Massive port tent ordered to be moved

Port Authority Commissioners voted Wednesday to have a 22,000-square-foot fabric tent torn down and relocated to its original designated location within the port.

The Ocean Highway and Port Authority did not authorize the current location of the warehouse tent. It was built without obtaining the required City of Fernandina Beach building permits and violates numerous building code regulations.

That ignited legal proceedings between the city and the port operator, Savage, now called Relay Terminals. OHPA became involved in the proceedings because the tent is on property owned by the agency.

A tentative settlement was reached last month, but OHPA commissioners said they will not approve the terms of the agreement, stating the location of the tent "is not our problem."

The settlment would have created buffer zones around the existing fabric tent.

OHPA was given an estimate of $213,000 to move the fabric warehouse to the northeast corner of the port property, which is the site approved by commissioners. The expense of relocating the tent will be paid by the port operator and the construction contractor Coast to Coast. Almost a quarter of the estimate were repairs to the existing structure.

"We didn't ask for this dispute with the city. The due dilligence wasn't done. When you skip steps. When you don't follow processes and you don't pull permits for work, you end up in a situation like this which is expensive. And that's not our problem. It's silly that we've spent this much time talking about this issue," said Commissioner Miriam Hill.

The city's action against the port operator, which is now before a mediator, continues with a hearing set for June 16 at City Hall.

"It needs to be moved back to where it was approved and we need to finish this," said Vice Chair Ray Nelson. ""We need to be done with this. We have other things we need to pay attention to."

Last August, the port announced it would start building the 100-foot by 250-foot tent with available funding through a state grant on the northeast quadrant of the port complex. A second tent would be built as additional funds became available. The original plan was approved by OHPA at its September 2024 meeting.

The port operator said building  the fabric warehouse at a different location was necessitated by having to move shipping containers and other cargo to areas of the port complex that are prone to flooding or next to the fence line which is at an angle and would require additional engineering work to make it level.

The port operator then filed a petition for relief in accordance with Section 70.51 of the Florida Statutes, which requires a public mediation and hearing be held in the dispute with the city.

In April 2024, OHPA officials were informed that dismantling the fabric warehouse and relocating it to its original intended location would cost an estimated $600,000. They decided to leave it alone. But then the city filed its lawsuit.

The new estimate was considerably lower and commissioners voted 5-0 to have the tent moved.

"This warehouse is built with public funds, so it's not at Savage's discretion to change the approved plan. We have a grant agreement in place that governs these funds, so they would look back at the approval the board gave to determine what we build satisfies the grant agreement," Hill said at the April 2024 meeting.

The authorized location of the fabric tent near Escambia Street.