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Commission approves permit for city-run pop-up events on 18 city sites after narrow 4–3 vote
Summary
The Daytona Beach City Commission approved a resolution allowing city-sponsored pop-up events and limited mobile food vending on 18 city-owned sites, 4–3, after debate about merchant impacts on the Beachside boardwalk and whether the bandshell should be excluded.
The Daytona Beach City Commission on March 4 approved a resolution authorizing a public-use permit to allow city-sponsored pop-up events on 18 city-owned properties, after a divided discussion over potential impacts on Beachside merchants and the boardwalk.
Staff said the program is intended to activate underused public assets, including Ritchie Plaza, the bandshell-adjacent green space, a vacant city lot near Harvey and Ocean, and locations at the base of the ISB bridge. Events would generally last one day, may run up to three days, and cannot occur within 14 days of each other, staff said (staff: Speaker 10).
Commissioners and nearby business owners debated whether to allow mobile food vending at sites where brick-and-mortar merchants operate year-round. Commissioner May (Speaker 9) said she was “torn” because pop-ups could attract foot traffic but might disrupt long-standing businesses, and asked whether the commission could remove specific sites from the permit. Planning staff (Speaker 10) replied that the commission could choose to exclude properties such as the bandshell and that staff would modify the resolution if the commission requested removal.
Supporters argued the program offers a low-cost way to bring activity to underused public spaces. “This is really low-hanging fruit,” the mayor (Speaker 5) said, adding that the city can stop or adjust programming if it proves problematic. Several commissioners agreed to try the pilot and monitor results.
Opponents, including nearby year-round vendors who testified during public comment, said mobile vendors lacking year-round presence face different inspection and infrastructure requirements and that pop-ups could siphon customers from established businesses. Dino Pasiblak (Speaker 11), a year-round merchant, urged staff to be “conscious of the fact that it affects the person” and to site events to avoid direct competition with existing businesses.
On the roll call, the resolution passed 4–3. The commission’s discussion and staff’s remarks made clear the policy allows the commission to remove specific properties from the permit if it later decides to do so. Staff said the city manager’s office will handle event programming and issuance of any temporary permits, and that a public-notice process could be used when events are scheduled.
The commission did not adopt a list of exclusions at the meeting; commissioners asked staff to provide the specific list of excluded or included sites where requested before final action when applicable. The resolution goes into effect per its terms; staff said they will publish detailed site lists and event rules as the program is implemented.
