Volusia County chair seeks an opening in beach-driving debate
News-Journal editorial board
Last week, Volusia County Chair Jeff Brower brusquely rejected a request that seemed routine: Invited to speak to tourism officials in May at the Hard Rock Hotel Daytona Beach, he said he wouldn’t set foot in the property until Hard Rock owners agreed to “remove the poison poles on our beach and give Volusia residents our beach back.”
Brower was talking about the square wooden markers that have been driven in the sand to keep cars off a 410-foot length of beach. The “poison” addressed a chemical used to treat the wood – but we’re pretty sure that Brower had a different kind of poison in mind, one that restricts beach access via vehicle for any stretch of sand, no matter how small. He’s consistently said that beach driving is his top priority, and no populist leader would pass up a chance to make a gesture of defiance like this one.
She was joking. Or maybe not. Beach driving is truly a third-rail issue in Volusia County.
But heated issue or not, beach driving is likely destined to become a debated issue in the county in 2021.
New County Chair Jeff Brower is a longtime beach driving advocate who recently told News-Journal reporter Mary Helen Moore that he plans to work to increase the amount of beach on which cars can be driven. Brower is closely affiliated with the group Sons of the Beach, the beach driving advocacy group whose members strongly supported his campaign for county chair. It will be surprising if beach driving doesn t rise as an issue before the County Council.
Pat Rice, Editor
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