District, an environmental regulatory agency of the state of Florida, is the final authority regarding development projects involving wetlands. If I am correct, the request from the landowner was not to “abolish” the city’s wetland rules, but to adjust some rules to be in sync with the St. John’s River Water Management District, as all other nearby cities were guided by the district. The SJRWMD protected all functioning wetlands and allowed some mitigation as long as it was within the same basin.
I attended the Daytona City Commission Meeting when the owner of the land asked Daytona to annex the land and he specifically stated that he was done with Ormond Beach and did not want to work with them anymore. That night we lost control of the 2,000 acres that should have been in Ormond Beach and in the future we would not have a say in the development of it.
Many of us felt that the majority of the City Commission at the time “gambled with the owner” and lost as they didn’t think that the owner would give up his “Ormond Beach” brand for the property.
I find it hard to believe that a former commissioner is actually proud of the way that he handled and voted “no” on this issue and would do the same thing again. If he had voted to annex this land, we definitely would have had control over how Avalon Park is developed. I am afraid he won a battle but lost the war for the citizens of Ormond Beach.
Peggy Farmer
Ormond Beach
