DeBary Gives Green Light for SunRail-area Apartments

Reprinted from the Daytona Beach News-Journal, Article by Katie Kustura

DEBARY — After several years of struggling for growth around Volusia County’s only SunRail station, DeBary this month approved its first major project.

Unanimously, the City Council gave the green light to a development agreement for a 289-unit multi-family apartment complex.

“I think it’s DeBary’s turn for development,” Roger Van Auker, the city’s transit-oriented development marketing director, said in a nod to what SunRail stations in other cities have. More than $3 billion has been invested or pledged for housing, commercial and other developments near some of the rail line’s other 11 stations.

While the renderings of Integra 289 Exchange, the complex’s working name, are conceptual, the anticipation and excitement felt by city officials is concrete.

Mayor Bob Garcia said he can’t wait for things to really get moving, though an environmental impact study of the project and a report on the impact to the school system are needed first; a traffic analysis already is in progress.

He said he wants the city to be a place where generations of families live, work and play.

“Once you have your roots and you’re invested and you’re a part of the community, it becomes more than just a place to lay your head,” Garcia said. “I’d like to see our babies stay here.”

Helping the project along is an incentive package worth $180,000, which consists of a credit of $93,000 in park-impact fees, a waiver of $30,000 in builder-permit fees and, after a certificate of occupancy, a cash contribution of $57,000, said Matt Boerger, the city’s growth management director.

At a council meeting during which the project was addressed, Garcia said he felt the city had lost businesses in the past to places like DeLand because of a lack of incentives, so it was important for DeBary to negotiate competitively going forward.

“It’s a give and take,” the mayor said. “You can’t always have it all 100 percent and say, ‘Guess what, we’re not going to put nothing into the pie.’”

Land owner Steve Costa, a broker associate with Charles Wayne Properties, said Integra 289 Exchange should break ground in spring. It’s the start of something bigger, he said.

“We’re planning future phases with retail, restaurants, additional senior housing projects and some additional residential units,” Costa said. “We’re really excited this area is finally taking off.”

The retail portion will be more about the experience than the goods, with places conducive to socializing and relaxing like casual dining spots and coffee shops, he said.

Costa and city officials also are excited about the connectivity the development will have with the Spring-to-Spring Trail and Gemini Springs Park.

Van Auker said he’s seen the trail used by people of all ages, whether you’re a child riding a bike with training wheels or a senior with a walker.