Full Edition: April 27, 2026

the

Island Brief

Amelia Island • Nassau County • First Coast

Good Morning, Nassau County. Welcome to Shrimp Fest week. The parade rolls Thursday at 6 PM, the festival opens Friday, and by Sunday afternoon downtown will smell like fried shrimp and sunscreen. This is the busiest week of the year on the island, so this issue is built to help you plan around it. Logistics, parking changes, road closures, plus a few other things worth knowing.

Fernandina ☀️ 79°/64°

Yulee ☀️ 80°/63°

Callahan ☀️ 81°/62°

Hilliard ☀️ 82°/61°

📰	Top Stories

Parade kicks off Thursday at 6 PM, traveling Front Street east on Centre to 8th Street. South 8th Street closes from Ash to Centre during the parade window, with heavy traffic on 8th and 14th expected from 4 PM through 9 PM. Then on Friday, Centre Street and the side streets from 2nd through 7th (Alachua to Ash) close to all non-festival traffic at 11 AM. All vehicles must be out of the festival zone by noon.

For parking: the official Park & Ride from Fernandina Beach High School is $15 with a shuttle, and Park & Walk at Buccaneer Field is $20. Both are fundraisers, with proceeds going to local charities. And here is the part most worth knowing if you live downtown: the city's paid parking program is suspended Friday through Sunday across the historic district. The festival website says to ignore those signs all weekend. The fees collected at the official lots do not benefit the city or its parking vendor.

Read More → Shrimp Festival

Fernandina Beach's paid parking program has generated $461,534 in gross revenue since launching in February, according to One Parking's latest report to the city. Hourly transactions account for $286,210 and parking permits another $175,324. April hourly revenue is averaging $5,619 a day, well ahead of March's $4,177 and the partial February launch month at $2,978.

Citation activity is also climbing. The report logs 831 citations through April 22: 469 paid, 349 issued but unpaid, and 13 in dispute, with paid citations bringing in $23,642. Those are gross numbers; the city has paid roughly $67,500 to One Parking in management fees so far. Net revenue figures are due May 5. With a citizen-led referendum on the August 18 ballot deciding the program's future, every monthly report from here on will be closely watched.

Read More → Fernandina Observer

The city's long-anticipated rebuild of Seaside Park is now between 90 and 99 percent complete on design, with all required state environmental permits in hand, city officials told commissioners last Tuesday. The $3.9 million project is the first phase of an island-wide Beach Harmonization plan covering seven public access points. Funding splits 30 percent city, 70 percent Nassau County tourist development tax, with an interlocal agreement between the two governments still being drafted.

Bidding is expected this summer, with construction starting in fall 2026. Seaside, at the Sadler Road beach access, was picked as the first phase because of aging infrastructure and deteriorating conditions. Main Beach, Peters Point, Burney Park and other access points are also slated for eventual rework under the same framework, which the city approved conceptually back in 2023.

Read More → Fernandina Observer

Bosque Bello has roughly 600 traditional graves left, about a five-year supply at the current pace, City Parks Director Scott Mikelson told commissioners at an April 21 workshop. To meet the gap, the city is reviving a 2020 proposal for a columbarium, a structure that houses cremated remains. The renewed plan calls for a series of columbarium "gardens" connected by ADA-accessible pathways, with five-foot-tall granite niches designed to fit the cemetery's historic character.

The original 2020 proposal was shelved before construction. This time around, designers are emphasizing materials that will outlast the structure itself. If the design phase wraps in 2026, construction would be budgeted for fiscal year 2027. Bosque Bello, established by the Spanish around 1798, is the only public cemetery on Amelia Island.

Read More → Fernandina Observer

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📍	Around Nassau County

➤	Downtown: The Pre-Shrimp Fest Sidewalk Sale runs Thursday, April 30 through Friday, May 1, with downtown merchants putting deals out front before the festival officially takes over Centre Street. (More)

➤	Main Beach: The 29th Annual Shrimp Run kicks off Saturday, May 2 at 8 AM from Main Beach Shoreline. A festival staple for runners who want to do Shrimp Fest weekend without the Centre Street crowds. (More)

➤	Amelia Island: Bosque Bello Cemetery and Simmons Road Park have both earned Level 1 Arboretum Accreditation from ArbNet, bringing the island's total to 11 accredited tree havens. Quiet but lovely news. (More)

➤	Centre Street: A Sounds on Centre Special Edition with The Usual Suspects will follow the parade Thursday, kicking off right after the floats clear (typically around 7:30 PM). Free, outdoor, and one of the better post-parade traditions on the island. (More)

➤	8 Flags Shopping Center: The Wednesday Midweek Farmers Market at S. 14th and Lime is on hiatus while parking requirements get sorted out. If you've been planning your week around it, plan around it. (More)

🗓️	This Week on the Island

TUE 28

Fernandina Beach City Commission Meeting City Hall, 204 Ash Street • 6:00 PM • Regular meeting; agenda posted on the civicclerk portal

WED 29

Hoyt House Boil & Blues Hoyt House • Evening • Annual fundraiser dinner with live music

THU 30

🦐 Shrimp Festival Parade + Sounds on Centre Centre Street • Parade 6:00 PM (Front St east on Centre to 8th) • The Usual Suspects play immediately after, free and outdoors

FRI 1

Shrimp Festival Opening Night Historic Downtown • Centre Street closes 11 AM • Food booths 3 PM, vendors 5 PM, Pirate Invasion 9 PM, Fireworks 9:30 PM

SAT 2

29th Annual Shrimp Run + Festival Day Race starts Main Beach Shoreline 8 AM • Festival 9 AM–7 PM • Note: Saturday Farmers Market and Arts Market are closed this weekend

SUN 3

Blessing of the Fleet + Festival Final Day Festival 10 AM–5 PM • Decorated shrimp boat parade and Blessing of the Fleet at 1:30 PM • Swingin' Medallions close it out

If The Island Brief is making your week a little easier to navigate, send it to a friend. We're growing one neighbor at a time, and word of mouth is everything.

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Shrimp Fest week is here. What's your one must-do tradition every year, the thing that makes it actually feel like the festival? The parade, the fireworks, the boats, the booths, a specific food vendor? Hit reply and let us know. We read every response.

The Isle of Eight Flags Shrimp Festival began in 1964, but not by that name. What was the festival originally called?

Answer: The Shrimp Boat Festival. It started as a celebration of the blessing of the shrimp fleet and featured actual shrimp boat races. (The races eventually fell away as engines and fuel got too expensive, but the spirit stuck around.)

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