College Publisher Test Site

Issue date: 2/1/07 Section: Opinion

Media Credit: Jennifer Perez One of many construction sites on Daytona's Beachside

Just 10 years ago Nova Road was four lanes and things were relatively quiet except for the spring breakers and bikers raising hell for a couple of weeks out of the year.
Unfortunately, times change and the "World's Most Famous Beach" is getting a makeover from hell.
Back in the day, John D. Rockefeller and Henry Flagler saw potential in the land, capitalized on it and made a lot more money then they already had as venture capitalists. Today, the trend they started continues, but the abuse of the developers and poorly regulated redevelopment boards' building codes are going to lead us to the same fate as Orange County, Calif.
Up and down A1A you pass a "Yates" sign every five minutes. Based in Pennsylvania, the company has created a lot of job opportunites, which I've benefited from. But there needs to be a system of checks and balances in place before the natural beauty of Florida is permanently gone.
Let's face it, there is still a lot of money to be made, but at what price? For half a century the Boardwalk was a destination for arcade buffs and thrill seekers, and it became a landmark in the hearts of many residents. Now demolished, we can view a $115 million condo-hotel timeshare, designed to revive the beachfront area and keep the tourism dollars a-flowing.
Riverside is not being spared in the redevelopment effort either. The Marina Grand is a goliath condo with four 25-story condos being built right now in Holly Hill. While that sounds big, it's nothing compared The Gateway, a $300 million resort complex approved Jan. 11, which includes a 30-story residential condominium, shopping center and a 22-story condo-hotel to be built at the northeast foot of the Broadway Bridge. With structures such as these, the aesthetic appeal of the Halifax River and even the ocean will be diminished greatly for so-called "progress."
Hurricanes also contributed to our city's decline. Damaged structures on the beachside were sold to developers and hefty property taxes and insurance costs are weeding out average-income families. Since 2000, property levies have increased by 80 percent, compared with total personal-income growth of 39 percent plus inflation costs. Such concerns are at the top of the list for new Governor Charlie Crist, so there might be change on the horizon. But for now, Floridians suffer.
Over the next 50 years it is estimated that the population of Florida will double to about 36 million and the urbanized land will probably double as well, making Florida the third most populous state. On Nova Road, at the beaches and elsewhere, we're feeling the bite of congestion now and it's only going to get worse.
There needs to be a comprehensive effort to manage growth and preserve what little wetlands we have left before it's too late.
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication, but there's no profit in keeping things simple. The rising crime rate is only a testament of things to come. The Sunshine State will become the new concrete jungle of high rises and the only place to get some "sunshine" won't be at the beach but rather a tanning salon.

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