New dreams possible for Daytona Beach's chronically struggling Midtown neighborhood

Eileen Zaffiro-Kean, Daytona Beach News-Journal
·4 min read
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DAYTONA BEACH - When the city launched the Midtown Community Redevelopment Area in 1998, there were high hopes for what the designation could do for the urban core neighborhood that's been struggling throughout its 120-year existence.

But 25 years and millions of dollars later, the historically Black community just east of Nova Road still has an abundance of dilapidated buildings, crushing poverty and business corridors that haven't thrived for 50 years.

With 13 years left before the CRA sunsets, top city staff members are suggesting taking out a $6.5 million loan and blasting that cash into Midtown to spark new development there.

"It's in our best interest to get moving to entice private development," said city Redevelopment Director Ken Thomas. "The $6.5 million is just a project starter. We really need private investment."

Second Avenue in Daytona Beach's Midtown neighborhood, now called Mary McLeod Bethune Boulevard, had a very different look in the early 1940s, as shown in this photograph. Even the stop signs and street signs were rudimentary, combined into one unit on a small wooden post.
Second Avenue in Daytona Beach's Midtown neighborhood, now called Mary McLeod Bethune Boulevard, had a very different look in the early 1940s, as shown in this photograph. Even the stop signs and street signs were rudimentary, combined into one unit on a small wooden post.

The loan proposal was on Wednesday night's Daytona Beach City Commission agenda, but commissioners won't take a vote on the measure until their Sept. 20 meeting.

If they approve the loan, which would carry 5% interest and have to be repaid by September of 2036, the money would be available next month, Thomas said.

If the measure passes, and the Midtown CRA has trouble making loan payments starting March 1 next year, other city funds would shoulder the debt.

How the $6.5 million could be spent

Community redevelopment areas allow a portion of property tax dollars collected within the special district to be funneled into improvements for the neighborhood.

The Midtown CRA is projected to start generating about $1 million each year in tax increment financing dollars, so that means the city expects to collect at least $13 million more from the CRA before it ends.

Thomas came up with a $13.5 million wish list that provides a general outline of where the money could go.

He suggests spending $3.4 million to acquire commercial buildings; $2.2 million to buy single-family homes; $1.5 million to develop multi-family housing units; and another $1.5 million to rehabilitate business buildings.

The new Homes Bring Hope program has brought new houses to Daytona Beach's Midtown neighborhood. Pictured are four Homes Bring Hope houses located side by side on North Caroline Street north of Mary McLeod Bethune Boulevard.
The new Homes Bring Hope program has brought new houses to Daytona Beach's Midtown neighborhood. Pictured are four Homes Bring Hope houses located side by side on North Caroline Street north of Mary McLeod Bethune Boulevard.

Also on his suggested spending list: $1.2 million for a roundabout at Lincoln Avenue and Mary McLeod Bethune Boulevard; $1.2 million to install underground utilities along Mary McLeod Bethune Boulevard and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard; $1 million to construct new single-family homes; $800,000 for a business incubator to support the area; and $700,000 to rehabilitate housing units.

The suggestions follow the seven main points listed in the Midtown redevelopment plan adopted in 1998. The plan includes things such as assembling property in areas where conditions make redevelopment difficult and increasing the percentage of homeownership.

City commissioners would ultimately decide how to spend the $6.5 million if they approve taking out the loan.

A glimpse of what's possible

The city has already purchased Midtown properties to stomp out blight and attract people willing to redevelop the land. One example is a lot at the corner of Keech and Ken streets the city bought.

"We tore down a building and it's just grass now, but the corner looks a whole lot better," Thomas said.

The city also bought a property on Mary McLeod Bethune Boulevard and removed about 10 boats that had been stored there.

"We first need to acquire some of the dilapidation," Thomas said. "It's going to take time to develop the actual structure. First we're going to remove the blight so people can see the possibility."

This beat up house on the southwest corner of North Keech Street and Ken Street is riddled with problems. Efforts are underway to improve Midtown's housing stock, but some properties are lagging behind.
This beat up house on the southwest corner of North Keech Street and Ken Street is riddled with problems. Efforts are underway to improve Midtown's housing stock, but some properties are lagging behind.

When the city is intent on buying a property, it is persistent.

"We don't accept the first no," Thomas said.

The city has been trying to assemble land on International Speedway Boulevard near Martin Luther King Boulevard and closed a sale in that area this week.

The city has also been donating lots it acquired to agencies that have agreed to create affordable housing. But the city also wants market-rate housing in the neighborhood to increase the tax base, Thomas said.

A deep dive into Midtown's history: Midtown, Daytona Beach's historic Black neighborhood, struggles to find a better future

At its meeting Wednesday, the city donated six lots to a group that's going to create a reflection pond, museum, public garden, and educational elements near the Howard Thurman House on Whitehall Street.

Thurman lived in the house as a child in the early 1900s, and he became a minister, theology professor, and author who knew both Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.

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

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Daytona Beach aiming to pour $13 million into blighted neighborhood