NSBCC Votes No On Ordinances Pertaining To “Temporary Housing Facilites”

New Smyrna Beach, FL – An issue that brought a large number of residents to Tuesday’s New Smyrna Beach City Commission meeting is not going forward, at least in its current version. Ordinance No. 19-21, which would modify the list of permitted uses in the I-2, Heavy Industrial Zoning District to provide temporary transitional housing facilities for individuals and families in New Smyrna Beach that have been displaced from their homes and are in need of shelter. This program would use temporary mobile-type housing units for residents. Ordinance No. 24-21 which would have added a definition of "Temporary Housing Facility" to the Land Development Regulations, was also not approved as there was no reason for it after Ordinance No. 19-21 failed. Mayor Russ Owen spoke after a public comment session that lasted about 90 minutes saying that there is a homeless problem in New Smyrna Beach and it will need to be dealt with. "I don’t think we can stop this conversation. I didn’t think this was the right direction for this location but I don’t think we can go all the way back to zero and stick our head in the sand and say we don’t have a growing problem in this community." Owen says the issue is the people who don’t want help and don’t want to change their condition and sometimes end up as law enforcement’s problem. " We have to make sure as a community that we give law enforcement the right tools. We check certain boxes so that law enforcement will have all the tools that they need. This is one of those boxes that we’re going to have to check in some way, shape, form, or fashion."