Deltona commission rejects rezoning for 36.46-acre Normandy-area mixed-use project

The Deltona City Commission on Monday voted 4-3 to deny Ordinance 12‑2024, a second‑reading request to rezone roughly 36.46 acres along the North Normandy Boulevard corridor from single‑family residential to a mixed‑use planned unit development.

The item drew a lengthy staff presentation and public input. Jordan Smith, planning staff, told the commission that after first reading staff and the applicant revised the development agreement to include "a 160 foot setback between the multifamily buildings and the existing residential neighborhood to the south," enhanced storefront design to support walkability, and routing for semi‑truck traffic away from residential streets. Smith also said staff and the applicant discussed adding a "big box" retail use as permitted in the development agreement.

Why it mattered: residents who live immediately south of the site repeatedly raised traffic and safety concerns — especially heavy truck traffic turning onto and through nearby residential streets — and pressed commissioners to require stronger protections. The commission framed the debate as a choice between new commercial and housing investment along Normandy Boulevard and the project’s impacts on adjacent neighborhoods.

Supporters and applicant: Scott Banta, the applicant, said his team would design and pay for a barricade across Ruth Avenue and would ‘‘be happy to do whatever we can to control that traffic and … have those trucks go north, as best we can.’’ Banta also told commissioners he and his LLC, Warranty Parts Solutions, are the listed owner of the parcels and denied any involvement in separate litigation that had prompted questions at the hearing.

Opposition and neighbors: Multiple commissioners relayed conversations with affected residents and asked the applicant to include specific protections in the developer agreement. Commissioner Stephen Santiago said he had met with neighbors about speeding and requested that Ruth Avenue not serve as an entrance or exit; he said the developer had agreed to a barricade. A resident who lives on North Firwood Drive and Ruth Avenue described concerns about traffic, building height and loss of the wooded buffer, saying the proposed multi‑family buildings would “invade people’s privacy.”

Legal/conflict questions: Commissioners pressed staff and the city attorney about whether the applicant or any of the parcels were party to a separate lawsuit the commission had been served. The city attorney reported later in the hearing that none of the parcel numbers in the pending litigation matched the parcels in this application and that the applicant’s LLC was not listed among the plaintiffs; the attorney said a near match on one parcel number likely caused earlier confusion.

Outcome and follow‑ups: A motion to adopt the ordinance failed on a 3‑yes, 4‑no roll call (Commissioners Lully, Santiago and Vice Mayor Harriott voted yes; Commissioners Avilla Vasquez, Caldwell, Howington and Mayor Avilla voted no). Because the ordinance failed at second reading, no zoning change or development agreement was adopted. Commissioners and staff noted several commitments discussed during the public hearing — including the applicant’s pledge to install a barricade on Ruth Avenue, routing semi traffic to Rhode Island, the 160‑foot buffer and an agreement to consider native landscaping — but those were not enacted by a final ordinance because the motion failed.

Next steps: The applicant indicated willingness to work with staff on design and traffic measures; neighbors asked staff to ensure truck routing and signage be incorporated into any future application. The commission did not vote to remand or table the item; any new submittal must follow the city’s land‑use process.