DeLand residents favor a traffic circle for the Voorhis Avenue streetscape project

DELAND — A centered roadway sandwiched between sidewalks of equal width and a traffic circle to help slow speeders could come to West Voorhis Avenue.

At least those were the options largely preferred by the two-dozen-plus residents who attended the latest meeting Aug. 3 on potential plans for the Voorhis Avenue streetscape project.

In the first option, the sidewalks are approximately 11 feet wide, but tree wells would account for nearly half of that.

The second option, which didn't receive support, showed the roadway shifted south, allowing for an approximately 16-foot shared-use path that, in reality, would be smaller when accounting for tree wells.

One of the challenges, according to Chad Gamble, the city's public services director, is "what type of improvements do we do that link the corridor to downtown?"

Gamble said that includes keeping in mind how to convey the area's history while also allowing for flexibility of different types of development.

In early 2021, the city posted an online survey asking residents to rank how they would like to see the Downtown Community Redevelopment Agency spend the approximately $600,000 in its coffers.

Options, and the estimated costs, included:

• Voorhis Avenue streetscape project for $500,000.

• Installing an interactive directory at Pioneer Park for $30,000.

• Paving the dirt parking lot between Rich and Church avenues for $200,000.

• Leveling pavers and sidewalk for $100,000 to $150,000.

• Renovating Sunflower and Painter's Pond parks for $65,000.

• Repairing stamped concrete at intersections for $500,000.

• Adding a smart-parking management system for $600,000.

The Voorhis Avenue streetscape project received the most No. 1 votes.

In March 2021, the Downtown CRA, comprised of members of the City Commission and two local business owners, largely agreed with the survey's results.

Since then, Mike Grebosz, assistant city manager, has been working with the engineering firm CPH, Inc., on potential design options for the streetscape.

The city held a workshop seeking community input in February.

Kurt Luman, senior vice president/associate and transportation division director at CPH, said during the Aug. 3 workshop that the options presented were reflective of input they received during the aforementioned meeting.

"We tried to incorporate some more traffic-calming elements, which was a key component," Luman said.

In addition to a traffic circle, the first option presented includes designated pedestrian crossings mid-block as opposed to just crossings at intersections.

Resident Denene Huffman, who owns two properties off Voorhis between South Florida and South Woodland avenues, asked that the city and CPH keep the mix of existing residential and commercial buildings in mind and avoid placing the crossings directly in line with driveways connected to those properties.

Another resident asked about the level of detail the crossings and intersections could have without potentially distracting motorists.

Gamble said it was a good point.

"I live downtown and I see the way people cross the street and it scares the heck out of me," Gamble said. "I think it's important and cool, all the stuff that we have downtown, but we do want to be careful; we don’t want that to be too cool and too distractive from the operations that are happening there."

A major part of the project is how it will impact what was once a thriving district for the Black community.

"It’s more than just a streetscape for us," said Al Bouie, a member of the historic Black Greater Union First Baptist Church.

The church is located at the northwest corner of the intersection of West Voorhis and South Clara avenues.

At the southeast corner of the same intersection is the historic J.W. Wright Building, which is owned by the nonprofit Greater Union Life Center Inc.

$500K grant: Spending plan for DeLand's historic J.W. Wright Building

For the past few years, Mario Davis, the nonprofit's executive director; Mark Shuttleworth, restoration expert and project manager; and Sidney Johnston, assistant director of grants, sponsored research and strategic initiatives at Stetson University, have worked on acquiring grants and putting the funding toward restoring the building from 1920.

"Our vision is to tie in that whole area, which includes the 140-year-old church, that includes an amphitheater and includes an African American Museum of the Arts," Bouie, a candidate for Volusia County School Board District 1, said. "We would like for that whole area, as well as its history, to be tied in with the city center."

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: DeLand residents get look at new Voorhis Avenue streetscape options