The World According To Harryoke: March 2023

FEB 2023 Update: All apologies for taking so long to publish this blog. I hit a couple of snags, first, being incredibly busy, second, having an issue posting pics for some reason. My attempts to post photos and organize them frustrated me to the point of walking away for a bit. Third, much of the content overlaps the info in the blog from 2018...SO, rather than attempt to repost all of that content, I will likely link you the reader to the 2018 blog, and use this blog entry as a companion update to the 2018 blog. The link appears in the introduction below.

- INTRODUCTION

1. STARTING POINT - Brown Bldg N To Michigan

2. FAIRVIEW SOUTH ALONG BEACH ST TO BAY

3. BAY TO ALLEYS BEHIND STORES TO PALMETTO

4. PALMETTO BEHIND STORES TO ORANGE AVE

5. BEACH ST N TO BROWN BLDG

INTRODUCTION: (CLICK on any of the pictures in the blog to make them larger)

Each year, members of our Facebook group "I Grew Up In Daytona Beach" meet on the Saturday after Thanksgiving to take a walk. The purpose of the walk is not necessarily a docent led tour of the town, but to get out of our cars and walk through an area of town that you might THINK you know, but to see it as a pedestrian and take in the details of things you would not see driving past. We take note of the changes, how things used to be, and what will be in the future, and share stories along the way.

THIS BLOG is an accompanying text covering what we saw, and posting historic info and pictures of what may have been there before. This is a great read for those who went on the walk or those who missed it entirely but want to know more about the history of the area. While my historic contexts should be correct, I do not necessarily guarantee the exact accuracy of certain dates, but share this info to the best of my knowledge in an informal vein.

This year we meandered Beach Street from Main Street Bridge approach to Orange Avenue. We deviated to the former alleys between Beach and Palmetto in the area from Bay to Orange. The reasoning for this location, this year, was due to all of the changes happening in that corridor. Demolition and construction of new structures, impending construction, the ongoing renovation of the park and Esplanade, and the condition of the existing structures in the wake of the recent storms, and streetscape issues.

This walk HEAVILY overlaps a walkabout we did in 2018 along N Beach St and the San Juan area. I have extensive historic content posted in THAT blog. As I was composing this blog, I found myself repeating, so instead of repeating, I will reference the 2018 blog, which can be found at this link:

CLICK HERE FOR 2018 BLOG SAN JUAN

So while I am posting current pics at the start of the blog, I will refer you back to the 2018 blog for historic content.

1) STARTING POINT: Brown and Brown Office Building and Points North to Michigan

Our starting point was at the new, and controversial Brown and Brown headquarters, located at 300 N. Beach St, the former location of the Chrysler dealership, historically, and the anchor lot of all of the car dealers in that block. The car dealers have been long gone, and the property there had become blighted and abandoned. Our previous walkabouts had illustrated the blight on this block. Brown's building is controversial in that, many lament that historic structures and trees in the surrounding area fell for this building. Some feel it is too big, and call it a misplaced monstrosity, while others find it aesthetically pleasing and a welcome bellwether of change to the area. Undoubtedly, the arrival of the Brown building, as well as the Brown family financial contributions to the improvement (?) of the area have sparked a bit of a rebirth of the area, with attention now being paid by developers on how to best utilize and gentrify this area. It is happening as we speak.

Historically from this point, depending on your age, you would remember car lots like the Chrysler dealership, Sunrise Olds/Toyota, Lloyd Buick, up to the commercial storefronts running north til you got to the AMC/Jeep dealership at Michigan. All of those structures are gone now. The dealerships fell long ago, but the retail buildings have been very recently demolished, to make way for a luxury apartment complex being developed by the Framework Group.

On the day of our walk (the Sunday after Thanksgiving, 11.27.22) the structures north of the Brown Building had largely fallen. I had visited a week earlier to scout the walk path and took some pictures just before they were demolished. There are historic pics at the 2018 blog.

Here are some snapshots from Michigan to the Brown Bldg a week before the walkabout...

all of these buildings are gone now, making way for the new apartments...