Board of County Commissioners
Press Release
November 13, 2019
On December 19, 2018, the Board of County Commissioners formed a Beach Community Working Group consisting of Mike Mullin, County Manager/County Attorney; Taco Pope, Assistant County Manager; Doug Podiak, Facilities Maintenance Director; Gil Langley, Executive Director of the Tourist Development Council; Butch Osborne, Director of Operations for the Sheriff’s Office; Mac Morriss, Ex-Officio Member; and Lowell Hall, Ex-Officio Member.
The group was directed to review current beach related Ordinances and use of the beach and to make recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners as to any updates or amendments that need to be made. A total of sixteen (16) meetings have been held to date. Hundreds of individuals have appeared at meetings and hundreds more have sent emails expressing concerns about a myriad of issues including but not limited to, items left on the beach, horseback riding, safety concerns, and littering, however most of the concerns related to beach driving and unregulated camping.
Having concluded their work, the Beach Committee Working Group will present their findings to the Board of County Commissioners on November 18, 2019 shortly after 6:00 p.m. in the Commission Chambers located at 96135 Nassau Place, Yulee, FL 32097.
The County Commissioners will not vote on the recommendation at the meeting on the 18th however, they will direct County staff to review with the County Commission the Committee’s recommendations at future public workshops and discuss possible options with the County Commission and citizens. Ultimately, a county Ordinance will be drafted and public hearings will be held to address any proposed Ordinances.
Again, no vote will be taken by the Board of County Commissioners at their November 18th meeting. Workshops will be advertised and posted on the County’s website once dates have been determined.
An interesting follow up to this article might be to interview the gentleman, Ronald Starling” also known as “Zurie” who has chained himself to the building at Burney Beach Park. The ongoing story is at least 20 years old per NYT article on American Beach.