NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. – The City of New Smyrna Beach is looking to help small businesses in historic downtown through a new shopping initiate.

What You Need To Know

  • New initiative designed to help small businesses

  • Canal Street will close periodically for pedestrian-only shopping

  • Plan approved by New Smyrna Beach commissioners

​​Here are five things to know about the plan.

Shutting Down Canal Street: On Tuesday night, commissioners approved closing Canal Street for pedestrians one day a week through July for pedestrian-only outdoor shopping. 

Thursday Nights: The event will take place Thursday nights from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. The first street closure is scheduled for June 18. 

Safe Shopping: The purpose is to encourage shoppers to come out to local stores in a way they can feel confident that they are safe and social distanced from other customers. 

Low Foot Traffic: According to the city, Canal street shop owners requested this kind of event as they’ve seen very low foot traffic since the pandemic. 

Hope for the Future: While this is only scheduled to happen for a few weeks, some are hopeful it will be a new event New Smyrna Beach holds on to. “We are hoping to make this in the future to make this a once a month event on a Thursday evening if the locals are enjoying it,” said Liz Jones, owner of Nature in Beauty and President of the Canal Street Historic District Association.