Florida

Bigger and Better Florida

Growth in Florida means more high rise condos and hotels and means fewer beach houses in the old Florida style like the one the hurricanes destroyed in 2004.

People love to come to Florida for the sun, beaches and paradise lifestyle. And Florida is set up to accommodate all of that. We have drive on beaches and so many restaurants and fast food joints that no one will ever go hungry. Just look at the bulging bellies as you cruise the beach! It’s the good life, don’t you know.

Ever since I moved south in 1979, I’ve seen lots of changes to the state and mostly they are to make roads bigger and wider, clear out acres of woodlands to put up condos and shopping centers, and lets not forget all that fast food! I guess many places are dealing with overcrowding, but it seems accelerated here.

This page is about one such replacement of an old beach house that became a multi-level hotel.

The House Next to Breakers

The iconic Breakers restaurant is the pink building you can’t miss at the end of Flagler Ave. I’ve eaten here a number of times, and the food is always good, but that right-on-the-beach / ocean view is superior to most water-view eateries in my area. During the day you can watch the beach people as you eat and in the evening enjoy views of the sparking ocean water.

I wonder how many people know what happened here in 2004 and how the coastline (and Florida) has changed.

Flagler Ave. beach entrance ramp from the beach — Flagler Ave. beach entrance ramp in New Smyrna Beach

Florida changes very fast. Hotels, buildings, and houses are built practically overnight. Green spaces are cleared daily to make space for the ever increasing new residents and tourist growth.

A new hotel has now taken the spot of small, residential housing along the valuable coastline in New Smyrna Beach. This is thanks to some wicked hurricanes. (Most tourists never have to deal with those either.)

Breakers and new hotel next door — Spring Hill Suites, is a brand new hotel right on the beach

Compare the photo above to the one below. I took them both, but years apart. In 2004, the year before we moved to New England, our area of Florida was hit with three hurricanes within about 6 weeks time. Charlie, Frances and Jeanne are names that are forever etched on the minds of Floridians who lived through long power outages, suffocating heat (the storms hit in August and September), and devastated homes, land, trees and beaches.

The photo below is mine and I used it to make a calendar for my Zazzle store. I bought the calendar, so I have this photo to reference because I have no idea where my old photos would be. You can see the same yellow hotel to the right, with most of the palm fronds blown off the trees.

Flagler Ave after Hurricanes of 2004 with house falling into the sea — This house was next door to Breakers Restaurant

I think there were 2 houses side-by-side but I am not sure. I took this photo out the window of the Breakers restaurant where we were eating at the time. Breakers was closed right after this for repairs. We had traveled from our home, which was 30 miles inland, to see what was happening at the beach after the hurricanes. It was sad to see the beach was gone, leaving such devastation behind.

Now, many years later, there is a new hotel in the spot where those houses used to sit. (Spring Hill Suites) It looks like a nice place for all the tourists to stay and I’m sure it’s a big money-maker. Personally I liked the look of beach houses, but that was part of “old Florida”. And it seems that the hurricanes made the place unlivable.

But New Florida is concerned with making money, and that is my gripe with this place. When ecology and the environment take a back seat to keeping people happy, we begin to lose what is truly good about this place.

It began years ago, and it’s not getting better. We do have conservation committees, and people who are trying to make changes for the better. I doubt they will get far when they are going up against big money hotel chains, car dealerships, and shopping centers.

Like I tell my son, if you see a green space, take a photo because the next time you go to that area it may be gone. That’s Florida. Tourists don’t mind because they are here to have fun. Big business doesn’t mind because they are making loads of money. On it goes, but for how long before there is no more for this state to give?

Paradise, or so it seems

Flagler Ave beach entrance — February 2019, Flagler Ave beach in evening

What Happened to the Stairs at Smyrna Dunes Park?

Often I will write about Smyrna Dunes Park and Ponce Inlet because it’s such a wonderful place to beach-comb, swim, fish, and walk. The park had built a new stairway, to replace the old one, which emptied onto the beach near the jetty. The stairway was replaced when the rest of the boardwalk was replaced, only a short time ago. I’m talking like less than two years. Now this stairway is gone. The boardwalk now ends up high on the dunes as a “lookout” only with no beach access.

Here is a link to an article, written in May, 2019, about New Smyrna Beach on the “Travel Pulse” website where you can see this stairway from the side. It was a beautiful, and probably expensive, set of stairs. Suddenly, they were taken out and I’m wondering why.

The New Stairway Which is Now Missing

Here is my photo of that staircase which was built over the dunes. The old boards were replaced with something like Trex boards to hold up to the elements better. The whole boardwalk was re-done like this. Now, these stairs no longer exist. There is no way to get onto the beach at the end of this part of the boardwalk.

The only sensible explanation for the missing stairs is that they didn’t want anyone gaining access from the beach up to the park. But because there are about 4 or 5 other access points on the ocean side, and about three on the river side of this peninsula, that really doesn’t make sense. This does not keep people from doing that, it just makes it more difficult. Maybe that was the point?

Below is my first time trying the “compare images” block with a center slider. It shows the top of the stairway compared to the nothing that is left.

