FERNANDINA BEACH, Fla. — Drivers in Nassau County, heads up, the grace period for paid parking in a section of Fernandina Beach ends today.
Exactly one month since paid parking first began on February 16, the city has made over $100,000 off parking, without collecting tickets yet.
The perimeter of the parking area runs from Alachua Street to Ash Street and from 8th Street to Front Street. People will have to pay to park Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. - 8 p.m., and Sunday from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. And EMPHASIS, This includes holidays.
Without a free parking permit, drivers will have to park for $2 per hour (plus fees), with the first 20 minutes free each day to support quick stops
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<
Who qualifies for a free permit? Well, the city website says, Fernandina Beach residents are eligible for a free annual parking permit with registration.
The city says it made $21,533 through hourly paid visitor parking. Annual permitted paid parking made the city about $79,460. (Those figures are before expenses).
As you can imagine, this subject was a hot take for people living or visiting the city.
New Englander Brian Larosche was visiting from Maine on Monday and owned a business for a quarter century in Worcester, Massachusetts. He says part of the reason why he moved away from downtown was because the city increased paid parking.
“As a business owner, it’s probably one of your biggest enemies. What you are telling people is that they don’t care, they don’t matter. We’re driving them to malls where it’s more convenient to go ahead and park for free and be accessible,” Laroche said.
Fernandina Beach residents will vote in August 2026 on a referendum to potentially ban or amend the city’s new paid parking program.
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.