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# Another step forward for Edgewater's new boat ramp
- URL: https://www.newssmyrna.com/another-step-forward-for-edgewaters-new-boat-ramp/
- Published: 2026-10-08T15:37:36.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-08T15:58:53.000Z
- Author: CASEY M

More room to launch a boat would be a welcome addition to Edgewater, especially if it means less time waiting for a ramp or finding trailer parking. The planned facility at [150 Legendary Way](https://www.cityofedgewater.org/m/newsflash/Home/Detail/26?ref=newssmyrna.com), [north of Boston Whaler](https://cityofedgewater.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?FullText=1&GUID=EF4A0E34-DE61-4159-996C-B01D3436E776&ID=6695847&Options=&Search=&ref=newssmyrna.com), moved another step forward October 6 when Volusia County [approved a $2.5 million ECHO grant](https://www.volusia.org/news/news-releases.stml?calendar%5Fentry%5Fid=92969&portalProcess%5Fdd%5F0%5F1%5F1=showPublicPosting&ref=newssmyrna.com). The city’s posted proposed FY2027 capital plan lists the overall project at **$9.4 million**, with construction targeted for completion in June 2028\. An opening date has not been confirmed.

The [ECHO application](https://vcservices.vcgov.org/ECHOAgenda/agendas/20260827/City%20of%20Edgewater%20FINAL%20Application.pdf?ref=newssmyrna.com) describes up to four ramps with eight launch lanes, accessible floating docks, a fishing pier, restrooms, boat staging and wash-down areas, and approximately 85 vehicle and trailer parking spaces. Road improvements, utilities, lighting and landscaping are included. Some improvements could arrive in later phases depending on funding.

There’s also a police component. Edgewater [already operates a marine unit](https://www.cityofedgewater.org/m/newsflash/home/detail/22?ref=newssmyrna.com), and the [FIND application resolution](https://cityofedgewater.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&ID=15387945&GUID=81C39C4C-6947-40D7-ADE9-0C50A494CDE2&ref=newssmyrna.com) includes a police boat docking facility at the new site. Council unanimously approved additional police boathouse design and engineering services on [April 7, 2025](https://cityofedgewater.granicus.com/DocumentViewer.php?file=cityofedgewater%5F1e24d98ee49d50fe3e15eb65229b0db9.pdf&view=1&ref=newssmyrna.com), and a [budget amendment allocated $45,000 from police impact fees](https://cityofedgewater.legistar.com/View.ashx?GUID=B211CC22-B977-4001-9C55-3CD24180FE99&ID=14208312&M=F&ref=newssmyrna.com) for that design work. The ECHO application describes the planned marine law-enforcement facility as separately funded and excluded from its grant request.

The FIND resolution also includes a Flock camera system. Those plans appeared in the May 4 council documents, before [Edgewater announced it would discontinue using Flock cameras](https://www.wesh.com/article/license-plate-readers-shut-down-in-volusia-county/73572781?ref=newssmyrna.com) and before Volusia’s [October 6 moratorium on law-enforcement license-plate readers in county road rights-of-way](https://www.wftv.com/news/local/volusia-county/volusia-county-council-implements-12-month-moratorium-license-plate-readers/K5VAPF6DGFC4BERRGV2FU7IEF4/?ref=newssmyrna.com). The ramp documents don’t specify the camera type or whether that proposal has since changed.

The [posted proposed budget](https://www.cityofedgewater.org/DocumentCenter/View/1345/FY-2027-Proposed-Budget?ref=newssmyrna.com) lists:

- **$2.5 million** from ECHO.
- **$2.7 million** from FIND.
- **$2.7 million** in unspecified grant funding.
- **$1 million** in recreation impact fees.
- **$500,000** in police impact fees.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/01/41/01419502-ea1a-464f-8b40-5ef51a4c62a7/content/images/2026/10/Screenshot-2026-10-08-113414.png)

Together, that’s **$9.4 million**. Impact fees are charges collected from new development to help pay for additional public facilities needed as the city grows. Those funds account for $1.5 million in this funding plan. The documents reviewed don’t itemize the specific use of the $500,000 police contribution or establish whether the earlier $45,000 design allocation is included.

ECHO is Volusia’s Environmental, Cultural, Historical and Outdoor Recreation program. FIND is the Florida Inland Navigation District, which previously awarded $137,100 for engineering and design in FY2024–25\. **Of the construction grants budgeted, only ECHO’s award could be verified through the online public records reviewed for this article.** The other $5.4 million appears in the budget, but that alone doesn’t confirm an award.

ECHO requires a dollar-for-dollar match. The application lists $2.5 million in confirmed matching funds, but the posted copy doesn’t include the referenced documentation identifying those sources. An [earlier FY2026 budget amendment](https://www.cityofedgewater.org/DocumentCenter/View/1206/FY-2026-Amended-Budget-May?ref=newssmyrna.com) allocated $200,000 from the general fund for “Boat Ramp – City Match.” That could account for part of the ECHO match, although the documents reviewed don’t explicitly connect the two.

Construction is targeted to begin in **April 2027**. Council [approved $108,000 in environmental mitigation payments](https://cityofedgewater.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?GUID=00BAE98D-C2EC-490E-8470-55BD8AFDFA16&ID=8190170&Options=&Search=&ref=newssmyrna.com) September 14 for four launch lanes; the accompanying report said permitting work would continue for the remaining four.

With City Hall’s planned relocation to [city-owned land on West Indian River Boulevard](https://www.cityofedgewater.org/327/City-Owned-Properties?ref=newssmyrna.com), we hope any eventual sale of its current site leaves Kennedy Park’s ramp across Riverside Drive accessible. The same goes for Menard-May Park, known locally as Little Beach. More boating access should include keeping the places locals already use open.

[Edgewater Welcomes ECHO Advisory Committee for Proposed Boat Ramp Project FundingDate: August 14, 2026Written by: Courtney Sebastianelli, Public Information Officer EDGEWATER, Fla.--The City of Edgewater welcomed members of the Volusia County Environmental, Cultural, Historic![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/01/41/01419502-ea1a-464f-8b40-5ef51a4c62a7/content/images/icon/favicon-ede605d8-1d61-4718-8bd1-e0557b31a4bf.ico)Edgewater FL HomepageGovernment Websites by CivicPlus®![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/01/41/01419502-ea1a-464f-8b40-5ef51a4c62a7/content/images/thumbnail/Document-7fd7d9b1-89eb-4f67-9501-510bc1b1364a.jpg)](https://www.cityofedgewater.org/m/newsflash/Home/Detail/26?ref=newssmyrna.com)