DAYTONA BEACH — For decades, the narrative about Main Street has been that it was once a Mayberry-esque place where local residents could find an array of shops, professionals and restaurants.
Starting in the 1970s, new development in Daytona Beach and central Florida gave Main Street competition, and a protracted road project around 1990 made it nearly impossible for customers to get to Main Street businesses for one year. When the road opened back up after the early 1990s street project, Bike Week-related businesses became dominant.
Now there could be another wave of change coming. Here’s a look at the top three new things happening on Main Street:
New Main Street businesses
Over the past year, several new Main Street businesses have opened. The 35 Bistro & Wine Bar has brought fine dining to Main Street, complete with octopus salad, lobster bisque, roasted duck and goat cheese fondue.
There’s also homemade pies at Punk Rock Pizza, waterfront dining at Riverside Johnny’s, Cajun gumbo and beignets at Urban Soul Daiquiris & Wingz, and an outdoor balcony and lounge at Urban Ash Cigars & Hookahs.
A South Carolina man is moving toward buying one of the largest buildings on Main Street for $2 million and sinking another $3 million into transforming it into a new restaurant, bar, event space and music venue. And the city government continues its quest to make strategic purchases on Main Street.
For about one year, city leaders tried to work out a deal to buy the Cruisin Cafe and a few other adjacent properties that would have provided about one acre on the southwest corner of State Road A1A and Main Street.
About a month ago, though, negotiations hit an impasse on the four parcels originally listed for sale at $6.5 million. The property owner is looking for a new buyer now.
Daytona Beach city government help
The city government plans to buy more property to help with redevelopment, encourage housing creation, add lighting, invest in new planters and pavers, and continue offering facade improvement grants.
The city has also installed high-tech security cameras along Main Street that have feeds streaming into the beachside police substation on Grandview Avenue.
Main Street merchants would like the city to invest more in street lights to help people feel safe, aggressive code enforcement, additional parking and activities like wine walks.
New energy on Daytona Main Street
Daytona city officials are also exploring bringing in street performers, planning pop-up events, holding wine walks and setting up a kiosk on the east end of Main Street that would list all the business names and addresses so people know what’s on the road.
“We have to create the energy,” said City Manager Deric Feacher. “We want to show we’re not just a destination for special events.”
City leaders are also brainstorming ways to entice people at Daytona Beach hotels, Peabody Auditorium and the Ocean Center to come to Main Street.
“We’ve got to make sure hotels are saying, ‘There’s a great restaurant on Main Street,’ ” Feacher said. “The Peabody could use playbills to advertise Main Street businesses.”
Helen Humphreys, the founder, and part-owner of Humphreys & Son Jewelers on Main Street, would like to see the corridor offer more for kids and families, such as face painting, bounce houses, balloons and food courts.
“Main Street needs more all-day, family-oriented events,” said the 90-year-old Humphreys, who opened a beachwear shop on Main Street in 1954 that evolved into her jewelry store. “Make it look like a fun place to shop.”
You can reach Eileen at Eileen.Zaffiro@news-jrnl.com
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Daytona Beach’s Main Street is evolving with new businesses and city help
Reporting by Eileen Zaffiro-Kean, Daytona Beach News-Journal / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
