DEBARY, Fla. – The small Volusia County city of DeBary has some big plans to build an entire downtown from scratch.
Located along the St. Johns River, DeBary is halfway between Orlando and Daytona Beach. It’s also home to three state trails and acres of parks.
DeBary city manager Carmen Rosamonda said the only thing missing from the tight-knight community is a downtown corridor.
“This is going to be the foundation of our community,” he said. “This is where we’re going to thrive.”
Anchored by the SunRail station, the Main Street project will feature four-story apartments on one end and three-story townhomes on the other. Shops and restaurants will occupy the first floor.
“You can see the balconies that are all on these particular buildings,” Rosamonda said. “We want people to live over Main Street. It kind of separates us from DeLand and Sanford. This is going to be a living Main Street. You’ll be able to watch parades from up there, concerts, and everything else we want to have in the area.”
[EXCLUSIVE: Become a News 6 Insider (it’s FREE) | PINIT! Share your photos]
DeBary is a young city that has a small-town identity. It’s celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. Even with this new project, and the additional residents it’ll bring, Rosamonda doesn’t see that going away.
“We’ll grow from 23,000 to 30,000 people,” he explained. “But we can still maintain that small-town community where everybody can gather, eat together, socialize together, celebrate together all in one particular place.”
The city is also leaning on eco-tourism to create a vibrant downtown.
Earlier this year, leaders closed on a deal to purchase Alexander Island, a prime piece of real estate on the St. Johns River. It’s not open to the public yet, but the space will eventually be used for all types of passive recreation.
“Between the folks using the trails, the folks using all the parks and everything, it creates that draw to Main Street,” Rosamonda said. “They’ll go to Alexander Island for the day, eat at Main Street, take the SunRail, and drive home. That’s what makes it a special place.”
But before construction gets underway, DeBary leaders want to make sure their vision isn’t in jeopardy.
Florida lawmakers passed the Live Local Act earlier this year, a sweeping measure that’s funneling $711 million into affordable housing programs and incentives. The law, among other things, allows developers to build in areas that were never planned for residential.
“In Plant City, a golf course is now Live Local,” Rosamonda said. “They’re building 1,998 rental units on that golf course.”
Because development plans that fall under the Live Local Act must be administratively approved, he said there’s very little, if anything, local governments can do to stop them.
That’s why DeBary leaders will head to Tallahassee in the coming weeks, urging lawmakers to make changes to the legislation.
“Mixed-use in this particular area, like the townhomes, they could easily sell off to Live Local apartments and it changes the whole dynamic,” Rosamonda said. “Everything we’ve worked for over the last four or five years on trying to build a downtown from scratch will be gone.”
The city has come up with seven revisions to the Live Local Act for lawmakers to consider, but nothing will likely happen until next year’s legislative session.
As for the downtown project, leaders are hoping to have it completed by late 2025.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: