Deltona vice mayor complains mayor's home lease is special deal provided by developer

Two top elected officials in Deltona traded accusations and barbs at the end of a four-hour meeting this week, with the vice mayor suggesting the mayor got a special deal on a rental home.

Vice Mayor Jody Lee Storozuk said he had heard from an attorney – who he did not name – that the mayor, Santiago Avila, Jr., was living in a home that had recently been bought by a developer who routinely has business before the city, and that the home was being leased at a low cost.

The vice mayor assembled packets of public records and other documents he had gathered and placed them on a table for public consumption in the City Commission Chambers before Tuesday’s meeting.

“Supposedly, a house was purchased just for the mayor’s rental,” Storozuk said to the mayor, seated directly to his left. “So as you said, if you hear something, you report it. So that’s what I did.”

Storozuk said he shared the information with authorities, including the State Attorney’s Office and Florida Commission on Ethics. Storozuk also said the Florida Department of Law Enforcement called him in reference to the allegations. An FDLE spokeswoman said Thursday she was trying to verify the agency’s involvement, while Haley Harrison, a public-information officer for the state attorney, said she could not confirm nor deny any investigation.

Avila told The News-Journal on Friday that he is paying $1,899 per month for the four-bedroom, two-bath home. The real-estate website Zillow reports the median home-rental price in the city is $1,905.

During the meeting, he defended the rental arrangement, pointing to factual errors, such as the timeline Storozuk presented.

“Supposedly, Mr. Storozuk says I moved into my home on Nov. 1,” Avila said, adding that he didn’t move in until Dec. 1.

Avila then ran through a timeline of events.

A pending sale was noted on Sept. 27. The home was sold and listed for rent on Oct. 31. The rental price was reduced on Nov. 9 before finally being removed from listings on Nov. 18.

Avila showed copies of text messages he said prove his case.

On Nov. 13, as he and his wife were contemplating moving, he texted her three possible options, including a home on Paragon Street, where they now reside.

On Nov. 16, his wife texted him about the Paragon Street home, pointing out that the offer included free rent in the first month and a $600 security deposit. They applied later that day and were accepted on Nov. 18.

Avila described a situation at his previous home that led him to contact the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office.

“A person, who happens to be one of your friends,” Avila said to Storozuk, “... was literally standing in front of my house,” taking photos of his wife and young children.

He sarcastically thanked Storozuk for “completely putting them at risk again,” by publicly sharing his new address.

Home sold for less than estimate

Storozuk’s packet included the four-bedroom, two-bath home’s sales price at $220,000, well below the city median, $333,500, according to realtor.com.

Orlando Area SF Holdings LP, a business that appears to own more than 20 properties in Volusia County, bought the home. The business address is a postal box in an Orlando UPS store.

According to state business registration records, Orlando Area SF Holdings’ general partner is Scott Esmail, who has a website offering tips on investment properties.

Esmail did not respond to an email seeking comment.

On Wednesday, Storozuk responded to a text, writing: “I definitely believe it’s fishy as hell. Unless God himself tells me there’s nothing to it. There is I just gotta find it.”

Avila questions Storozuk’s motivation

The mayor also suggested Storozuk’s decision to publicly share what he had heard, both during the City Commission meeting Tuesday and in handout packets placed on a table in the commission chambers before the meeting, was politically motivated.

“I understand you’re in a rush to become the mayor. I get that,” Avila said.

Storozuk, whose District 6 seat is up for reelection in 2024, hasn’t yet officially filed, and said he doesn’t want to be mayor.

That didn’t deter Avila, who offered this suggestion to the vice mayor: “Drop out of the (District 6) race and run for mayor in three years. Meantime, some of us can sit here and try to fix the problems.”

The mayor grilled Storozuk on who the attorney was who provided the tip.

“It was one of the attorneys,” Storozuk said.

Avila asked whether it had been a specific land-use attorney, Kim Booker of Orange City. Storozuk denied it was her.

Special treatment for water hookup?

Storozuk levied another allegation, that the mayor had gotten the water at the home turned on by telling the city manager to do it, implying Avila did not pay the customary deposit.

Avila turned to Glen Whitcomb, the interim city manager.

“Mr. Whitcomb, the water in my house was already turned on, correct?”

Whitcomb responded: “The water at the house was left on by the person that owned it at that time, yes.”

Avila asked Whitcomb whether his deposit was waived. Whitcomb said it had not been.

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This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Deltona Mayor Santiago Avila denies special treatment for home rental