Hotel Inlet Terrace

Hotel Inlet Terrace. Bob Pacetti's Dream. This terra cotta wall is all that remains of what was to be a grandiose hotel and resort. It was started during the great land boom of the 1920's. The developer, Robert (Bob) Pacetti was a native of this area. His ancestors first came to this country with the British Turnbull colony of New Smyrna in 1768. His grandfather, Bartola Clemente Pacetti, settled on the A. Pons (Ponce) Spanish land grant near here in 1840. Portions of the grant were sold in the 1870's, but this area, (Lighthouse Point Park), remained in the family. Bob Pacetti called his subdivision "Inlet Terrace", sold lots, and began construction of a hotel. The name of Mosquito Inlet was changed to Ponce Inlet, a name more palatable than the original. Suddenly, in the fall of 1926, a disastrous hurricane ripped across South Florida, costing many lives and millions of dollars in property damage. The land boom ended. Banks closed all over the state and in Daytona Beach as well. Work soon stopped at the hotel site. Within a few years Bob Pacetti disappeared from the area. Through the years vandals destroyed much of the property and anything of value was carried off. For over fourty years the foundation stood here. Then in 1982 a number of lots were sold to a dutch firm called Transol U.S.A. A bold plan to build high-rise condominums was presented to the now existing Town of Ponce Inlet. The tall buildings were prohibited, under a town ordinance which restricts building hights, to protect the lighthouse nearby. A revised plan with a reduced height of 35 feet was also turned down by the city. The property was then sold to the State of Florida who entered into an agreement with Volusia County to operate the park, which was developed with Ponce de Leon Port Authority funds. During the parks construction, the hotel ruins were destroyed. Now recent storms have uncovered a portion of history.