Paid beach parking: an idea whose time (maybe) has come

Submitted by Suanne Z. Thamm

Reporter - News Analyst

February 23, 2017 12:00 p.m.

Main Beach Parking Lot

What began as a neighborhood kerfuffle over the city’s consideration of opening the north end of First Avenue to Sadler Road appears to have morphed into a larger discussion, the outcome of which may be an end to traditionally free parking for beach goers who don’t live in the city of Fernandina Beach.

Fernandina Beach City Commissioners waded into the treacherous waters of paid parking during a discussion period toward the close of their February 21, 2017 Regular Meeting. The topic arose in connection with concerns raised by Commissioner Roy Smith over the city’s agreement with Sliders, which allowed the restaurant to increase its capacity a few years ago with the proviso that Sliders provide a certain number of parking spaces offsite. Smith contended that Sliders has broken the agreement by cancelling its parking contract with the Days Inn nearby on Sadler Road.

Sliders parking dispute

Smith asserted that the genesis of the recent parking problem arose from terms of the original development agreement between the city and Sliders. He claimed that the violation occurred a year ago and the city only became aware recently. “There’s something wrong with our system,” he said, “that we can do something that bad.” Smith contended that Sliders got what it wanted—an expanded restaurant—but backed out of its deal to provide parking afterwards.

At the request of Mayor Robin Lentz, City Attorney Tammi Bach addressed Smith’s concerns. She said that the city does have legal recourse. If it is shown that Sliders is not in compliance with the agreement or city code, the city can take action. But Bach said that the situation is currently not clear.

Bach explained that Sliders has retained legal counsel and may be involved in litigation with Days Inn to resolve their dispute over their parking contract. She indicated that Sliders believes it has a valid commitment to renew its parking contract at a set price. But the hotel’s corporate people disagreed, tripling the price for what they considered to be a new contract. She has shared legal exchanges with the commissioners. Sliders has informed Days Inn that they have a valid agreement and intend to hold Days Inn to its terms.

“If and when we find out that there is a lawsuit or an injunction that prevents Sliders from using Days Inn parking, then we have to get back to enforcing our code,” Bach said. “ was issued a notice of violation, however.”

Fernandina Beach Commissioner Roy Smith and City Attorney Tammi Bach

Smith continued, asking what the penalty would be. Bach drew an analogy with the code violation by Alvin’s Island over a sign that was not in compliance with city code. The city took legal action after repeated citations that the company ignored. As a result, the parties settled with correction of the violation and a $50,000 fine. She said that the city could pursue that course of action with Sliders or ask a judge to prevent Sliders from using its increased capacity on the second floor until the city and the restaurant could work out a new agreement.

“Any owner that decides to enter into an agreement that is not a perpetual agreement takes some risk that they could come into violation with city code,” Bach said, adding “or they could ask for a code change.”

Smith continued to find fault with the original agreement. Bach and Lentz suggested that perhaps penalties could be articulated in future agreements.

After asking additional questions, Commissioner John Miller concluded, “So we are sort of in a ‘stay tuned’ moment.” Bach concurred. Smith continued to maintain that the root of the problem was details of the agreements drawn up by the city.

Commissioner Tim Poynter disagreed. He said that according to Bach, the agreement was written and is enforceable.

Public weighs in on beach parking

Three members of the public spoke to the issue of beach parking, which transcends the Sliders parking dispute. David Sampson, a resident of First Avenue, said that he understands that the real issue is growth in the need for beach parking. “There are going to be more and more people coming to the beach,” he said, “and they need a place to park.” He urged the FBCC not to tackle short range, ad hoc projects, but to work on a master plan for beach parking. South Fletcher resident Lynn Williams agreed, adding that he agreed with previous comments by Commissioner Poynter that many people from west of the city come to enjoy city beaches. “It doesn’t seem right,” he said, “that we who live here have to pay for their parking.”

Lynn Williams

Williams suggested that while it has been previously discussed, perhaps the time has come to seriously discuss paid parking. “Many people come to enjoy our wonderful beaches, but a more cynical view is that they come to enjoy our wonderful beaches because it’s free,” he said. He said that advances in technology provide a means to collect parking fees without the need for kiosks or manned collection points. “We shouldn’t have to build parking lots so that can enjoy our beaches for free. We put a lot of money into beach renourishment and maintenance. The going rate seems to be $20 per day or $12 per day south of the island. Now might be the time to do that.”

