VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – Volusia County could get $10 million from the state budget to help entice a company to move its proposed fuel terminal in Ormond Beach.
The Belvedere Terminals project has been at the center of a fight from residents for months now.
On Wednesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the state budget and part of it is the $10 million designated for Volusia County to give Belvedere to move its project from the proposed location off Hull Road near US-1 to another location in Volusia, Flagler or Brevard counties.
“It has to be used to relocate. It can’t be used to improve the facility in Volusia County,” said Volusia County Council Chair Jeff Brower.
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Brower has been pushing for this project to find a new site. He said now, they just need Belvedere to say they’ll relocate to get the money from the state to give to them.
“They’re zoned here to do it in a residential location so it’s totally up to them whether or not they listen to the citizens, the government that says this is the wrong location,” he said.
Hundreds of Ormond Beach homes, a sports complex, the airport and businesses surround the land where Belvedere Terminals wants to build fuel storage and terminals next to the railroad.
Residents worry about the large amout of fuel that would be stored there.
“He’s our governor and if he’s going to get involved it’s like, ‘Wow it must be important.’ If he is going to get involved then it is a bad thing to be here,” said Becky, a resident of the nearby Pine Trails community.
There have been attempted lawsuits from Belvedere, some against Belvedere, attempted moratoriums from the county and protests all in the last several months in this fight.
The last movement was back in April when the county was forced to review site concept plans Belvedere submitted. The county then sent them back with questions.
“They’ve not responded since we returned their site plan with questions and that’s been months,” Brower said.
News 6 reached out to Belvedere to see if it would take this incentive to move locations or at least get a status update and was told by the company’s representative they would sit down and provide an update “When they are ready to announce their progress in detail.”
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