[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6123445,"mediaKeyId","2689707-5528d39f0a73507f9e792ec3b671e464","parentId",2689707,"title","Volusia County Council approves multiple appointments, budget adjustments and projects; consent approvals include traffic signal fiber project","audioSeconds",445,"startMs",2612000,"endMs",3057000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2689707-5528d39f0a73507f9e792ec3b671e464&start=2612&end=3057","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2689707-5528d39f0a73507f9e792ec3b671e464/thumbnail_2612000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6123445/Volusia-County/Florida/Volusia-County-Council-approves-multiple-appointments-budget-adjustments-and-projects-consent-approvals-include-traffic-signal-fiber-project","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6123445-f5e5c6d25d76d7122850123716719a3c/orig.mp4?Expires=1771140976&Signature=KI9qwLncV0oKjtjvGeH8TwZwgHyuuVo32zs-c7wbAx9B0XkblPf93~azSBRvqmN-zbzpU9eX-Sb5IZYEJwYJUY0G1gsvELzU8a-MJhDoaTwGlDXY0jkfwDGQvCprNjiX4-uzD0voCE17KhCvbTdOOkpPJe3u79YGmQdhteNJpVVLJCM~tCWS-oW4Gy~X~yIiQ1CovOtxTLtGiRe5Dgk5JNrlshcRV8tGI7jwEShihEiZ8suM7xblN83qXiGiDBB~Ezwv0RyALA4fYlg8KXqrem4df3RCUzmMWDSmu20EoQ3hVHY89GZvZynI47~gFi7sbU2kbhUGa83JGcI4xjl5mQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Volusia County, FL","date","2025-03-19T16:06:46.827Z","article","Volusia County Council handled a slate of appointments, contract amendments and budget reconciliations during the March 18 meeting and approved several administrative and infrastructure items by unanimous votes.

Appointments and confirmations
- Aaron Van Cleek was confirmed as Director of Emergency Services (county career official). The motion to confirm carried and he accepted the post. Vice Chair Matt Reinhardt moved to confirm; Councilmember Jake Johansen seconded. The vote was recorded as unanimous.
- Dr. Randa Matusiak was confirmed as Director of Public Protection following a motion by Councilmember Matt Reinhardt and a second by Councilmember Danny Robbins; she was confirmed 5-0.
- Scott Olsen was confirmed as the Division Director for Veteran Services; the motion carried unanimously.
- Nicholas Ventura was confirmed as Division Director for Building and Code Administration, 5-0.
- Veronica Black was confirmed as Division Director, Management and Budget, 5-0.

Consent, grants and projects
- The council approved the consent agenda 5-0. A public speaker, Connie Colby, asked questions about consent item P; Jay Williams, county traffic engineer, briefed the council and the public that item P is a new fiber-optic project to improve communications between traffic signals across county and state roads and that the project is primarily under FDOT jurisdiction; placing it on the TPO priority list is an administrative step to facilitate FDOT funding.
- The council approved four ECHO grant recommendations (three nonprofits and one municipal project) 5-0.
- A contract amendment to CPH Engineering for architectural and engineering services for expansion of the Southwest Regional Water Reclamation Facility was approved; the amendment increased the engineering contract total to approximately $5,300,000 within an overall project budget approaching $70,000,000 (grants and utility funds). Motion carried unanimously.

Budget and fees
- A resolution to index landfill disposal fees to the CPI plus 1% for Class 1, Class 3 C and D rates and certain other fees passed 5-0; staff said solid-waste enterprise funds rely on fee revenues and the indexing is intended to sustain operations during a multi-year landfill expansion.
- Finance staff presented a FY2024-25 revised budget fund reconciliation and appropriation package that consolidated several transfers between funds; the council approved the transfers 5-0. CFO Ryan Osofsky said none of the adjustments created new spending; they reallocated funds between accounts.

Other procedural actions
- The Cultural Council and Historic Preservation Board appointments were approved as listed on the agenda; the council confirmed nominees from each district and at-large seat with unanimous votes.

