In business , you try to look at what has been done before and try to pull out the ingredients that are used in order to make it successful .”
we ’ ve got a space that is a wonderful asset for us to have .” White said he is not deterred by the failure of past plans to improve the city ’ s downtown , instead seeing them as important steps in the eventual success of revitalization efforts .
“ Unless you learn to try and figure out what works , you will never really improve ,” he said . “ In business , you try to look at what has been done before and try to pull out the ingredients that are used in order to make it successful .”
White said the park redevelopment and downtown revitalization plans have worked in other cities and there are some common steps involved in downtown projects .
“ We ’ re not writing a story here ,” he said . “ We ’ re following a path that has been done throughout the country and if we can fulfill most of the ingredients , I think you will find it catapults us to something we haven ’ t seen for 60-70 years .”
The renovation project is being done in two phases . The first phase covers the area from the Main Street Bridge to International Speedway Boulevard and is expected to be completed by spring . The second phase continues from ISB to Orange Avenue .
City officials are also upbeat about the project ’ s potential impact on economic growth .
“ It ’ s an exciting time for Beach Street and the city of Daytona Beach ,” said City Manager Jim Chisholm , at the November Chamber breakfast .
While private-sector funding fueled the park project , the city not only committed to absorbing
Jim Chisholm the maintenance costs for the esplanade , but made infrastructure changes to accommodate the changes .
Chisholm said the traffic pattern changes were put in place to make the road a “ visually pleasing sight to see ” and to “ slow the traffic down as it comes through the downtown area and encourage the public to walk and visit the stores as well as the park .”
Those opportunities could extend beyond the downtown area and provide a boost to other businesses .
“ I think it ’ s a huge first step ,” said Daytona Regional Chamber Chairman Len Marinaccio . “ What they are trying to create there
Len Marinaccio is a destination , not just for the people who already live and work in the area . That can ’ t do anything but help all those businesses there .”
Marinaccio said the private / public partnership created to move the project forward is an important component to revitalizing the area .
“ Any kind of development like this needs somebody to go first ,” he said . “ It ’ s fortunate to have Cici and Hyatt Brown step forward .”
The new park , the changes in traffic flow and the potential for continued development are positive signs for downtown merchants and the wider community .
“ They ’ ve been struggling for years to draw people back to downtown and to me this is the first step of what is going to be hopefully a long , successful process ,” Marinaccio said .
Marinaccio said the park not only will spur economic development , it will add a new aesthetic to the area .
“ Once we get this park done , it is just going to add to the scenery ,” he said . That could encourage people to move downtown .
“ From a business perspective , the next step is to get folks living there ,” he said , “ whether it is an apartment project or whatever . I know there have been some proposals .”
“ It ’ s hard to put into words how different this is from other renovation projects we have done here ,” he said . “ This isn ’ t going to be a project where you have to wait 20 years for the trees to grow . On the day it opens it ’ s going to look like it ’ s been there forever .”
Aaron London is a reporter and columnist who has covered business and economics for 27 years . He has worked for newspapers in Ohio and Florida and is also an adjunct professor of journalism at Daytona State College .
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