DAYTONA BEACH SHORES — Edwin Wyatt Peck Sr., a prominent local developer who built dozens of high- and mid-rise oceanfront condominiums in Daytona Beach Shores in the 1970s and '80s, died Tuesday. He was 104 years old.

"It was natural causes, it wasn't COVID or cancer or anything. He was not under any doctor's care for anything. He was just at home and gave out," said his son Edwin Peck Jr. He said his dad died at the Daytona Beach Shores condo he shared with his daughter Sherry Davidson.

"He wanted to make it to 104. That was important to him," said Peck Jr., adding that one of the reasons was his father's determination to see last month's opening of the new Volusia County beachfront park in Daytona Beach Shores. Edwin W. Peck Sr. Park opened on June 24, just three days after the elder Peck's birthday.

"He gave a 10-15 minute talk at the opening of the park, mostly off the top of his head, and then gave a 10-minute talk at his birthday party the next day," said Peck Jr. of his father. "After that, his body started giving out on him. He just got tired."

Volusia County Council member Billie Wheeler described Peck as a "southern gentleman." "He has had an impact all up and down A1A as well as other places," she said. "He was all about love and kindness, love for his community and most especially his family. He was the originator of much of what Daytona Beach is now, and Daytona Beach Shores."

Peck's accomplishments as a developer included the iconic 29-story Peck Plaza that was completed in 1974 at 2625 S. Atlantic Ave. in Daytona Beach Shores. Towering at a height of 272 feet, the distinctive oceanfront high-rise includes a restaurant called Top of Daytona on the 29th floor. It was the tallest building in Volusia County until the completion of the Protogroup's 330-foot-tall, 27-story Daytona Grande Oceanfront Hotel at 422 N. Atlantic Ave. in Daytona Beach in August 2021.

Peck Plaza was prominently featured in a scene in the 1990 Tom Cruise movie "Days of Thunder."

County named park in developer's honor

Peck was honored for his instrumental role in shaping Daytona Beach Shores' skyline in December 2020 when the county held a groundbreaking ceremony for the beachfront Edwin W. Peck Sr. Park at 3167 S. Atlantic Ave.

"Ed, we can't thank you enough for your investment in the area," Daytona Beach Shores Mayor Nancy Miller told Peck at the groundbreaking ceremony. "The economic impact from your projects are immeasurable and contributed to creating the prosperous beachside communities we have today."

Peck told The News-Journal in an interview in December 2020, "It's going to be a great park, and I'm happy about the fact that when I'm gone this park will be a place of real pleasure for thousands of people forever."

The park officially opened last month, just three days after Peck's 104th birthday.

Davidson said her father was excited to see the park finally open. She said he was proud "of the fact that he had provided so many jobs and places for people to live and opened up the coastline. It was all because of the buildings, but that was what he was proudest of, what he could do for the economy."

Peck developed more than 30 condo projects in and around Volusia County, including Peck Plaza.

When he completed Peck Plaza, Peck claimed it was the tallest beachfront condo building on the east coast of the United States.

Moved to Daytona in the late 1960s

Peck was born on June 21, 1918 and served in the U.S. Army during World War II. He moved to Daytona Beach Shores in 1969 after more than 20 years running a timber business in Gainesville.

His first project was the seven-story 61-unit Surfside Club in Daytona Beach Shores, which when it was completed in 1970, was the first beachside condo in Central Florida.

In a paid obituary that appeared in Friday's edition of The Daytona Beach News-Journal, Peck's family wrote that Peck, "better known as Big Ed," was born in Florence, South Carolina, but grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, as the third of seven children. He married Hilda Williams in 1940 who the previous year was the reigning Miss Atlanta and went on to be crowned Miss United States. They remained married for 71 years until her death in 2011.

Upon moving to Florida, following his stint in the Army, Peck became the owner of a successful timber business and was appointed by then-Governor Farris Bryant to lead a committee to raise money for the University of Florida.

Peck and his family decided to move to the Daytona Beach area after selling his timber business because they had enjoyed vacationing here. He started two new businesses, Peck Realty and Peck Construction and proceeded to embark on his new career as a condo developer. Peck Realty and Peck Construction continue to be run by his family, including Edwin Peck Jr.

In addition to Peck Plaza, other condos that Peck Sr. built included The Caribbean, The Ashley, Seychelles, and Ormond Heritage.

Bob Davis, president of the Lodging & Hospitality Association of Volusia County, said Peck had a "humongous" impact on the area. "He built the first condominium in the area and he deserves a lot of credit for what he did for Daytona Beach and Volusia County. He was a great, great man. A great individual. And his son, Edwin Peck Jr., has followed in his footsteps."

Lowell Lohman, the founder and former co-owner of the Lohman Funeral Homes chain, was a close friend of Peck's.

"Ed Peck was a giant of a man. He had a major impact on our community with Peck Plaza and other high-rise developments," said Lohman. “Ed and I had lunch regularly. Even during our recent lunches, we always talked business strategy. We also flipped a coin after each lunch to see who would buy, and he made sure we had a standard Florida-Florida State Football bet each year. He was a loyal Gator!”

Davidson said of her father, "He wasn't boastful. He was determined and when he set his mind on something you weren’t going to steer it somewhere else. He could be stubborn as a mule, but at the same time, very generous with his friends and family."

Peck is survived by his children, Sherry Peck Davidson and Edwin Peck Jr., five grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren as well as two sisters and many nieces and nephews.

A visitation will be held tonight from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Chapel at Lohman Funeral Home at 733 W. Granada Blvd. in Ormond Beach.

A funeral service will be held on Saturday, 1 p.m., at the Lohman Funeral Home in Ormond Beach.

The family requests donations in Peck's memory to be given to Halifax Health Hospice, 3800 Woodbriar Trail, Port Orange, FL 32129.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Daytona Beach Shores condo developer Edwin Peck Sr. dies at 104