New developer of Dunlawton bridge marina project willing to listen residents’ concerns

PORT ORANGE — It’s no surprise that coastal cities in Volusia County attract people interested in building marinas.

The possibility of such a facility just south of the Dunlawton Bridge in Port Orange has resulted in two project proposals in the past, and one that has just recently come to the city’s attention.

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Past proposed marinas at the site stalled after residents from the adjacent Seabird Island Mobile Home Park expressed concerns over the disadvantages a marina right next door would bring.

But the developer of the latest proposal, Port Orange resident Richard Patterson, hopes to work out an agreeable plan with neighbors for a marina that would be largely automated. There's no specific timetable for the project, but Patterson has brought the idea up with city officials.

New developer with a new idea

The site where the marina is proposed has attracted interest for more than a decade.

The approximately 4.5-acre property under consideration for the marina is completely submerged. An original conceptual development plan for the site was approved by the City Council in 2009 and included approximately "1.2 acres of the site being filled to support the parking lot, stormwater vault, and user building, and a 102-slip marina.”

The original proposal did not go forward. The project was revived two years ago after remaining undeveloped for 10 years. That effort fell through after residents from Seabird Island voiced disapproval during a meeting between residents and the developers at the time.

One of those residents, Peter Ertel, is concerned that he would be able to see the marina across from his backyard. He has been at the Seabird Island park since 2012. The mobile home park is mostly surrounded by the Halifax River, but is connected by road and land to Dunlawton Avenue.

“It would block our view here, and also cause this to be like the end of a canal,” Ertel said of the space between the homes and the proposed marina. “We’d get all kinds of things here that’d get stuck and wouldn’t flush out after that.”

Ertel added that the project would include the creation of parking spaces and off-site improvements that would affect city-owned property at Causeway Park.

“They don’t own any land over there. The only land they own is in the water here,” Ertel said. “They wanted to use 600 feet of waterfront land that belongs to the state and is being used by the town for the park, a public park, for private purposes.”

According to the city, Patterson is considering the development of “a multi-story building built over the submerged land that can securely store up to (approximately) 250 boats.”

“The facility would use a laser-guided overhead crane to deliver a boat from the indoor slip to water, without human error, in as little as three minutes,” according to the city. “The building would be engineered to withstand sustained winds of 148 mph.”

Patterson told the city that the proposed marina building would not require the full use of the submerged land — something that the previously approved concept plan would have done, with the boat slips extending to the boundary of the 4.5-acre property.

According to city spokesperson Christine Martindale, “there has been no official application or pre-application meeting with city staff on this project.”

Ertel said the proposal for a dry stack marina “may mitigate some of the environmental concerns,” but added that “the private use of public property remains the same.”

'I’d want to be a good neighbor to them'

Patterson said he is in the early stages of the planning process and is focused on preparing a project idea that would follow all rules and regulations necessary to make a marina happen. There is no timetable for beginning construction. He added that he also will engage with Seabird Island residents who might have concerns over the project to learn how best to proceed.

“I’m prepared to follow all the rules and requirements," Patterson said.

He said he plans on sitting down with Seabird Island residents to “see what their concerns are and if there is a way that I could mitigate those concerns.”

“If I was to continue with the project, I’d want to be a good neighbor to them. I’d love to meet with them," he said.

Patterson said that he wants to get along with the mobile home residents and will take into consideration their concerns to have the best chance of making the marina happen. Because the area has been zoned for that kind of use, Patterson said that eventually, such a facility will come to that location.

“I think a lot of times when projects like this come up, it’s always been presented to concerning parties in the worst-possible-case scenario,” Patterson said. “From what I understand, the marina project was approved before, so whether I do it in one fashion or another, somebody along the way is going to do it, and they may not be as forgiving and as nice as I would be.”

He added: “I’d love to talk to anyone who is opposed to it because I want to work within the rules and boundaries of what’s allowed there.”

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Dunlawton bridge marina project resurfaces with new developer