Plans for veterans memorial plaza moving forward
Posted On: January 18, 2022
Overlooking the ground beneath the northwest side of the new Tom Staed Veterans Memorial Bridge in Daytona Beach, the inscription on a commemorative plaque reads: “The Veterans Memorial Park located below you is dedicated to the men and women of Volusia County who lost their lives in battle.”
The stunning veterans plaza envisioned in the plaque actually hasn’t been built yet. But the longtime dream of a pedestrian plaza near the foot of the bridge where people can gather to remember and honor the service and sacrifice of the area’s fallen military veterans is one step closer to reality. On Tuesday, the Volusia County Council approved a $3.86 million allocation of grant funds from the Volusia County ECHO program – a voter-approved initiative that helps fund projects for environmental, cultural, historical and outdoor recreational purposes. The ECHO grants approved Tuesday will support nine projects around the county. Among the bundle of grants was $600,000 for the veterans memorial plaza project. The grant requests were vetted through the County’s ECHO Advisory Committee, which ranked veterans plaza the top project.
Plans call for the plaza to include a water feature, a dramatic, raised amphitheater sitting area overlooking the Halifax River for quiet reflection, large stones representing the various branches of the U.S. military and raised plaques containing the names of Volusia County residents who died in battle. A veterans group is planning to place an invisible wounds memorial and purple heart monument in the plaza. And a World War I memorial now on display at Tuscawilla Park in Daytona Beach also will be moved to the new plaza, which will be built on City Island adjacent to the Volusia County Courthouse annex on East Orange Avenue. Volusia County is home to more than 50,000 veterans.
“Veterans Memorial Plaza will instill in visitors a sense of what being an American is. No matter the political views, an allegiance to country is a major part of the American culture,” states the 92-page project grant application. “The plaza will become a destination location for patriotic and veteran themed events throughout the year.”
The plaza project, which is being overseen by the Volusia County Parks, Recreation and Culture Division, has already been designed and is expected to cost $1.2 million to construct. It will serve as a tie-in to the bridge itself, which includes a series of scenic overlooks with plaques commemorating conflicts in America’s military history.
“This is such an awesome thing that’s been planned for years,” said Councilwoman Billie Wheeler moments before the council unanimously approved the grant for the plaza. “It’s just a great honor for our veterans.”
Planning for the plaza picked up pace in 2019, when the county applied to the Daytona Beach Racing and Recreational Facilities District for a grant to help fund the project. The district has approved grant awards totaling $388,000. The ECHO grant secured on Tuesday combined with the money from the Daytona Beach Racing and Recreational Facilities District totals close to $1 million. The remaining $212,000 has been put up by one of the project’s chief boosters, former County Council member Josh Wagner, who collected $112,000 through a private fundraising effort he spearheaded and then matched it with $100,000 of his own money. The Daytona Beach chapter of Remember Vets, Inc. and the local chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart helped with the fundraising efforts. The private fundraising included the sale of personalized commemorative bricks that will be located in the center perimeter of the plaza.
Wagner also is credited with helping to get the bridge project started, with new span opening in August 2020. The county hopes to break ground on the veterans plaza in November, with construction expected to take approximately 10 months. Engraved bricks are still available for donations of either $125 or $300 and can be ordered at www.VolusiaVeterans.com.