(A reader left a comment that the sand was washed away and the stairs no longer touched the beach so the stairs were removed. If this is the reason, it’s pretty stupid that the builders did not realize that this happens. I’ve taken lots of “after a storm” photos that show the eroding of the beach. Maybe there have been too many hurricanes and they decided not to deal with this problem. But they left the other access points over on the ocean side which certainly must also be affected by hurricanes.)

Erosion of Beach at Ponce Inlet Jetty

beach erosion florida — Beach Erosion at Ponce Inlet 2016

Stairway, and Stairway Removed

Smyrna Dunes Park missing stairway to the jetty beach — Stairs… and no stairs

I’d love to know the reasoning behind this move. My favorite thing to do at the park was to walk 1/2 of the oval and then go down at this point to the beach. The jetty is to the right and I would begin my beach walk there and travel around the inlet over to the river and return to the boardwalk by using the dog access trails.

It’s a longer walk, through the soft beach sand, to get onto the beach and do the same thing.

Smyrna dunes park boardwalk — Before: End of boardwalk at stairs leading to Inlet and Jetty

boardwalk end where stairs were — After: Walkway ends as an overlook to the beach below

Since you can’t get down to the beach, I suppose standing there in the shade and reading a sign about local wildlife will have to do.

sign wildlife sea animals — Something to read while you stand and look out over the inlet and beach

The Smyrna Dunes Park boardwalk is an oval shaped boardwalk with beach access ramps along the ocean side. Because the stairway at the end of this path (photo below) is no longer an access to the jetty, a new sign points walkers on down the oval where access leads to the ocean side.

See a map of the park at the Volusia County site. The info in this brochure is old because a one day pass is now $10.00. That doesn’t keep visitors away, in fact often it’s usually difficult to find parking. I used to buy a year long resident’s pass for $20, but with the crowds and now this new change, I won’t be doing that.

At this point I’d rather drive onto the beach and park near the jetty. My son and I did this the other day and he fished while I did some beachcombing.

beach access sign — New sign points further on to gain beach access

The old wooden boardwalk – before the “fake wood” replacement

The Very Old Boardwalk

The photo below was taken when the old boardwalk was still showing. Hurricanes and extremely high tides easily destroy anything that is built near the ocean, so it’s understandable that the boardwalk would need replacing. This bit of the wooden walk is no longer there and I don’t recall when this photo was taken.

There are many, many more people coming to this area and using the boardwalks. Florida no longer has that “Old Florida” feel. Everything caters to the newer, wealthier crowds. The boardwalks cannot be rustic, they must be pristine. And now I suspect the city of New Smyrna has the tax money to upgrade.

With lots of condos nearby and the fact that everyone has a dog these days, this is a popular park. Dogs can be seen all around the beach from the jetty to the river side. Although they are supposed to be on a leash, many people ignore that, and let their dogs run.

Ponce Inlet dunes beach water — Ponce Inlet dunes and old boardwalk

I don’t understand, or much like, the way things are being done these days in this area. Daytona Beach to the north used to be very popular and the place to visit. Now it is known locally as a place to avoid. That brings everyone south to New Smyrna, which has been written about endlessly as the place to visit on Florida’s east coast.

The high rises are going up and the restaurants are doing valet parking. Florida caters to the visitors who like the idea of living the laid-back life in paradise and live in big expensive condos which are ruining the landscape.

The laid back Florida feel has been gone a long time for me.

Back in Florida After a Visit to New Hampshire

Because Covid kept me away from New Hampshire for over two years, I took an extended trip recently. Two of my four kids live there and it was very nice to see them again. (And my daughter’s cat, Frankie!)

I got to spend lots of time with the family members I seldom see, including Frankie the Cat.

I love New Hampshire for it’s quaint, small towns like Hancock, where we visited Fiddlehead’s Cafe and shopped at the Hancock Market. One day we were waiting for our pizza from Fiddleheads (really delicious) and took a stroll around the tiny downtown, where I took this photo of some vintage buildings.

Trees and shrubs were just beginning to bloom after the long, northern winter. And there were mountain views, rolling hills, and clear ponds and rivers to enjoy everywhere. Not to mention, small populations.

Hancock New Hampshire quaint town — Hancock, NH

While I was there (in March and April) I saw all kinds of weather, which is pretty typical for New England. One day it reached 80 degrees, and although it was nothing like the humid 80 degrees of Florida, it was warm.

But most days begin in the 40’s and warmed to 50 or 60. One day it snowed! It was like Christmas for me! But the locals were not happy to have a snowstorm in April! I was the only happy soul in the area.

snow snowstorm New Hampshire late season winter — April snow in New Hampshire

This is not where I write about my New England visits, but I wanted to explain my absence from writing about seashells and boat trips.

I began walking a lot during my visit, because I stayed in an area I know, and the weather was great for walking and hiking.

Now, I am continuing my journey to good health by continuing to walk every morning in my neighborhood. There is no need to wonder which coat I should wear, or remembering to dress in layers. Every summer morning in Florida is plenty hot. The rule is to just wear as little as possible!