Veterans Memorial, Boat Ramp Safety Dominate Fernandina Beach Waterfront Park Workshop

By Mike Lednovich/Editor

FERNANDINA BEACH — What city planners envision as the next phase of the Amelia River Waterfront Park, many boaters see as a rare opportunity to fix longstanding safety problems at Fernandina Beach's downtown boat ramp.

At a public workshop last Wednesday, residents generally praised plans to transform the former Atlantic Seafood property into an extension of the waterfront park, but concerns quickly emerged that the proposed design devotes too much space to plazas, landscaping and memorials and not enough to the working waterfront that generations of commercial and recreational boaters have relied upon.

The proposed expansion would convert the former Atlantic Seafood site adjacent to the city-owned boat ramp into a public space featuring a commemorative plaza, event lawn, seating areas, civic flagpoles, landscaping and a waterfront pergola with swings overlooking the marina.

Before discussion turned to boat-ramp access, much of the evening focused on a proposal to relocate Fernandina Beach's veterans memorial from its current location near the foot of Centre Street into a new waterfront plaza within the expansion area.

Project Coordinator Jacob Platt said the city has been discussing the idea with local veterans organizations and has received positive feedback about moving the monument from what he described as an "awkward parking lot roundabout area" to a location where military service members could be honored in a more dignified setting.

Retired U.S. Marine Rocky McPherson, chairman of the Nassau County Veterans Council, said commanders from local veterans organizations had toured the site and generally support the concept of moving the monument to the waterfront expansion area.

"The concept of moving the existing monument from its place where it is now in the parking lot at the base of Centre Street to this site is one that, at least with the elements of the plan that are known, all the veterans groups support," McPherson said.

Bill Davis, American Legion

However Bill Davis, incoming commander of American Legion Post 54, said discussions within his organization revealed no clear consensus on where the monument should ultimately be located.

"We've got folks that want to keep it where it's at. We've had ideas of taking it down to Central Park. We've had ideas of moving it to where it's at. We've had ideas of moving it a little bit further inland," Davis said. "There has been no consensus as far as we're concerned."

The memorial discussion expanded beyond veterans issues to include Fernandina Beach's maritime heritage.

Marianne Phillips, daughter of a commercial shrimper, urged the city to include recognition of the community's fishing history and the men who never returned from the sea.

"If we don't tell these stories, they're going to be forgotten," Phillips said, calling for a memorial honoring shrimping families and commercial fishermen who helped build Fernandina Beach's economy.

The concept also includes civic flagpoles and could accommodate additional military memorial elements, including a Blue Star or Gold Star marker. Beverly Williams, president of the Bartram Garden Club, told attendees her organization is exploring sponsorship opportunities for a marker honoring military service members and Gold Star families.

While opinions varied over memorials and monuments, the strongest consensus of the evening centered on the adjacent boat ramp.

Several boaters argued the former Atlantic Seafood parcel presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to address safety issues that have existed for decades at the launch facility.

Boat owner Mike Sharpe said boaters towing larger vessels must cross multiple traffic lanes and railroad tracks before backing into the ramp, often with limited visibility and little room to maneuver.

Mike Sharpe

"We have an opportunity to fix that right now, and we should do it," Sharpe said. "The safety consideration of what needs to happen there needs to come first."

Sharpe and other speakers urged the city to reserve a substantial portion of the expansion area for trailer staging and turning movements rather than dedicating the entire site to park features.

Charter captain Allen Mills echoed those concerns, describing the waterfront as a working marine long before it became a tourist destination.

"We need to keep this as a working waterfront park," Mills said. "We can take a third of this area and make it safer for pedestrians, boaters, everybody by making it wider, easier turning access and room for someone to stage their boats."

City officials acknowledged the concerns and said modifications are already being considered. Staff said future revisions could include additional staging space, improved turning radiuses, pedestrian safety enhancements and redesigned walkways that would direct visitors away from active boat-launch operations.

Deputy City Manager Jeremiah Glisson said balancing the needs of boaters, veterans, pedestrians and park users will be one of the central challenges as the design moves forward.

"This is a space right here at the edge of a working waterfront," Glisson said. "It's going to take some collaboration and compromise to get something in there that works for all of us."