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Volusia County Beach Policy Advisory Board  
Meeting minutes for February 10, 2004
VOTRAN Meeting Rooms

I. CALL TO ORDER:

Chairman Storch called the meeting to order at 5:30PM, February 10, 2004.

BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT
Chairman Glenn Storch
Vice-Chairman Ernest Boger
Dr. Bud Fleuchaus
Charles DeZaruba
James France
Walter Welch
Richard Lohmann
Jay Crocker
William Cook

BOARD MEMBER(S) ABSENT

None.

II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF JANUARY 13, 2004:

Walter Welch moved approval of the minutes. Jay Crocker seconded the motion. Motion approved unanimously.

III. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION – ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA (3 MINUTE TIME LIMIT PER SPEAKER)

Judy Sloan, Public Works Director for Ormond Beach reported that the County Council will be looking at the Oceanside Country Club property and the Grace Lutheran Church site leases in March. With off beach parking being very deficient area in the Ormond Beach area, Ms. Sloan asked the Board to support the lease agreement with the church. 40 spaces of off beach parking would be obtained at the Oceanside Country Club site if a lease could be agreed upon. The County would be responsible for constructing the parking area. Dr. Fleuchaus moved to support the leases and Charles DeZaruba seconded the motion.

Chairman Storch asked that a letter be prepared to the County Council advising them of the Board’s support.

IV. BEACH MANAGEMENT PLAN:

January 22, 2004 County Council Workshop – Next steps:
The County Council showed some concerns about the two-tier toll. The Board felt that the County Council did not look upon raising the fees very favorable. William Cook didn’t think that the Council grasped that the real issue of raising tolls was a way to resolve a possible impending problem. Jay Crocker agreed with Mr. Cook. Walter Welch agreed as well. The Board felt that the Council misunderstood the concept behind charging for parking at the parks. The Council believes that the residents paid for the park and should be allowed to enjoy it for free. Greg France felt that the Council didn’t have the benefit of enough time to consider the issues. Greg France suggested that a draft of the debate be presented to the Council for further review. William Cook expressed concerned about not having any money for off beach parking acquisition and reiterated that this should be a high priority. Rich Lohmann agreed that the Council was not afforded enough time to hear the facts and therefore unable to make a good decision. John Harper suggested hiring interns for the summer to help gather the information that the Council asked for. The Board feels that the 5th dollar is not enough money to fund off beach parking acquisitions. Glenn Storch gathered that the Council was concerned about how raising the tolls would impact business owners. Ernest Boger emphasized what Dr. Soskin’s research showed. Charles DeZaruba agreed with all the Board member’s opinions. Charles wasn’t disappointed with the Council’s decisions and understood that they can’t be expected to jump into anything without further research. Glenn Storch advised that the other recommendations received favorable reviews by Council. Glenn Storch suggested that a dedicated funding source be created that can be bonded and used to acquire property in the next five years. Glenn Storch advised that buying property might need to be put at a higher priority than actually developing the property. Glenn Storch reminded the Board that the County Council asked for buy in from the cities and support from the cities would be good.

Ernest Boger advised that he could make students available to work as interns in the tollbooth gathering the beachgoer’s zip code information.

*Next mtg. – Glenn Storch asked that copies of the Evelyn Fine and Dr. Soskin reports be reviewed at the next meeting. Glenn Storch suggested that the Board deal with some of the information already gathered and finish up the rest of the Beach Management Plan. Glenn Storch recommended setting up a workshop with Council in sometime June.

The Board decided to wait to go to the cities until after the additional information is gathered.

Jay Crocker recommended that the County implement John Harper’s suggestion to use interns to gather information about where the beachgoer resides.

V. NEW BUSINESS:

Land Acquisition Management – Bill Gardner, Volusia County Land Acquisition Management came before the Board to explain the process of land acquisition. Once a project site is identified Land Acquisition Management gets involved and tries to identify funding sources. Glenn Storch advised that the Board is looking for funding sources to purchase for off beach parking. Bill Gardner advised that several grant opportunities are available, such as Port Authority, Land and Water Conservation Fund, Federal grants, FRDAP, FIND and Daytona Beach Racing and Recreational Facilities, FCT. Dr. Fleuchaus reported that the Daytona Beach Racing District would be willing to fund acquisition. Greg France asked about the availability of MPO funds. Dr. Fleuchaus asked if there were a number of sites identified. Bill Gardner advised that a report was prepared showing an inventory of vacant property, which consisted of approximately 69-99 parcels. Chairman Storch advised that the beachfront properties are what would be optimal. Bill Gardner explained the FCT process. FCT is a highly recommended source of funding. Bill Gardner advised that 20 to 30 percent of the properties are on the West Side of A1A. Charles DeZaruba asked at what point the property becomes an active pursuit. Rich Lohmann asked Bill Gardner about the Happy Whale property. Bill Gardner reported that the Happy Whale site would add approximately 40 parking spaces and that the price of the property did not warrant a purchase for so few spaces. Chairman Storch asked if there is money available to acquire property. Bill Gardner advised that he was not prepared to discuss that. Chairman Storch asked if the Volusia Forever program was designed to be used for acquisition and asked if any of the identified properties would qualify for Volusia Forever funding. Bill Gardner advised that if an application was submitted the Board would consider it. John Harper advised that ECHO funds were used for Frank Rendon Park construction, but not acquisition. Walter Welch asked why the application would not rank very high. John Harper advised that large parcels of land are more desirable. Hiles Steakhouse property was the last off beach parking property that was purchased by Volusia County. Greg France asked if there was anything in the comprehensive plan re: off beach parking or beachfront property acquisition. John Harper advised that it was identified as something that was needed. The County’s Comp Plan would only include unincorporated areas of Volusia County. Dr. Fleuchaus thinks that a plan should be put in place and asked what the County is doing to get more money. Jay Crocker asked about buying an option and then trying to obtain funding for a future purchase. It was explained that funding was available several years ago, which came from debt services, which will be repaid this year and therefore should make funds available again soon. John Harper was asked to explain the bonding process. Property is acquired by bonding future 5th dollar funds. Council could direct bonding for further property purchases this next year. Dr. Fleuchaus suggested borrowing the money from Port Authority. John Harper explained that there is grant funding available in the amount of $500,000 each year. Bill Gardner explained that FCT looks favorably upon partnering with cities. Re-zoning would be an issue for property located in a residential area. Greg France asked if the bonding money could be used as a match in a FCT application. Rich Lohmann advised that St. Johns County utilized walkovers for access to the beach from off beach parking areas.

It is agreed that bonding and dedicated sources are the best source of funding for off beach parking acquisition.

New Fire Pits – Deputy Chief Ron Futch reported that Chief Kevin Sweat’s recommendation is to move some fire pits rather than add more. The recommendation is to relocate fire pits to Frank Rendon and Tom Renick. Chairman Storch agreed that tying the fire pits into the beachfront parks is a great idea. The Wilbur by the Sea and Ponce Inlet area are not receptive to fire pits. William Cook moved to endorse the relocation of the fire pits and Dr. Fleuchaus seconded the motion. Motion carried unanimously. Chairman Storch asked staff to prepare a letter to the County Council advising them of the Board’s recommendation.

Chief Sweat wanted the Board to know that a grant application is in process for the control tower at Lighthouse Point Park.

VI. ONGOING BUSINESS:

None.

VII. DISCUSSION OF ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA:

None.

VIII. ADJOURNMENT:

Next meeting will be Tuesday, March 16, 2004.
The meeting was adjourned at 6:55PM.

 

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