City waterfront board advances harbor plan as costs of flood prevention wall draw scrutiny

FERNANDINA BEACH - The Waterfront Advisory Board voted unanimously Monday to send a draft Harbor Master Plan to the City Commission, but left unresolved how to extend a flood wall across privately owned land north of the marina and who would pay for it.

City project manager Jacob Platt said an offshore wall and backfill would face substantial permitting, mitigation and cost challenges. The route shown in the draft could change as engineers study the options, he said. Whether a wall would be built on private property, and how its cost would be divided, would require public discussion in the next phase.

He then added: “That’s a valid point that you and others have made about the optics of that.”

Ron Flick, an agent for the Simmons development Amelia Wharf immediately north of the marina, said its owner intends to pay for a section of wall incorporated into the project. It would connect to the city’s planned flood protection and leave a connection for a future wall farther north, he said.

Board member Greg Roland asked what would happen if some owners built their sections and others refused. “How does the city put in either a statute or ordinance or something that once one, two and three do it, everybody else has got to do it?” he asked.

The wall’s route could determine where people can walk along the river. Board chair Jenny Schaffer said she wanted “a more continuous promenade, not a lot of jaunts.” If the city pays for a wall, she suggested seeking waterfront rights in return.

Those themes shape two preliminary concepts. Concept A extends marina docks farther north and places a public fishing facility on the port authority parcel. Concept B shows a fishing pier at the city’s Alachua Street parcel and a different dock arrangement. The board approved the draft for further consideration without choosing either concept.

Other recommended work includes early design for the city-owned 101 N. Front Street parcel, further study of whether the Liebman waterfront building can be preserved and reused, and consideration of the narrow Exact Investments parcel as a possible city acquisition.

Platt said he plans to present the draft at an Oct. 20 City Commission workshop, when commissioners will meet as the community redevelopment agency board. He will seek support for Phase 2, which would expand public outreach, examine engineering and funding, and extend the study south of Centre Street.