A 35,280 square-foot, five-story commercial development proposed in New Smyrna Beach has drawn the attention and concern of area residents.
The project would be located at 1300 S. Atlantic Ave. (formerly a Regions Bank property) and include restaurant and retail space, as well as a parking garage with 320 spaces.
The highest points of the building would reach 60 and 64 feet, towering over several nearby properties, which include other businesses and homes, making surrounding area residents (on Third and Fourth avenues as well as Atlantic Avenue) worried about both the aesthetic changes and impacts on local traffic, noise and overall quality of life.
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But the property is currently zoned B-2 neighborhood business, with regulations that prohibit a development of this size on the approximately 1-acre parcel. Therefore, the developer and property owner, NSB Capital Group LLC., is proposing a planned unit development and a zoning text amendment for the project to move forward.
City Commission to decide project’s future
New Smyrna Beach city commissioners have been considering the project for the past few weeks as the Aug. 13 vote and public hearing on the property’s rezoning nears.
In May, the city’s Planning and Zoning Board gave a 5-1 approval recommendation for the project.
But the board asked for, and the developer agreed, to two exceptions: That the developer create restrooms accessible to patrons of the parking garage and that they work with the city and county to help improve beach accessibility.
The structure would be located near the Third Avenue beach approach, which is “the busiest access point to the beach for vehicles in Volusia County, averaging 356 vehicles daily,” according to a City Commission meeting agenda report from June 25. The project, if realized, would require “modifications” to the approach for it to be “pedestrian friendly.” Some modifications would also be required for the Fourth Avenue beach approach.
According to the report, city staff, Volusia County staff, and the developer met last month “to discuss potential offsite improvements that might be required” to the area. As of June 25, nothing had been “settled upon, but is still being worked out between Volusia County, New Smyrna Beach and the applicant,” according to the report.
There are two proposed entrances and exits to the parking garage — one along South Atlantic Avenue and the other on East Fourth Avenue.
The parking garage would dedicate 209 parking spaces to the proposed businesses and “101 pay parking spaces for presumed beachgoers" or others who need parking in the area,” the report said.
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In short, the project “would require multiple variances” in current regulations while also providing “needed beach parking, as noted in the city's recent parking study, and would help redevelop a site that has sat largely unused for years,” the report said.
City commissioners will now have to weigh the pros and cons of adjusting zoning regulations to allow for a development of such size and potential impact to be built in that area, the report added.
Nearby residents voice concern, opposition to project
After its approval at the Planning and Zoning Board in May, the City Commission gave the project's proposed zoning ordinances a first reading at its June 25 meeting.
While city commissioners did not speak about the project as no vote was required at the time, residents nonetheless voiced their concerns to the board.
Sharon Glenn said her family has owned properties on Atlantic Avenue since the 1950s and that the neighborhood “is extremely concerned about this project.”
“I realize you guys bear the burden of balancing the interest of helping our city grow with grace and making it attractive for people to come here, but also preserving the historic nature of our community,” Glenn said at the meeting. “This project does not match the neighborhood, it in fact towers over everyone.”
Leslie Sachs also voiced her opposition to the project at the meeting, saying it would cause “an unbalanced and out-of-scale look, which is incompatible with the surrounding area of existing homes and businesses.”
“The smell of car exhaust, traffic noise, potential crime and litter will make this idyllic beachside area undesirable,” Sachs said.
She encouraged city commissioners to work within the current regulations and “negotiate a more balanced planned unit development.”
Other residents voiced more concerns over the project’s size and its potential negative impacts to area traffic and homeowner's quality of life.
The City Commission will consider and vote on the proposed zoning changes during its Aug. 13 meeting.
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