- January 19, 2025
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For a group of residents in Ormond-by-the-Sea, proximity to the Halifax River is what brought them to purchase a home in the area. They want to be able to kayak it — and access it from their neighborhood's launch.
The kayak launch at the Briggs Drive fishing dock, located at 2500 John Anderson Drive, has been fenced in since Aug. 31, 2021. This was done in response to an incident that occurred in May 2017, when a resident fell over a protruding spike secured to a black mat on the kayak launch. She fractured her tibia and required three surgeries, and as a result, sued the county for negligence in 2019. The county settled the claim for $125,000 in June 2021.
"The launch area has a significant decline and out of an abundance of safety, the launch remains closed," said Kevin Captain, Volusia County community information director in an email.
But nearby homeowners believe closing the launch is not the answer.
"My whole argument is, if you slip on the pavement in Daytona and you fall and break your ankle, what are they going to do? Shut the road?" resident Karen Schaper said. "Or if you chip your windscreen, are you going to replace your car? You fix what's broken."
She remembers a time when residents would sit on the fishing dock at night and watch the sunset, which they no longer do because it's leaning to one side, a result of damage from recent hurricanes. As homeowners who pay over $2,000 in property taxes annually, Schaper said, they feel like they should be able to utilize their neighborhood launch and dock.
In May 2021, the county removed the black mat to deter people from using the kayak launch. The residents, however, said removing the mat actually made it safer for them to use it.
"What happened is that the county made a mistake by putting that black rubber mat down," resident Mark Andrews said.
After removing the mat, the county decided to fence in the launch because people were still using it, explained Captain.
"At this time, there are no plans on reopening the kayak launch in question, as there are various other kayak launch alternatives available in the proximity and throughout the North Peninsula," he said.
But Schaper, who is considering starting a petition to have the county reopen the launch, said there are people who are unable to place a kayak on top of their car and drive to another launch.
Access to the river is limited now on John Anderson because of the many homes along its shore, added resident Karin Leith. Those who live near the Briggs Drive fishing dock had easy access to the Halifax for many years. They didn't have to go to other launches.
"People are doing it anyway, and so now it's been made a problem instead of maybe finding a way to make it safer and coming up with a good solution," Leith said. "... This is why we moved to these neighborhoods here."
