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Fernandina Beach staff outline Ash Street stormwater work, downtown circulation plan and paid parking results
Summary
Deputy city staff reported progress on the $2 million Ash Street stormwater project (pipe work nearly complete, July 31 target), presented a downtown circulation study recommending keeping Front Street two-way and making Ash one-way eastbound, and reviewed 90 days of paid-parking enforcement data showing about $735,000 gross revenue to date.
Deputy City Manager Glisson told the city commission on June 16 that the $2,000,000 Ash Street stormwater project is advancing toward completion, with the grant-funded pipe installation largely done and work moving east toward Fourth and Fifth streets. Glisson said crews encountered a 16-foot excavation in a high water table and unmarked historical utilities but remain on schedule for a July 31 completion date.
The commission also received a briefing on a long-awaited downtown circulation study. Planning staff and the consultant recommended maintaining Front Street as a two-way route, converting Ash Street to one-way eastbound and routing Alachua westbound onto Front Street. The study suggests curb bulb-outs and redesigned parking layouts to calm traffic and improve pedestrian safety. Staff said the project would be phased to preserve access and business viability during construction and that advisory boards and the public will be asked to review design options before final decisions.
On the city's paid-parking pilot, Glisson reported roughly 90 days of enforcement data. Gross revenue through the recent reporting period totaled about $735,000, with roughly $200,000 attributable to permits and nearly $500,000 from hourly parking; citations generated about $40,000. He said about 7,600 city resident permits have been issued and that enforcement began in mid-March after a grace period. The Parking Special Revenue Fund will hold program receipts; ordinance language restricts those funds to downtown capital improvements and maintenance. Staff cautioned that the city’s $1.9 million annual revenue forecast is preliminary because the program has only a few months of solid data.
What’s next: staff said ordinance tweaks are needed (surface-lot permit allotments, continuous-use language), and noted a July 1 project milestone for an unrelated demolition-redevelopment item that paid-parking revenues could help fund. The commission asked for more frequent reporting as the program matures and for continued coordination on the circulation study’s outreach and phasing.
The commission took no final vote on the circulation design but instructed staff to continue advisory-board briefings and to schedule workshops for public input.
