DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Get ready to start your engines! The Daytona 500 is just days away! 

It’s the event many local businesses at One Daytona have been waiting for, as it’s one of its biggest weekends of the year.

One Daytona, a vision of the France family, was built to be the crown jewel of the community for both residents and race fans alike.

Roxanne Ribakoff, president of One Daytona, is thrilled that race fans are rolling back into town despite limited capacity at the Daytona International Speedway. 

“It is not only good news for One Daytona, it is good news for Daytona Beach in general, I mean it drives a lot of tourism traffic here,” said Ribakoff.

Among those getting ready for the big race is Matt Cormier, the regional director of 4 Rivers Smokehouse. He explained they opened up just in time for the race last year and it was the busiest they’ve ever been.

“The 500 here was crazy. We were extremely busy,” said Cormier. 

While he didn’t expect to face a global pandemic just weeks after opening, he said they are is prepared to have less business this time around because of it.

To get around the fact that there may be fewer fans due to limited ticket sales at the speedway, they are coming up with innovative solutions, like offering infield delivery during the race

“We wanted to make sure everybody had the ability to come to us, or us to go to them,” said Cormier. 

Next door at The Daytona Autograph Collection, staff said race fans are already checking in. General manager Michael Melendez recalled they also faced new challenges staying open during the pandemic. 

“Of course it was a fearful moment for all of us because honest to God, you don’t know what to expect. So we did go down to some of the single digits out there," said Melendez. 

He said they sold out for the race last year and are set to do it again this year. He hopes those that can’t get into the speedway chose to take in the race with them. 

“Even if you are not watching it on the TV, guess what you can do? Walk outside on the balcony and use your ears. It is probably the most exciting time of the year,” said Melendez.

While they have been able to ride out the speed bumps over the last year, other One Daytona businesses haven’t. Ribakoff said they’ve had three tenants close up shop since the crisis. 

“It was time for us to challenge ourselves and look outside the box, do something different to really stand out,” said Ribakoff. 

To keep going, they come up with safe events like a monthly farmers market to bring people to the area. So far, she said it’s working, with one new tenant opening last month. 

And with the racing season kicking off again, she’s hopeful they’ll be able to keep their foot on the gas. 

“We are always hoping that it is going to bring a lot of people here to the property, that our tenants will benefit from it and that everybody will just have a really really good time and feel a little bit or normalcy again, even if it is within guidance,” said Ribakoff.

One Daytona stated there is a lot of renewed interest from potential retailers and it hopes to have more shops opening soon.

The Daytona 500 is set to take place this Sunday, February 14.