Daytona riverfront celebrating Christmas with Santa, live music and lights

Eileen Zaffiro-Kean, The Daytona Beach News-Journal
·5 min read

DAYTONA BEACH — Since June, the northern end of the newly transformed Riverfront Esplanade has been a picturesque place to enjoy the breezy western bank of the Halifax River. Now it's also a place to celebrate the Christmas season.

Yuletide festivities in the downtown park will include live music, visits from Santa, outdoor movies, carolers, a holiday bazaar and nearly a million lights strung through the trees.

The Christmas fun kicks off at 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 7, when the Brown Riverfront Esplanade Foundation that oversees the city-owned park will hold the official grand opening of the northern end of the esplanade at the News-Journal Center.

The holiday celebration dubbed A December to Remember at the Riverfront Esplanade will extend through Dec. 31.

Back in June, Brown & Brown Chairman J. Hyatt Brown tried out the jogging path on opening day of the northside portion of the new Daytona Beach Riverfront Esplanade. Brown and his wife Cici donated $31 million to tackle a complete makeover of Riverfront Park. It is now open to the public for free seven days a week from sunrise to sundown.
Back in June, Brown & Brown Chairman J. Hyatt Brown tried out the jogging path on opening day of the northside portion of the new Daytona Beach Riverfront Esplanade. Brown and his wife Cici donated $31 million to tackle a complete makeover of Riverfront Park. It is now open to the public for free seven days a week from sunrise to sundown.

"Our entire team is thrilled to invite the community to share in the official grand opening and spectacular Lighting of the Trees at the Riverfront Esplanade," said J. Hyatt Brown, chairman of the Brown Riverfront Esplanade Foundation.

Brown and his wife, Cici, invested more than $31 million in the reinvention of the park, which has a new waterfront walking and jogging path, dog park, dozens of new mature trees, swings, benches, tables, a restroom building and a unique overlook behind the News-Journal Center.

"Cici and I are pleased to see so many people enjoying this outdoor space in the heart of Daytona Beach," said Brown, who's the chairman of Brown & Brown Insurance, which has a new headquarters building across the street from the esplanade. "And, with A December to Remember, there will be much more to enjoy and plenty of holiday cheer to draw people to the Esplanade during the holiday season."

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The northern end of the park runs from the Main Street bridge south to International Speedway Boulevard. The southern end of the esplanade extends to Orange Avenue.

That southern portion is still under construction, and is hoped to open by April. It will include many of the same features as the north end along with a splash pad and gardens.

A bridge connects both ends of the esplanade and will allow people to stay off the road once they're inside the park.

Rebirth of Daytona riverfront park

The Dec. 7 grand opening will include welcoming remarks from local leaders, live music, holiday vendors and special holiday photo opportunities. Then for the rest of December, there will be daily Christmas fun.

There will be an open-air market with holiday items for sale on Dec. 7, 9, 10, 16, 17 and 23. Santa will be on the hill by the Ranger Station building and available for photos on Dec. 7, 9, 16 and 23.

On Dec 20 the movie "Elf" will be shown on the park lawn, and hot cocoa and other treats will be available. There will be a walk and run on Dec. 14, a holiday pet parade Dec. 21 and live entertainment on Dec. 9, 10, 16, 17 and 23.

Additional details and a regularly updated calendar of events for A December to Remember at the Riverfront Esplanade will be available soon at riverfrontesplanade.com/a-december-to-remember.

Over the past several decades, Riverfront Park had slid into a transient hangout that made it too uncomfortable to use for most people. There was also a lot of empty green space and nothing much to do beyond enjoy the view, having a picnic and taking a stroll.

Now the park is used for yoga classes, wellness walks, fun runs, various types of events and family friendly leisure that includes a slide built into the newly landscaped space.

"As I often talk about my childhood spent along the riverfront, Cici and I love seeing the Riverfront Esplanade provide this renewed vibrancy to our community,” Hyatt Brown said.

Joe Yarbrough, who manages the esplanade, has also enjoyed watching the transformation.

"The Riverfront Esplanade has quickly become a destination for individuals and families to enjoy the open space for walking, jogging, pushing a stroller or just enjoying the green space,” said Yarbrough, who was South Daytona's city manager for three decades before his retirement in 2019.

"Events like A December to Remember will make the Riverfront Esplanade a must-see destination on everyone’s holiday schedule," Yarbrough said. "The real beauty of this event is it is free, and everyone can enjoy it again and again throughout the month. We encourage all to save the date, join us for this kickoff celebration, visit often and enjoy the Riverfront Esplanade."

The Riverfront Esplanade backstory

The Brown Riverfront Esplanade Foundation is a nonprofit organization established by the Browns. In 2019, the foundation entered into a 50-year lease with the city of Daytona Beach to redevelop, operate and manage the Riverfront Esplanade, formerly called Riverfront Park.

For decades, Riverfront Park had been little more than an open expanse of marginally healthy grass, a few scattered trees and a nearly constant presence of vagrants.

Then in June of 2020, the park closed to the public, construction fences went up and the sliver of land hugging the west bank of the Halifax River began to undergo a dramatic reinvention.

The park has been raised to a higher elevation and recontoured to add berms and rolling land. The esplanade has been blanketed in new grass, and more than 150 mature trees have been planted.

There are towering sabal palms, sturdy live oaks, flowering magnolias and Chinese elms. Scattered around the park north of International Speedway Boulevard are patches of cheerful pink oleanders, bird of paradise plants with orange blossoms, cardboard palms and clusters of cordgrass.

There are new swings for kids and adults, picnic tables, benches, fountains and bridges. There are also speakers pouring out relaxing music, a new building with one-person restrooms to help people feel safe, new lighting and dozens of security cameras.

There are also two new statues in the park, one depicting Bethune-Cookman University founder Mary McLeod Bethune and the other celebrating the most well-known animals in Florida.

You can reach Eileen at Eileen.Zaffiro@news-jrnl.com

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Downtown Daytona Beach riverfront to celebrate Christmas Dec. 7-30.