Daytona Beach, FL – The first big race of the year for Daytona International Speedway is this weekend and it’ll come without homeless protesting about the way they’re being treated by Daytona Beach.
Thousands of race fans are expected when the flag drops on Saturday for the Rolex 24 At Daytona. (Click here for more on the event.)
This year’s race takes on more meaning than normal since it’s the first at the historic motorsports stadium since the completion of Daytona Rising, the $400 million renovation that took over 2 years to complete. The ribbon-cutting declaring the project finished took place on Wednesday.
Those who attend the Rolex 24 can admire the Speedway’s many new features without worrying about going through a crowd of homeless.
In a Facebook post Thursday morning, homeless advocate Michael Pastore – better known as “Pastor Mike” – wrote that he decided to call off the protest following a meeting the day before with Daytona Beach Police Chief Mike Chitwood and City Manager Jim Chisholm about getting enough shelter beds to accommodate all the homeless who’ve been camped out in front of the Volusia County Administration Building on North Beach Street for the last 2 months.
“I love my city and do not want it to receive more of a black eye in the eyes of the world during this ongoing crisis,” Pastore added. “I would like to see a mutually acceptable resolution.”
Pastore had threatened to lead many of the homeless in a protest in front of DIS due to the city’s treatment of those homeless, especially since the city closed Manatee Island Park in December.
Daytona Beach officials have refused to open the park even after the Volusia County Council demanded it be re-open, claiming the bathrooms are damaged because of the homeless and that the homeless trashed the park when they were allowed to gather there.
The city has promised Pastore they will set up a temporary shelter of at least 100 beds so that all the homeless at the camp can stay there instead of being trespassed off the property or sent to another homeless shelter.
DBPD has also agreed to give the homeless storage containers and to inventory each person’s belongings before moving to the temporary shelter, per Pastore.
County officials had threatened to close the building earlier in the week due to safety concerns, especially after Property Appraiser Morgan Gilreath shut down his office when one of his employees claimed she was “accosted” by one of the homeless while going into work.
The county has since pledged to keep the 250 North Beach Street building open until at least February 4th. That’s when the Volusia County Council is expected to respond to a request from Daytona Beach Mayor Derrick Henry for a joint meeting with the Daytona Beach City Commission to discuss the issue.
In the meantime, extra security has been posted on the property and Gilreath has agreed to re-open his Daytona Beach office starting on Monday.
Copyright 2016 Southern Stone Communications.