- December 13, 2025
AdventHealth's proposed off-site emergency department project on North U.S. 1 in Ormond Beach took a step forward on Thursday, Nov. 13.
In a 5-0 vote, the Ormond Beach Planning Board approved a zoning map amendment and a development order for a new standalone ED, which will span about 13,451 square feet on a 2.47-acre site near the U.S. 1 and I-95 interchange at 1561 N. U.S. 1. The one-story ED will have 12 beds and a helipad.
AdventHealth is projecting a 2026 buildout for the project.
"I think it's an advantage, especially as our traffic situations are getting worse on our road structures," Planning Board member Al Jorzcak said of the ED. "Having a facility that has the capability of reaching an accident scene quicker is obviously, where minutes and seconds count, a very positive thing for our community."
The property previously housed a Wendy's and a gas station, both of which have since been demolished. According to the Volusia County Property Appraiser, AdventHealth Daytona Beach purchased the vacant parcel earlier this year on Jan. 6, for $2.375 million.
Though the property is currently zoned B-7 Highway Tourist Commercial — in which an emergency department is an allowed use — AdventHealth is seeking a zoning change to a Planned Business Development.
The project came before the Planning Board with a recommendation to approve by the city's Site Plan Review Committee, with the exception of denial of a signage waiver to allow a 12-foot monument sign along the intersection of Rosemary Street and North U.S. 1; the SPRC recommended maintaining the city's 8-foot monument signage standard, according to the staff report.
"At the site plan meeting, they stated it was based on corporate branding," City Planning Director Steven Spraker said. "The need to have the use be easily identified from the roadway."
Attorney Jessica Gow, of Cobb Cole, represented AdventHealth at the Planning Board meeting. She said that the site requires visibility from the interchange and from going down U.S. 1 for emergency vehicles and patients, in light of other large business signs and the proximity to the interchange.
"The goal of this signage is to say, 'This is where you need to be when you have an emergency,'" Gow said.
Planning Board members were OK with the taller sign.
"Being a hospital, I think it's warranted," Board member Michael Gentry said.
The closest hospital to the proposed new ED location is 14 minutes away, Gow said. AdventHealth Palm Coast is seven miles away and AdventHealth Daytona Beach is 11.
"When you're looking at medical emergencies and facilities to serve those patients, where minutes save lives, they (AdventHealth) think that this is a key corridor to be in for the Ormond Beach population," Gow said.
She added that the site went through remediation with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection in the past for petroleum impacts and some more remediation may be needed. As such, AdventHealth has entered into an agreement with DEP to clean up the site under the Florida Brownfield Program.
"We'd like to see this act as a catalyst for the remainder of the U.S. 1 corridor, especially with the interchange improvements," Gow said.
The design phase for the new I-95 interchange at U.S. 1 is underway by the Florida Department of Transportation and is expected to be completed in fall 2026. Construction is estimated at $219 million and slated to begin in fall 2027.
