By Dale Martin
City Manager
Fernandina Beach
October 18, 2019
The first three-quarters of 2019 were somewhat contentious in the City Commission Chambers. The Amelia Bluff development drew scores of residents to the City Commission Chambers to voice their opposition to the development. That issue remains unresolved as the litigation related to that development continues its lengthy process. A decision from the State is expected shortly, but even that decision may not bring final resolution as further legal action may be considered based upon the State’s decision.
As the Amelia Bluff issue transitioned from the plate of the City Commission to the legal system, the proposed redevelopment of the Amelia River Golf Course as an automobile-focused facility drew more people to the City Commission Chambers to voice their objections. Despite several revisions to the original development proposal, the concept failed to garner support among the City Commissioners and eventually faltered.
At last Tuesday’s City Commission meeting, the current lease for the Amelia River Golf Course (the City owns the property) was assigned to a new party. The lease allows for the operations of a golf course and lodging accommodations. The new leaseholder has indicated a desire to continue to operate the golf course, but I have yet to have any in-depth conversations with the leaseholder regarding long-term plans. I do not believe that the current City Commission has any interest in expanding the terms of the lease to allow for other uses, although, as has been pointed out at City Commission meetings, the lease does state that proposed uses shall not be unreasonably denied.
As the Amelia River Golf Course development came to a close, we reached the point of the year when annual budget preparation came to the forefront. The originally proposed budget had three revenue components that had never been previously contemplated in a proposed budget, which created great interest in the budget.
First, the budget included revenues from implementing paid parking at City beaches. Although the costs of beach maintenance continue to rise, City residents voiced opposition to the introduction of paid parking, leading to the decision to withdraw further consideration of paid parking.
Second, the City Commission, based upon the growing concern for conservation, supported an additional tax levy of 0.5 mills for the purpose of acquiring land for conservation purposes. Although the City did create a Land Conservation Trust Fund in 2018 to fund acquisitions, local support for the program has been woefully lacking (to date, the City has received one $50 individual donation). The City Commission decided to take a leading role in securing funding for conservation.
The new levy, which is actually part of the City’s operational millage and not a truly dedicated tax, is expected to generate approximately $1.2 million. Since City’s reserve funds are currently available to transfer $1.2 million to the Land Conservation Trust Fund, City staff has made that transfer to secure and restrict those funds for conservation purposes. As City tax receipts begin to flow over the course of the next several months, the reserve funds will be replenished. A formal accounting at the end of the year will audit the actual amount generated by the 0.5 mill levy, and the funds in the Land Conservation Trust Fund will be adjusted accordingly.
The additional millage is intended to be a one-time, one year levy, before being presented to City residents as a referendum in November, 2020. The language for the referendum has yet to be prepared and reviewed. That language must be finalized over the course of the next nine months in anticipate of the November election.
Third, and finally, the City Commission opted to maintain the same operational millage rate as was levied in 2019: 5.8553 mills. The decision to levy the same rate required unanimous support from the City Commissioners, and the support from the City Commissioners for that levy was unwavering throughout the preparation of the budget.
That support was bolstered by a report commissioned by Ms. Pauline Testagrose, City Comptroller, following comments from the City’s auditors after last year. The auditors commented that planning for the financial sustainability of the City Marina and Golf Course needed immediate attention. The resulting Stantec study indicated that the City was in a strong financial position, enough so that some options were available for the Marina and Golf Course. In order to address the issue over the long-term, however, requires that the City maintain the 5.8553 rate for the foreseeable future. The proposed budget was adopted unanimously by the City Commission.
Since then, the City Commission Chambers have been relatively quiet- over the course of the last three meetings, if I remember correctly, every single vote has had a 5-0 result. That display of leadership and cooperation is critical to achieving the goals and objectives of the City Commission. Divisive 3-2 votes roil the Commission and the community, and it is part of my job to minimize those votes before those issues appear before the City Commission.
With the new fiscal year and the leadership of the City Commission, the City should have many exciting opportunities before it.