According to the Ormond Beach Observer edition from 10 years ago this week ...
- The Ormond Beach Observer printed its first edition on Sept. 6, 2012, with a front-page top headline about the city budget. The City Commission had set the millage rate at the rolled-back rate — the rate that would generate the same dollar amount of tax revenue as the city had received the previous year. At the time, that meant an increase in the rate, because overall property values were declining: The rate went from $3.8933 per $1,000 in taxable value to $4.0132 per $1,000 of taxable property value.
- The Ormond Beach Union Learning Center added a new creative arts program for its pre-school-age students.
- The city was updating its ordinances to allow buildings with a broader range or architectural styles to go through the planning process without requiring City Commission approval. Previously, buildings in four styles — Spanish, Bermuda, Mediterranean and Old Florida Cracker — did not have to proceed to the City Commission for approval, but buildings in other styles did. The city opted to add a broad "neo-eclectic style" to the pre-approved style list so that buildings with more modern features did not require a hearing at a City Commission meeting.
