A beach parking fee in Volusia County may be costing beachfront businesses more than just customers.
After business owners reported a significant drop in revenue over the past year, the county is now exploring short-term parking solutions to help bring customers back. Several businesses along International Speedway Boulevard’s beach ramp are among those asking for relief, saying the new $20 daily county parking fee is hurting their bottom line.
“What we’re experiencing is the people pull in, they either don’t pay and then they get a ticket, and then they get really angry, or they just back out and they leave,” said David Ur, owner of Rustic Dough Works pizza shop.
Ur is one of several business owners who say the fee could force them to change their hours — or even close. He says customers, and even his own employees picking up delivery orders, are quickly flagged by parking patrol if they haven’t paid.
“It’s like you can pull in here for five minutes. When I say quickly, there’s a food influencer that came here, she parked. She actually filmed them. It was 33 seconds from the time she pulled in,” Ur said.
While Volusia County residents can park for free in the daily fee spots, Ur says the majority of his customers are tourists. Tickets for nonpayment range from $30 to $120.
“They need to adjust it in some way, whether they give a free 15 or 20-minute or 30-minute, or discounted down to $1 an hour, do it a dollar an hour. They would probably make more money because people would park more,” Ur said.
Business owners recently brought the issue before the Volusia County Council. Councilman Matt Reinhart acknowledged the area’s significance to visitors.
“It’s a major tourist area. That’s the very first direct approach right from ISB that you would travel to if you’re coming in from out of town,” Reinhart said.
The county says it may look into adding short-term parking at the beach areas these businesses rely on, though no decision has been made. County staff is now reviewing several ideas and is expected to bring options back to the County Council within the next few weeks.
“I mean, I get we’re using the money to beautify the beaches and stuff, but $20 is killing us because it’s not allowing people to be able to afford our pizza or a t-shirt or a hot dog at Nathan’s,” Ur said.