Volusia County leaders were scheduled to vote Tuesday on whether to accept $1.5 million in state funding for the Sheriff's Office's new headquarters, a move that would free up money the county had already set aside to spend on the project. If approved, that replaced $1.5 million would instead be banked for future building projects.
The vote, scheduled for a Volusia County Council meeting set to start at 4 p.m. at the Kelly Administration Center in DeLand, comes a year after the council approved the construction contract for the facility, according to Spectrum News 13. That earlier action, taken in October 2025, saw the council vote 6-0 to approve a contract with Wharton-Smith worth more than $38.36 million to design and build the new administration building, according to USA Today Network-Florida.
The county's budget calls for financing $30 million of the project through bond proceeds, the outlet reported. If the state funding request wasn't awarded, the county planned to cover the gap using interest income from those bond proceeds, General Fund revenue, and another $5 million bond issuance, per the same account.
A Two-Story Hub Built for Backup 911 and Crime Tech
The planned headquarters is slated for a nearly 16-acre site on North Woodland Boulevard in DeLand, near Glenwood Road and the DeLand Municipal Airport, the news organization reported. The building itself will be a two-story structure of at least 55,000 square feet, with visitor parking and space for 500 Sheriff's Office vehicles.
Beyond office space, the facility is designed to house a backup to the county's 911 system along with a dedicated crime-scene technology processing center, the outlet's reporting shows. Sheriff's officials have said the new headquarters would sit on higher ground with less flood risk and would serve as a safer backup location for the county's emergency call center during severe weather.
Consolidation and Cost Savings Behind the Push
Per the funding request behind the project, the new headquarters would bring several Sheriff's Office departments under one roof, consolidating multiple office locations into a single centralized facility, as noted by The Daytona Beach News-Journal. The Sheriff's Office has said the consolidated setup aims to improve emergency coordination and reduce operating costs, according to the same funding request.
The new facility is also intended to make it easier for residents to report crimes, get assistance, and attend community meetings, with planners describing it as a dry location the county could rely on when responding to natural disasters and emergencies. That kind of resiliency concern isn't unique to Volusia — Charlotte County has pursued its own sheriff administration and hardened 911 facility project after officials flagged that its current building, repaired from Hurricane Charley damage on airport-owned land, remains susceptible to hurricane damage.
Other major public-safety construction projects have also been discussed in Florida. Fort Myers, for instance, had approved a $109 million construction contract for a new police headquarters by July 20, 2026, with the total project estimated at about $147 million, according to WINK News. Volusia's own funding request dates back to at least February 2025, when state records describe the project simply as an effort to develop and construct a new Volusia Sheriff's Office headquarters.
