Consensus on MLK softball, but no clear path for soccer after Fernandina Beach workshop

About 75 people attended Monday's workshop on youth softball and soccer.

There was good and bad news Monday following the City of Fernandina Beach's public workshop regarding the future of girls softball and youth soccer.

The good news was regarding girls softball at the Martin Luther King Recreation Center complex and Joe Velarde Field adjacent to the Atlantic Recreation Center.

The bad news involved youth soccer, which is about to lose its fields at the Ybor Alvarez Sports Complex by the municipal airport. No viable consensus for a new soccer home on the island was reached.

The one-hour public workshop with about 75 people attending focused on those topics in an effort to secure the future for youth sports in the city.

City Manager Sarah Campbell framed the evening as a listening session. “Before the City Commission makes any decisions, it’s always a good opportunity for us to pause and open it up … to hear from you about more thoughts and recommendations,” Campbell said, adding that the workshop was not intended as a back-and-forth debate but a chance for public input to be recorded.

Parks and Recreation Director Scott Mickelson outlined the city’s current thinking on softball, noting that a three-field configuration proposed last fall drew neighborhood pushback over loss of recreational open space, lighting and tree impacts. That led staff back to a two-field option at MLK, paired with upgrades at Joe Velarde Field behind the Atlantic Recreation Center.

“At a November 4 City Commission workshop, the city did present a three-field option,” Mickelson said. “There was some support for that layout, but there was also some pushback as well. We did not have full community buy-in.”

The revised concept would keep more green space at MLK while adding a second playable diamond, remodeling the concession stand, repairing pavilions, bathrooms and playground equipment, and improving lighting capacity through enhancements at Joe Velarde. Mickelson said staff is prepared to bring formal proposals to the City Commission if community buy-in continues.

Miranda Ivey

Elm Street Little League president Miranda Ivey urged commissioners to act, describing overcrowded conditions on existing fields. “We have one field,” Ivey said. “I had eight teams last year on one field. That was our game field. … We’re not trying to change the park. We’re trying to upgrade the field for these girls.”

Community leaders echoed that message while drawing a clear line against expanding beyond two fields. Rev. Bernard Thompson, speaking on behalf of the Elm Street Sportsman Association, said, “We’re here again tonight to offer full support to the two-field configuration at the MLK Center. … We need the green space, and we want the green space.”

The more complex discussion centered on youth soccer, which currently uses fields at Ybor Alvarez on land subject to federal aviation restrictions tied to the city’s airport.

The current fields will be demolished this summer to make way for a new aircraft hangar project, leaving the city with no replacement fields.

"I'm a little disappointed that we're now in this frantic scramble to find a solution," said Joy Behan, a former member of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee. "We knew what things were coming down the pike. This wasn't, like, a big shock."

Mickelson acknowledged the urgency, telling attendees that the 2026 fall soccer season “will be compromised” without near-term solutions.

Mickelsen explained that before significant public investment can be made at Ybor Alvarez, the city must either lease or purchase the land at fair market value.

Joy Behan

Airport Director Nathan Coyle detailed those constraints, tracing them back to post–World War II federal property transfers. “We expect that you’re going to operate this as a public-use airport into perpetuity,” Coyle said of the deed obligations. While non-aviation uses are allowed, he said they require FAA approval and must not preclude future aviation needs. “If you’re going to pay less than fair market value, the risk at hand is if you put a significant investment in and the aviation use comes in, we’re obligated to support the aviation use and it would boot that use out,” Coyle said.

Cost has become a major hurdle. City staff reported that a new appraisal increased the estimated value of roughly 15 acres at Ybor Alvarez from about $1.7 million to $3.5 million, with total redevelopment costs potentially pushing the figure near $6 million.

Mickelson reviewed three alternatives previously discussed with the City Commission: partnering with Nassau County on new soccer fields off the island near U.S. 17; using Hickory Street Park as a stopgap, despite impacts on other youth programs and the lack of lighting; or evaluating city-owned wooded land near the airport, which may be constrained by wetlands and runway protection zones.

None of the speaker comments drew clear consensus Monday night.

Representatives of Amelia Island Youth Soccer described rapid growth and warned of immediate consequences if fields are lost without a replacement. Toby Lenz, the program’s recreational director, said participation has climbed sharply. “Our program has grown from over 420 players per season to almost 600 this past fall,” Lenz said. “Without short-term solutions providing sufficient field space, we’ll be forced to make impossible choices — cut teams, turn away families, or scatter our program across multiple venues.”

Parents repeatedly objected to relocating primary soccer activities off the island. “Not having fields on the island would be a huge mistake,” said Jenny Mountjoy, a lifelong Fernandina Beach resident. “Driving 25 minutes to soccer practice out at 17 and trying to get back — you can’t do it.”

Others urged the city to explore on-island options more aggressively, even if they require difficult tradeoffs. At the same time, speakers cautioned against impacts to existing neighborhoods, tree canopy, and the municipal golf course.

Mikelson said the city is in the process of hiring a consultant for a Parks and Recreation Master Plan and emphasized that public involvement will continue as options are refined.

Vice Mayor Darron Ayscue and Commissioner Genece Minshew attended.

No decisions were made at the workshop. City officials said the feedback will inform staff recommendations before the issues return to the City Commission for formal action.