Former Mayor/Commissioner Ron Sapp, who lives in the Historic District, reminded commissioners of the residential development underway off the island in Nassau County, encouraging commissioners to take a macro view of the problem. “You have 4,000 homes being built in Wildlight. Terra Pointe –27,000 homes. You have 13,000 people living in the city of Fernandina Beach, probably 26,000 during summer weekends. And you’re dealing with an infrastructure at the beach and space that is relatively finite. You are going to have thousands and thousands of people coming to the beach with no place to park. I don’t envy you guys.”

FBCC discussion

Vice Mayor Len Kreger agreed with the speakers, indicating that the city is in discussion with the county over improving parking along Sadler Road. He also spoke to comprehensive plan requirements for parking.

Mayor Lentz agreed on the need to tighten up future parking agreements and also with Kreger and the speakers. She endorsed the existing parking flexibility standards in city code.

Smith called for a workshop on paid parking, agreeing that the situation will only get worse. Miller agreed on the need for a workshop and indicated that he had read over the extensive parking study that had been done a few years ago. “I think it’s time that we took a real hard look at paid parking in the beach area,” he said. “The one pushback I have is that city residents should not have to pay. I agree with the sticker concept. “

Smith suggested that the concept of paid parking should be looked at for other areas of the city as well, but he concurred that city residents should not have to pay for parking. “We are not only paying for to use the beach, but we’re paying for the sand that gets put on the beach. They come out here, like you say, bringing sandwiches and stuff and we get nothing out of it. We want the tourists; but we want them to help pay for.”

Fernandina Beach Commissioner Tim Poynter

Commissioner Tim Poynter said that he has been in favor of paid beach parking going back to his first term on the commission. “But all the people showed up [at FBCC meetings] saying, ‘That’s the worst thing the city could do.’ There are people in the audience tonight who made those claims, saying ‘This is unfriendly,’  ‘It’s going to ruin the [city’s] home town feel,’ etc. That’s why paid beach parking has not been implemented—for that simple reason. I don’t need a workshop, to be honest with you. We’ve got a parking study that’s thick. If you want to get out in front of this stuff you’ve got to control the narrative. What this city doesn’t do at times is control the narrative. We wait for events to run us over. If we have designated areas to park, that’s all we have. If 2,000 people want to go to the beach and we only have 500 spaces to park, those people will have to turn around and come back or go away. They might have to park somewhere else, get on a bike and ride to the beach.

“By not doing anything, we will be overrun with people, cars and parking where they are not supposed to... on residential streets, on people’s lawns all the way up and down Fletcher and First Avenue. It’s time this community gets out in front of this and says these are designated parking areas—and that’s it. When space is up, space is up. We don’t need to supply parking for everybody. But what we do need is to supply parking that is very well located, and we absolutely should charge people. We spend over half a million dollars per year maintaining those beaches, so everyone can come from somewhere else and not pay anything.”

Poynter went on to say that the idea that those same people visit downtown, spend money in the community, etc. is not supported by facts. “Go to the beach and see what happens,” he said. “They are bringing their coolers to the beach, eating what they bring, and leaving their garbage before getting back in their cars and trucks and driving away. If it’s the will of the commission, we should be.”

Mayor Lentz reminded commissioners that re-examining paid parking was a commission goal. She asked City Manager Dale Martin to bring the matter back to the commission in the next two months.

St. Johns County facing similar issues

In a news report on February 22, News4Jax reporter Vic Micolucci asked, “Would you pay to park t a St. Johns County beach lot?” [See http://www.news4jax.com/news/florida/st-johns-county/would-you-pay-to-park-at-a-st-johns-county-beach-lot]

He reported that county officials are currently studying how to best charge for parking in all county lots off the beach. St. Johns has 42 miles of beaches and 1,364 parking spots. A county spokesman said that more than 6 million people visited county beaches last year, and maintenance costs money. Micolucci reported that prices have not been set, but the county appears to be considering a $5-10 range. He said, “If the charge was $5 per vehicle, that could make $1,000 a day for a 200-space parking lot. That would be $365,000 a year. And that's just for one lot.”

St. Johns County Commissioners have not set a target date for their decision, and no action appears imminent.