A major expenditure was approved by the Volusia County Council to bolster the area’s affordable housing market on Tuesday. The $10.4 million investment, made up completely of Hurricane Ian relief money from the federal government, will go toward 280 new apartments in Volusia. All seven county council members voted in favor: Jeff Brower, Don Dempsey, Jake Johansson, Troy Kent, Matt Reinhart, Danny Robins, and David Santiago.
Though the move may be seen as some to be a sign of accelerated growth at a time when some residents are hoping to pump the brakes, County Council members view the action as simply restoring what the county lost in Hurricane Ian back in September 2022. Personnel from the county told the Council that the three public housing authorities suffered $20 million in damages from Ian, which would place the expenditure approved on Monday at just over half of the true losses incurred.
Of the 280 new units being built, they will be spread out across Daytona Beach, DeLand, New Smyrna Beach, and Orange City. The Daytona Beach allotment, made up of 56 units with a rent cap of approximately $656 a month, will be exclusively senior housing with no children allowed in the complex. Acruva Community Developers will be constructing the project.
DeLand’s allotment will have 84 units, with 13 of them specifically intended for homeless occupancy. The New Smyrna Beach portion will contain 60 units on previously flooded land, with new drainage work being done to avoid future flood damage. Orange City will be receiving 80 units, reserved for those making at most 80% of the median area income, with 52 out of the 80 reserved for those making 60% or less.