Ending: Several items will return for follow-up (notably the Banyan affordable-housing award), and staff will provide additional documentation requested by council on contract scopes, grants leveraged and legal questions about tax treatment on projects.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","County Council - Tuesday March 18, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","At its March 18 meeting the Volusia County Council confirmed multiple department directors, approved technical and budget items and adopted a new indexing policy for landfill fees; the council also approved consent list items including adding a fiber-optic traffic-signal project to the regional priority list.","taxTitle","Volusia County, Florida","taxId",2878,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6123450,"Volusia County delays $1.7 million award for Banyan Development after debate over timing, rents and tax credits",277,5276000,5553000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2689707-5528d39f0a73507f9e792ec3b671e464&start=5276&end=5553","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2689707-5528d39f0a73507f9e792ec3b671e464/thumbnail_5276000.jpg","/articles/6123450/Volusia-County/Florida/Volusia-County-delays-17-million-award-for-Banyan-Development-after-debate-over-timing-rents-and-tax-credits","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6123450-0c86fd6a8d13a78c1e987feb638a6db7/orig.mp4?Expires=1771140976&Signature=FxY41qPeAdZbVnu2JpLVf~vq4f2jWm9Yv8y0UhT25Y7n5gSpJ5z1mQTu6V8eJW3SV8TU5fcWRgkr9IFNCNN5hgfJgRO4d0H-5LdkxCK2L5C-Ctm3MXOodtv7D9xApaw6lVFH4vlldU3rT5Xpw9YnvOBa~JLHL8CbiWXIn5plLvBGPCQe7-mtZ~QCJbyIzjFEcfSRLKAnKKIUmmlNFi5JzIXZIvCgoY0I2L-W4N9H0iwkbEix1EhVgkPlA9yTmv0bMt0eCaWTuurZHdIzgaBWUUm0TQtba2zRADb0t45QlkaeK1HMQJ1GBfFzZrqW~xIHZz37~y0JWB6cDkXfX4lKsA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Volusia County Council voted to table consideration of a proposed $1,700,000 award to Banyan Development Group LLC for an 84-unit affordable housing project after more than an hour of public comment and council debate on March 18.

Carmen Hall, community assistance director, told the council the proposed award would come from federal and state affordable-housing allocations that must be used for development or rehabilitation of affordable units; she said the Banyan proposal would leverage roughly $32 million in additional private and tax-credit equity and would provide a 50-year affordability period required by the state program. Alexander Kiss, managing partner of Banyan Development Group, described use of federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits and a private-equity investor structure to lower borrowing costs and keep rents constrained.

Council discussion focused on three areas: (1) whether the county should use limited taxpayer-controlled affordable-housing funds to add 84 units when council members said the residential market shows elevated inventory; (2) whether a new development near the DeLand SunRail station is prudent given uncertainty about SunRail\u0000s future and station ridership; and (3) the affordability bands and rent levels the new development would produce.

Councilman Don Dempsey repeatedly urged caution and opposed using county funds to add housing to a market he described as glutted, saying data show fewer net new Florida residents and a rising inventory of homes for sale. Dempsey said, \"I don't think the general population wants more development,\" and questioned whether taxpayer-subsidized units would compete with private-sector rentals or with existing lower-cost housing.

Councilman Jake Johansen urged the county to invest in workforce housing rather than wait for state preemption or be forced by the Live Local Act. Johansen said the proposed units would help local workers \u0000including police, firefighters and hospital staff\u0000who cannot afford market-rate housing close to jobs. \"This type housing is giving those people a place to live close to where they work,\" he said.

Carmen Hall and staff explained program limits: HOME and SHIP rules set income bands and rent ceilings by area median income (AMI); the developer proposed an average AMI of roughly 60% across the project with units ranging down to 30% AMI, and Hall said a 2-bedroom at 60% AMI in Volusia would have a rent cap in the neighborhood of $1,119.93 (state-published thresholds), while the developer noted maximums could be higher for 80% AMI units but that the affordability mix creates lower rents for the lowest-income households.

Council members also pressed whether Banyan or the county could forgo later statutory tax benefits (for example, property-tax exemptions available after a statutory period) to reduce long-term taxpayer impacts. County attorney staff said they could not resolve that legal issue at the dais and recommended staff-to-staff work and a follow-up report.

After public comment that included supporting and opposing speakers and a short presentation from Banyan, Councilman Jake Johansen moved to table the item to the second meeting in April to allow the developer and staff to clarify outstanding questions and for council to assess potential state actions that could alter local options. Vice Chair Matt Reinhardt seconded; the motion carried 5-0.

