FEMA Insurance Waiver Saves City Marina $448,000

The city of Fernandina Beach will not be required to carry hurricane damage insurance on its marina, a savings of $448,000 thanks to a waiver obtained from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

City Manager Sarah Campbell made the announcement Tuesday night at the city commission meeting.

"We secured our waivers from FEMA that we are not required to pay annual insurance on the marina property," Campbell told city commissioners. "That is a cost savings of $448,000 ... we are forwarding that on to our insurance company so when that term is up in July, that bill will no longer be due."

In 2021, the cost of hurricane insurance was $362,000. In 2022, the cost was $402,000 and spiked again in 2024 to $448,000.

"I really want to commend staff on the FEMA waiver, that is a beautiful accomplishment that is several years in the making," said Mayor James Antun. "That's nearly a half a million dollars that our marina now has the opportunity to actually be in the black. That's critical for city taxpayers not to continue to be subsidizing marina functions."

The marina was not insured in 2016 when Hurricane Matthew destroyed much of the docks, and getting reimbursed  some of the $7 million in repairs by FEMA was a years-long battle. The reason the marina was not insured was the $300,000+ price tag of a wave action insurance rider for the docks.

That changed when the city was alerted that FEMA was unlikely to pay for additional damages in the event of another hurricane strike, necessitating insurance coverage.