Submitted by Suanne Z. thamm
Reporter – News Analyst
August 28, 2019 – 3:00 p.m. updated August 29, 2019 – 1:30 p.m.
Thanks once again to the partnership with 8 Flags Playscapes, the city of Fernandina Beach will have another accessible playground by the middle of 2020. The project has been vetted by the city’s Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee and has received support from the Fernandina Beach City Commission.
Parks and Recreation Director Nan Voit said in an email, “The {Parks and Recreation Committee] has seen the site plan and supports the park. We are in the process of getting the parking lot approved. The walking path has not been laid out yet. Some of the playground equipment has been purchased and will be stored until we are able to determine the location of these components. We have not underbrushed the site yet as we are waiting for Manzie and Drake Land Surveying to flag the path route so we stay within the proposed boundaries. The Technical Review Committee still has to review the plan. We are moving forward with this park.”
The public/private partnership, which has already built Pirate Playground and Egans Creek, will break ground this coming fall/winter on a third project on a city-owned, 7-acre property located on Simmons Road near the intersection of Seminole Avenue.
Park design services were donated by Benjamin Morrison and Lauryn Howell of Cotner Associates Inc, Architects. Major components of the park include: a quarter-mile nature trail, restroom facilities, a community pavilion, a pet comfort station, and a new playground. Playground is being designed with activities for children ranging from toddlers to teenagers.
The park has been designed with a focus on preserving the natural tree canopy and ecosystems of the property. As with all 8 Flags Playscapes projects, all components of the park will be universally accessible to all individuals
Project Chance, a non-profit based out of Nassau County that focuses on children with Autism, has already made a significant donation to construction of the playground. The fundraising campaign — “Sit, Walk, Grow” — will kick off in early September. Follow 8 Flags Playscapes Facebook page and website for more information.
For additional information on how to get involved or donate to this project, you may email [email protected] or call Benjamin Morrison at 904-277-4593.
This project has not been “vetted” by the Parks and Rec. Advisory Committee (of which I’m a member). It has been reviewed by it (once) and a number of questions were raised that still need to be resolved. And, to my knowledge, this plan has not yet been approved by the City Commission.
This is just about the opposite of what the public requested and what was promised by the City staff during the public input session. We were told that it would be a passive park with one minimal, but accessible path. Apparently, this park has been through a magical process since that meeting.
Funny how that happens. I call it “The Fernandina Beach Two-Step.”
This park was sold to the public who was concerned with the virgin nature of the tress on this parcel as being a low impact pit stop for the bike trail being funded by grant money. Lesson one- never trust what you’re being told.
TRC, PAB, HDC, parks and rec, AAC, building department…everyone involved locked in a room with all current/pending applications and projects reviewed in concert until consensus and unilateral agreement on recommendations is achieved. Left hand meets the right hand and the dog starts wagging it’s own tail.