Fernandina Beach Paid Parking Ordinance Heads to Final Vote Despite August Referendum

Graphic by Melissa Moss

The Fernandina Beach City Commission will vote Tuesday whether to enact a paid parking program for the city’s historic downtown, a proposal that has divided residents and business owners and has generated sustained public opposition.

Commissioners will consider Ordinance 2025-13 on second and final reading at their meeting with approval formally establishing a paid parking system covering much of downtown between Ash Street and Alachua Street and from Front Street east to just before Eighth Street, including public lots near the marina.

City officials have framed paid parking as a new revenue source to address aging infrastructure and capital needs without raising property taxes. Opponents argue the program threatens downtown’s character, harms small businesses, and should be decided by voters rather than implemented by ordinance noted in earlier Observer coverage.

Opponents of paid parking, organized as a political action committee, have successfully gathered the required signatures to place the ordinance on the August 2026, where voters will decide whether to repeal it. The referendum will proceed regardless of the outcome of Tuesday’s vote.

Last week, a Nassau County judge dismissed a request for an injunction that sought to block the City Commission from voting on the ordinance. The ruling cleared the way for the commission to proceed with the second reading but did not address the merits of paid parking itself or the pending referendum.

The ordinance has passed by votes of 4-1 and 3-1-1 in prevision meetings. Commissioner Tim Poynter abstained from the second vote citing a pending conflict of interest legal opinion and has since been cleared to vote Tuesday.

Under the ordinance and the city’s adopted master fee schedule, parking in the designated area would be enforced:

• Monday–Saturday: 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

• Sunday: 1 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Outside those hours, parking would remain free.

Hourly rates would range from $2 to $4 per hour, with the city manager authorized to use short-term “dynamic pricing” within that range for periods of high demand. The first 20 minutes would be free, and delivery or loading vehicles would have up to 30 minutes at no charge in designated zones.

The program relies on license-plate recognition rather than meters. Drivers would pay by phone, text, or QR code, and enforcement would be handled by city staff or a contracted parking operator. Vehicles with three or more unpaid citations could be immobilized under the ordinance.

City residents would be eligible for up to two free annual digital permits per household, with additional permits costing $24 per year. Residents living within the paid parking area would also receive up to two free permits allowing unlimited parking within the zone.

Non-residents could purchase an annual permit for $124 per vehicle, or a monthly permit for $60. Most permits include four free hours of parking per day, after which hourly rates would apply, according to the fee schedule adopted by resolution.

All revenues from paid parking — including hourly fees, permits, and citations — would be deposited into a newly created Parking Special Revenue Fund, restricted to use within the city’s downtown boundaries. The ordinance specifies that funds may be used for parking operations, downtown revitalization, resiliency projects, and infrastructure improvements, including the possibility of financing future projects through bonds backed by parking revenues.

City documents cite needs such as sidewalk repairs, street lighting replacement, seawall deterioration, and delayed capital projects as justification for the program.

Paid parking has been debated in Fernandina Beach for more than a decade and was formally identified as a potential funding source during the City Commission’s February 2025 goal-setting workshop. The commission approved the ordinance on first reading in November and again in December after directing revisions by the city attorney.

Opposition has remained vocal, with critics arguing that downtown already struggles with access and that paid parking could deter visitors and shift costs onto residents and workers. Previous Observer reporting has detailed protests, packed commission meetings, and calls for a referendum rather than commission action.

If approved Tuesday, the ordinance would take effect immediately, with implementation expected by April once signage, permitting systems, and enforcement are fully in place.