NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. — A new parking proposal has raised concerns among business owners at Venetian Bay.

What You Need To Know

  • The developer of the Venetian Bay community in New Smyrna Beach announced that starting Sept. 1, residents and visitors will be required to pay for parking at the town center

  • Business owners and residents oppose the proposal, saying they do not want to pay for parking to be able to enjoy the restaurants and shops in their own community  

  • A city of New Smyrna Beach spokesperson said because it’s a private community, the city has no control over parking regulations

  • The developer has not yet responded to a request for comment 

The community on State Road 44 in New Smyrna Beach has a town center with restaurants and shops that are open to the public and to its residents.

Thomas Griner is the owner of The Happy Deli on Luna Bella Lane. He bought the business over a year ago and saw it as an opportunity to live and work in the same community.

“Purchased a home. Live in my neighborhood and have a business in my neighborhood, kind of was a real good community feeling,” Griner said.

Now he said he is concerned about the future of his business after the developer announced that starting Sept. 1, residents and visitors will be required to pay for parking at the town center.

“We received an email that kind of announced the GeoSam plan to start the parking and validation program,” Griner said.

The developer told businesses that the parking rate would be $2.50 per hour, Griner said.

“And basically, it then advised the business owners that if we chose to join the validation program, that they would give us a discount on the parking," he said. "We would validate our parking for our customers, but we would have to pay that fee.”

He said that would cost businesses thousands of dollars a year.

“That’s going to impact all of us. And we’re all small business owners, and most of us live here. So, we’ve got a lot at stake,” Griner said.

The current parking situation is bad enough, with limited parking spots because of the ongoing construction across the street, he said.

“I’ve had customers come in since receiving their emails. Not happy about it and have told us that, you know, if we’ve got to pay to come to our own town center — nothing personal — but they’re going to boycott it and they’re not going to do it,” Griner said.

Carl Scharwath has been a resident of Venetian Bay for four years. He said all they got was an email from the developer saying if residents didn’t want to pay for parking, they should walk.

“When I got the email, from the HOA (homeowners association) concerning it, what really bothered me is not only was that parking going to be charged, but also, they discussed would be a nice way that we should be able to get out and join the community. We should walk here, ride a bike, get some exercise that’s good for our health. And it was kind of like salt in the wound,” Scharwath said.

That’s why Scharwath and dozens of residents came out to The Happy Deli to show their support to the businesses and their opposition to the paid parking system.

“A lot of people are saying, ‘Well, I’m not going to come here anymore. I’m not going to support it. I’m not going to pay money. I’ll go somewhere else.’ That hurt me," Scharwath said. "We need to support them. This is an amenity for us.”

A city of New Smyrna Beach spokesperson said because it’s a private community, the city has no control over parking regulations. 

The developer has not yet responded to a request for comment.