DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – A major construction project in Daytona Beach has nearby businesses closing their doors.
Volusia County back in June started its long-awaited project to redo the beach ramp on International Speedway Boulevard.
While the goal is to improve access to the beach, the businesses that sit next to the ramp told News 6 the construction closed access to their shops almost entirely and the project isn’t supposed to be done until February.
“It was dead. I was throwing out products every single day because everything was perishing. So, I said you know what, I can’t do this,” said Sam Tadros.
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Tadros opened his pizza shop, Sam’s Coal Fired Pizza, back in April. Then, two weeks after the construction on the beach ramp started in June, he closed. The shop owner said the construction started right at the start of peak tourism season and was much bigger than the business owners thought it would be.
“I have utilities here, I have my insurance here, I committed and signed a lease for the last location here to put a Nathan’s franchise in and I have to pay the rent,” he said.
Tadros is on the hook for about $12,000 every month with no income.
His neighbor, Zoltan Kerekes, who has had his gift shop on the same strip for 33 years, shut his doors Thursday. He told News 6 he’s barely had anyone come in the last couple of months.
“I gave it a try. I’m always hopeful and I realized I cannot pay the rent or electric so I might as well close,” said Kerekes.
The businesses — which run along the north side of the ramp — also rely on pedestrian traffic, especially coming from the beach. With the ramp closure, they no longer have parking, so they hoped to rely on beachgoers, but the county also gated off access for anyone coming from the beach.
Tadros and Kerekes went to Volusia’s County Council on Tuesday to try and find a solution.
“We asked them for help. We didn’t throw a dollar amount out there — we just asked them to help us out,” said Tadros.
He said they didn’t get the help they hoped for.
The county’s Public Works Director, Ben Bartlett, said they chose to start the project in June to coincide with the state’s project on the other side of A1A to redo that portion of International Speedway Boulevard.
He sent News 6 the following statement:
“Renovation of the ISB Ramp is a much-needed upgrade that will benefit the entire community, and we’re expediting construction as much as possible. As with any project, our goal is to ensure minimal disruption to businesses and residents while delivering a high-quality result in the most efficient timeline. To further reduce construction time, we coordinated with the adjacent FDOT road improvement project, and we’re pleased to report that our project remains on schedule.”
Ben Bartlett, Volusia County Public Works Director
Tadros and Kerekes said they hope to reopen in February when the ramp reopens if they can afford it.
“I think we’re going to have to litigate. I hate to say that but that’s going to be our only option,” said Tadros. “Nobody wants to come anywhere near a construction zone.”
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