Ending: County staff will work with the developer to respond to council questions about the rent mix, long-term tax implications and flood/engineering issues, and will return the item to council at the April meeting or sooner if state legislative activity requires faster action.","Council members split on whether county SHIP/HOME funds should be used for new 84-unit affordable housing near DeLand SunRail station; council voted to table the proposed $1.7 million award to Banyan Development Group until the second meeting in April to allow follow-up on tax-exemption, site concerns and flood/market questions.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6123455,"Miller Lake residents press Volusia County for action as high water continues",219,1220000,1439000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2689707-5528d39f0a73507f9e792ec3b671e464&start=1220&end=1439","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2689707-5528d39f0a73507f9e792ec3b671e464/thumbnail_1220000.jpg","/articles/6123455/Volusia-County/Florida/Miller-Lake-residents-press-Volusia-County-for-action-as-high-water-continues","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6123455-98ad578c5b2f57d2465d221169598c00/orig.mp4?Expires=1771140976&Signature=eaRvHspLse6MjsFBUw8h6PF9gVZdiagUzIJAWIGTVWCYoINKLadA2611vQZAFNsWwTueC8G8VubQCYMksBLlMtXxt3M8fmTDtSh8MgKzUMnMqpaLT~QCascvmzrVqIgZAqV1pIvzJaFfKZqfBZXg1fhNTouxlHA0YHAFsrE27fwSVUoTtgenkRgouWurdudT9Tqf7rsZ39yJ-e97jup515aOXQVjKl9QImU6M7QKId8sTDBHTjDxc5Uk~q0rRdWHGWB5DKl8s2v9dg9C8qxJrTUFtHcQfDNNJ3-xmVyziL6B-hGWXQtvAEjF65DCKjawAX3naPnG~jgvCSCGuiyeHQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Residents of the Miller Lake neighborhood pressed Volusia County officials on March 18 for quicker action after repeated flooding left some yards and retention islands underwater and killed long-standing trees.

During the council\u0000s public-participation period, multiple residents described high lake levels and urged the county to restart pumps, revoke or re-examine a 02/2017 permit they say directs commercial stormwater into Miller Lake, and improve communications about relief plans.

Paul Richardson, a public speaker, said standard time is healthier and then also asked to be reappointed to the Cultural Council. David Hill said the lake was rising roughly two inches a week even without rain and flagged dead oaks on a county retention island. He told the council that a 02/2017 Royal Oaks permit \"was supposed to be for a weir and outfall discharge pipe for Royal Oaks\" and asked the county to consider revocation. Peggy Hill showed photos and said the lake \u0000is almost exactly where it was two weeks prior\u0000 and warned that, unless water is reduced to pre-2017 levels, a normal summer storm could push the roadway and houses underwater. Joshua Rivera asked the council \"please turn the pumps back on\" and called the permit\u0000s impacts \"horrendous.\" Tony Frank described millings and road repairs and said the neighborhood has been told the county cannot pump water onto private property.

County manager George Recktenwald and Public Works Director Ben Bartlett answered during the meeting and afterward. Recktenwald said the county had stopped emergency pumping because the authorizing order from the St. Johns River Water Management District had ended and because the DeBary borrow pit that earlier received pumped water was full. He told the council the district controls lake elevations and permits and that the county must coordinate with the district before restarting pumps.

Bartlett displayed drone photos taken after recent storms showing the lake drawdown compared with peak conditions and said the county had purchased one low-lying property on Miller Lake that previously flooded. He said the county\u0000s earlier work removed roughly six vertical feet of water at some locations and restored temporary access routes that had been underwater. Bartlett cautioned that a permanent engineered solution that would move the large volumes of water residents fear\u0000for example installing new force mains to bypass constrained outfalls\u0000would be costly and require coordination with multiple agencies, including FDOT and the water management district.

Officials described the Royal Oaks permit as a stormwater outfall and control structure that included a weir; county staff said the weir had been removed at some point, the water management district found the parcel out of compliance, and the owner subsequently reinstalled the weir. Jay Williams, Volusia\u0000s county traffic engineer, noted that some stormwater grates in the area collect runoff from nearby commercial parcels and roadways; staff said much of the broader basin\u0000including private and public rights-of-way\u0000drains naturally toward Miller Lake.

Residents asked for clearer, regular updates. Recktenwald said the county will continue talks with St. Johns River Water Management District, FDOT, the city of DeBary and other local agencies to evaluate options including temporary emergency pumping, raising roadway grades in some locations, and, where feasible, buyouts of chronically flooded parcels. He said engineering and permitting work is under way and that staff will provide continuing briefings to council.

The council did not take a formal vote on a specific Miller Lake remedy at the March 18 meeting; several council members urged staff to continue coordination and to post updated photos and project notes publicly so residents can follow progress.

Ending: Residents said they will return to council meetings if action and communication do not accelerate; county staff said they will keep the council and public updated as studies and interagency discussions proceed.","Residents of the Miller Lake neighborhood urged Volusia County Council to restart pumps, review a 2017 permit affecting stormwater flows and provide faster communication after repeated flooding; county staff and the manager described legal and technical limits on pumping and said they purchased a low-lying property to reduce risk.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Volusia County Council approves multiple appointments, budget adjustments and projects; consent approvals include traffic signal fiber project

Volusia County delays $1.7 million award for Banyan Development after debate over timing, rents and tax credits

Miller Lake residents press Volusia County for action as high water continues