Driving on the Beach? Yes, for a price
There aren't many places in the country with a wide and long and hard enough beach to drive on - places in Oregon maybe, a couple in Washington - and Volusia County. About 17 of the 47 miles of county beaches are open for driving. A day pass costs $5 and season passes are $20 for Volusia residents and $40 for nonresidents. No toll is charged during December and January. Toll collections have been running about $2 million a year, down $1 million annually since the hurricanes of 2004. The cost to collect tolls exceeds $600,000 a year. The County has been charging a toll since 1988, when the county took over management from the coastal cities.
How does this affect our future here in Volusia County? The county advisory board plans to discuss the issue, once again. Last year, some members proposed eliminating the tolls. But with the loss of real estate revenue, and other taxes, Volusia County Chairman Frank Bruno said, "They're going to have to look at other ways of bringing in revenues to remove tolls from the beach, or, at least have an idea on how we could partner with cities to reduce costs and provide services."
The collections help defray the county's annual budget of about $12 million for the beach, which covers a range of services including lifeguards, law enforcement, beach maintenance and protection of sea turtles.
If you have an opinion, contact your County Board representative. The toll issue involves concessionaires as well as allowing dogs and alcohol on the beaches, so it's an important issue. A decision on beach concession providers might be made as soon as July and implemented in October.
Life in Daytona and Ormond Beaches is waiting for you!
Sherry Armstrong, Realtor
386-679-3191
sherry@sherryarmstrong.com
www.sherryarmstrong.com