Volusia County, Florida



Volusia County is a located in the  of. The 2005 estimate for the county is 496,575. Although is Volusia County's most well-known city, its  is, and its largest city is.

Volusia County is the sole county of the , Florida, , which is the in the United States as of the  Census estimate. It also makes up the northeast end of the.

History
Volusia County was created in. It was named for the port of along the  on the county's western side. The origins of the word "Volusia" are unclear, though there are many theories.

On the morning of, Volusia County was devastated by , although there were no deaths in Volusia County. Florida governor declared a. Damage estimates exceeded $4 million.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 3,710 (1,432 ). 2,857 km² (1,103 sq mi) of it is land and 853 km² (329 sq mi) of it is water, much of it in the. The total area is 22.98% water.

Volusia County is bordered on the west by the St. Johns River, and by the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Roughly the size of Rhode Island, Volusia is situated 50 miles northeast of Orlando, 60 miles north of the Kennedy Space Center, and 89 miles south of Jacksonville.

Volusia County is the sole county in the.

Regions
The Volusia County Government divides the county into three regions. This parallels the three calling regions used by BellSouth, the regional phone company:

Adjacent counties

 * - north
 * - south
 * - south
 * - southwest
 * - west
 * - northwest
 * - northwest

Major Attractions

 * in Daytona Beach
 * in Daytona Beach
 * in New Smyrna Beach
 * in Ponce Inlet
 * The (convention center) in Daytona Beach
 * in DeLand
 * in Barberville

Law and Government
Under Volusia County's council-manager form of government, voters elect a County Council which consists of seven members who serve four-year terms. Five are elected by district, the County Chair and At-Large representative are elected county-wide.

The County Council establish ordinances and policies for the county. It also reviews and approves the County budget annually. The Commission appoints a County Manager, who carries out the will of the Commission and handles day-to-day business.

Elected officials

 * County Chair: Frank Bruno Jr.
 * Commissioner-At-Large and Vice-Chair: Joie Alexander
 * District 1 Commissioner - Andy Kelly
 * District 2 Commissioner - Art Giles
 * District 3 Commissioner - Jack Hayman
 * District 4 Commissioner - Carl G. Persis
 * District 5 Commissioner - Pat Northey
 * County Manager (appointed) - James Dinneen

The following are considered state officials but are elected and paid by the county:
 * Sheriff - Ben F. Johnson
 * Clerk of the Courts - Diane M. Matousek
 * Property Appraiser - Morgan B. Gilreath Jr.
 * Supervisor of Elections - Ann McFall
 * State Attorney - John Tanner
 * Public Defender - James S. Purdy

County Offices

 * Thomas C. Kelly Administration Center, 123 W. Indiana Ave., DeLand 32720
 * Daytona Beach Administration Building, 250 N. Beach St., Daytona Beach 32114
 * New Smyrna Beach Administration Office, 111 Canal St., New Smyrna Beach 32168
 * Orange City Administration Office, 2744 Enterprise Rd., Orange City 32763

Justice
The county has centralized most county courts in DeLand which try a variety of cases including felonies, misdemeanors, traffic, and domestic. An elected prosecutor tries cases for the public. Defendants can be represented through the auspices of the office of the elected Public Defender.

The County elects a sheriff, immediately responsible to the courts but also to the state for the enforcement of state laws. Police chiefs, appointed by their cities or towns, perform the same function locally.

Many volunteers work alongside the paid professionals. Included are Citizen Observer Program (C.O.P.). C.O.P. volunteers work under the direction of the County Sheriff and play a part in the county's policing operations.

The Volusia County Branch Jail is a modern facility, located on Highway US-92 (International Speedway Boulevard), approximately halfway between DeLand and Daytona Beach. The county jail retains prisoners who have been sentenced to a year or less. Longer sentences must be served in state prisons.

Libraries
The county centrally controls 16 libraries. Collections included 869,491 books, 83,943 videos, 58,784 audio materials, 2,051 magazines and newspapers, over 100,000 government documents and 51 licensed databases. Personal computers for public use are hooked up on broadband in all libraries. An estimated 230,000 Volusia County residents have library cards. One library card is valid at all locations, and materials are loaned between locations through a daily courier service and outside the libraries via Inter-Library Loan. Library cards are free for all Volusia County residents.

Economy
The overall Gross Metro Product (GMP) for Volusia County economy increased from $12.98-billion in 2005 to $13.69-billion in 2006; a $709.9-million increase. The GMP is an annual measurement of the total economic output and sales of goods and services provided within the Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) that comprises all of Volusia County and its 16 cities. A GMP of $13.69-billion represents a signiicant circulation of new capital resources in an economy populated by just over 500,000 residents.

Local consumer confidence and a continued immigration of an estimated 28,800 new residents, new capital investments for new construction exceeding $1.11-billion and the steady growth of professional and health care services continued to drive much of the County’s economic viability.

Volusia County’s manufacturing sector maintained a steady and stable position within the local economy contrary to the declining trends being experienced elsewhere within the State of Florida. The overall number of manufacturers present within the county increased to over 430 in 2006 and accounted for a large portion of the county’s GMP. Manufacturing maintains one of the highest of all average wage levels within the county and generates a higher rate of circulation of economic impact than any other business sector that comprises the local economy.

Volusia County’s manufacturing sector generated an average annual wage of $37,632 in 2006, well above the county’s average annual wage of $32,200 for all workers. 

