- February 4, 2026
The Tomoka Commerce Park development is not a self-storage project, city officials say. It'll bring new commercial uses to the North U.S. 1 corridor, and provide warehouse and office space for small businesses.
"Think about your plumbers, your contractors — people that services we rely on," Mayor Jason Leslie said at the Ormond Beach City Commission meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 3. "
At the meeting, the commission unanimously approved a development order on second reading for Tomoka Commerce Park at 890 N. U.S. 1. Developer Scott Vanacore will construct 11 buildings on the 12-acre property, to span a total of about 110,270 square feet. The buildings fronting U.S. 1 will have commercial uses; the ones in the back of the property will have a mixture of light industrial and warehouse uses.
The commission previously approved the project in a 4-0 vote during its first hearing on Jan. 20, as Commissioner Harold Briley was absent. Now present, he said he was comfortable with the project.
"There are a lot of other developments that are allowed by right," Briley said. "... He (the developer) wouldn't have to come to this commission and ask. He wouldn't have to go to the Planning Board or City Commission, and build by right."
The property is already zoned as a Planned Business Development and had two prior development orders, one in 1999 and one in 2007. Both were for commerce parks.
Some citizens were concerned over Tomoka Commerce Park development, citing wetland impacts, traffic and potential flooding. Some also argued, particularly on social media, that the city has enough storage units.
So commissioners sought clarification: Are the rear buildings going to have self-storage?
"It has to be offices with a warehouse component to it where small businesses can use it," said Steve Buswell, a project manager with Parker Mynchenberg and Associates. " ... So to my knowledge, they're not the typical mini storage warehouse that you get from other facilities."
No resident spoke against the project at the meeting. The only public speakers were the same ones that spoke in favor of the commerce park at the first reading.
Commissioner Travis Sargent did read into the record an email he received by a resident, Robin Magleora, one of the founders of Protect Volusia. The nonprofit advocacy group has been vocal in its opposition to the project. Magleora asked the commission table the vote to conduct more research to "prove the need" for the commerce park, and provided insight on current occupancy in existing self-storage buildings.
Sargent said he appreciated Magleora taking the time to look into the issue, but that they were "comparing apples to oranges."
"These are not storage facilities," Sargent said. "They're light industrial buildings for small business owners."
Projects like the Tomoka Commerce Park, Leslie said, are good for the community. They help bring in property tax revenue and create jobs — more than would be created if the property was developed for another use.
"I can understand the frustration with some of the residents here on this whole thing, but at the end of the day, we could have a freestanding building that might not offer as much services," Leslie said.