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 443,343 people, 184,723 households, and 120,069 families residing in the county. The was 155/km² (402/sq mi). There were 211,938 housing units at an average density of 74/km² (192/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 86.11%, 9.29% or , 0.31% , 1.00% , 0.04% , 1.82% from , and 1.43% from two or more races. 6.57% of the population were or  of any race.

There were 184,723 households out of which 24.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.40% were living together, 10.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.00% were non-families. 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.82.

In the county the population was spread out with 20.30% under the age of 18, 8.20% from 18 to 24, 25.30% from 25 to 44, 24.20% from 45 to 64, and 22.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 94.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.80 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,219, and the median income for a family was $41,767. Males had a median income of $30,573 versus $22,471 for females. The for the county was $19,664. About 7.90% of families and 11.60% of the population were below the, including 16.30% of those under age 18 and 7.10% of those age 65 or over.

Incorporated
As of August 2007, Volusia County has 16 incorporated cities and towns.


 * City of
 * City of
 * City of
 * City of
 * City of
 * City of
 * City of
 * City of
 * City of
 * City of
 * City of
 * City of
 * Town of
 * Town of
 * City of
 * City of

By car
Volusia County is easy to drive to and within, as roads are usually paved and several State and County highways wind through the area.

The Volusia County Parking Garage is located at 701 Earl Street at North Atlantic Avenue (A1A) in Daytona Beach. The garage is strategically located, next to the Ocean Center, Daytona Lagoon, and across the street from the Hilton Hotel and Ocean Walk Shoppes. Over one thousand parking spaces are available inside the garage. Price for parking varies at different times of the year.

Major roads

 * [[Image:I-95.svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:I-4.svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:US 1.svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:US 17.svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:US 92.svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:Florida A1A.svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:Florida 40.svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:Florida 44.svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:Florida 5A.svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:Florida 421.svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:Florida 11.svg|25px]]
 * [[Image:Florida 483.svg|25px]]

Public Transportation
is the name of the local Volusia County bus service. It is a cheap way to get around and is handicap accessible. The buses offer service throughout the county, Monday through Saturday, from 7 AM to 7 pm. Some limited bus routes are offered in East Volusia in the evenings and on Sundays. Buses travel to most sites and places of interest. Cost: $1.25 per trip, or $3 for a one-day bus pass (Valid for all routes).

There is also a VOTRAN transfer station (Intermodal Transit Facility - ITF) located inside the Volusia County Parking Garage in Daytona Beach.

Education
Public primary and secondary education is handled by. Some of the larger private schools include.

Colleges and Universities

 * (Daytona Beach branch campus)
 * (Daytona Beach branch campus)
 * (Daytona Beach branch campus)
 * (Daytona Beach branch campus)
 * (Daytona Beach branch campus)
 * (Daytona Beach branch campus)
 * (Daytona Beach branch campus)

Vocational

 * Advanced Technology Center (Daytona Beach)
 * International Academy Beauty School (South Daytona)
 * Florida Technical College (DeLand)
 * Palmer College of Chiropractic (Port Orange)
 * Phoenix East Aviation (Daytona Beach)
 * The Airline Academy (Daytona Beach)
 * WyoTech (formerly AMI) (Daytona Beach)

Newspapers

 *  - Online edition of daily newspaper covering the greater Daytona Beach area.
 * DeLand Beacon - Weekly news publication covering DeLand and west Volusia county.
 *  - Student college publication of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach.
 * Daytona Beach Pennysaver - Weekly publication with coupons and classified ads.
 *  - Biweekly newspaper that covers businesses in Volusia and Flagler counties.

AM

 * , 1150 AM, Daytona Beach, News/Talk/Sports
 * , 1230 AM, New Smyrna Beach, Standards
 * , 1310 AM, DeLand, Religious
 * , 1340 AM, Daytona Beach, Standards
 * , 1380 AM, Ormond Beach, News/Talk
 * , 1450 AM, Daytona Beach, Religious
 * , 1490 AM, DeLand, Spanish Language
 * , 1590 AM, South Daytona, Talk

FM

 * , 88.3 FM, Holly Hill, Contemporary Christian
 * , 88.9 FM, Edgewater, Religious
 * , 89.7 FM, New Smyrna Beach, Religious
 * , 91.5 FM, Holly Hill, Contemporary Christian
 * , 93.1 FM, Edgewater, Country
 * , 94.5 FM, Daytona Beach, Urban Adult Contemporary
 * , 95.3 FM, Edgewater
 * , 95.7 FM, Ormond-by-the-Sea, Classic Rock
 * , 97.3 FM, Deland, Religious
 * , 101.9 FM, Daytona Beach, Mainstream Urban
 * , 103.3 FM, Holly Hill, Pop music
 * , 105.9 FM, Deland, Alternative rock

Volusia Government Sites

 * Volusia County Government
 * Volusia Counthy Economic Development
 * Volusia County Eco-tourism (ECHO)
 * Volusia County Library
 * Volusia County Law Library
 * Daytona Beach International Airport (Maintained by Volusia County)
 * Volusia County Court Clerk
 * Volusia County Metropolitan Planning Organization
 * Volusia County Transit (Votran)
 * Volusia County Sheriff's Office
 * Volusia County Supervisor of Elections
 * Volusia County Property Appraiser
 * Volusia County History
 * Municipal Code of Ordinances

Other Sites

 * The Volusia Community
 * Virtual Volusia
 * Ocean View Cam
 * Connell Collection Approximately 550 photographs of Volusia County and the surrounding area taken between 1900 and 1915. From the State Library & Archives of Florida