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Island Brief

Amelia Island • Nassau County • First Coast

Good Morning, Nassau County! Happy World Oceans Day. We live on a barrier island, so this one tracks any way you cut it. The Cross The Line Paddle launches Saturday from St. Marys, sea turtle nests are climbing into the dozens, and Nassau County commissioners cast their final data center vote tonight in part over how much water and power the operation would take. Beach weather all week, low to mid 80s and humid.

Fernandina ⛅ 87°/74°

Yulee ⛅ 87°/74°

Callahan ⛅ 88°/74°

Hilliard ⛅ 88°/74°

📰	Top Stories

Nassau County commissioners hold the second and final public hearing on the proposed 12-month data center moratorium at 5 PM tonight in the BOCC Commission Chambers in Yulee. If adopted, the ordinance pauses county acceptance of any rezoning or site-plan applications tied to data center facilities while the new fact-finding committee gathers expert testimony and public input through the end of June. Florida Senate Bill 484, effective July 1, lets local governments regulate data center impacts but stops short of letting them ban the facilities outright. Public comment will be open.

Read More → News4Jax

Fernandina Beach's paid parking program brought in $160,656 gross and $104,428 net in May, even with collections suspended through the Shrimp Festival weekend and downtown stormwater work on Ash Street limiting available spaces. Hourly revenue alone hit $133,234, with permits adding $14,256 and citations $13,496. Year to date the program has cleared roughly $459K in hourly revenue across 88,317 transactions, putting it on pace for an annualized run rate of about $1.93 million before expenses, close to the city's $2M target. The August 18 referendum will let voters decide whether to keep the program in place.

Read More → The Lednovich Observer

Last week's town hall on Phase II of Amelia River Waterfront Park, which would extend the new park onto the former Atlantic Seafood property, drew strong opinions on two threads. Whether to relocate the Centre Street veterans memorial to the waterfront, and how to fix boat ramp safety problems neighbors say have lingered for years. Retired Marine Rocky McPherson said "all the veterans groups support" the move, while American Legion Post 54 member Bill Davis pushed back, citing a lack of internal consensus. Deputy City Manager Jeremiah Glisson told the room the project will require "collaboration and compromise" before designs come back to commission.

Read More → The Lednovich Observer

A proposed Florida constitutional amendment heading to the November ballot would expand the homestead exemption by another $250,000, with an additional $150,000 layer kicking in for the 2027 tax year. City Manager Sarah Campbell told commissioners the change, if approved by voters and implemented in the 2028 cycle, would reduce Fernandina Beach property tax collections by an estimated $3.3 million a year, roughly 15.6 percent. That is about 7.3 percent of the city's General Fund. The second tier would shave another $1.98 million off annual revenue. November feels far away, but the budget conversations start now.

Read More → The Lednovich Observer

📍	Around Nassau County

➤	City Elections: Qualifying closed Friday for the August 18 ballot. Vice Mayor Darron Ayscue was re-elected to Seat 5 without an opponent. Seat 4 and the mayor's race (Minshew vs. Poynter) remain the only contests.

➤	Downtown: Commissioner Tim Poynter has floated a concept to demolish the Third Street building that houses Nana Teresa's Bake Shop and replace it with a market-style retail complex. The Technical Review Committee got a first look last week. No formal application yet.

➤	Airport: Commissioners are weighing a potential $380,000 annual bill to keep using Ybor Alvarez soccer fields for youth sports, as the airport's primary tenant and the rec leagues both lay claim to the space. Expect this one in upcoming budget talks.

➤	Downtown: Friday's Gumball 3000 stop brought more than 100 supercars and thousands of fans down Centre Street between 6 and 9 PM, the rally's first ever Amelia Island night. The Gumball 3000 Foundation also ran a community project at the Main Beach Skatepark.

➤	Nassau County: A new fact-finding committee meeting on data centers runs at 9 AM today in Yulee ahead of tonight's 5 PM final vote, the first of three additional June workshops the committee has scheduled this month.

📌	Briefly Noted

🗓️	This Week on the Island

MON 8

Data Center Moratorium Final Hearing BOCC Commission Chambers, Yulee • 5:00 PM • Second and final reading; public comment open

WED 10

Beethoven and Beer (AICMF) Mocama Beer Company • Two shows at 4:30 PM • Casual chamber music night with the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival

SAT 13

Cross The Line Paddle for Veterans Launch St. Marys, GA • 8:00 AM start • 7-mile paddle to Dee Dee Bartels Boat Ramp; 8th annual; benefits Building Battle Buddies; after-party at The Green Turtle

SAT 13

AICMF Festival Finale: Miró Quartet Historic Nassau County Courthouse • Evening performance • Closing concert of the 25th anniversary chamber music season

SAT 13

Downtown Farmers Market + Arts Market N. 7th Street + 506 Centre Street • 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM • Standing weekly + 2nd Saturday arts

Nassau County commissioners cast a final vote on the data center moratorium tonight at 5 PM. If you have ever shown up to weigh in at a local meeting, city, county, or school board, what was the moment that pushed you to make the drive? Hit reply and let us know. We read every response.

Saturday's Cross The Line paddlers launch from St. Marys, Georgia and cross seven miles of open water to finish at the Dee Dee Bartels Boat Ramp on Amelia Island. What is the name of the body of water they paddle across?

Answer: Cumberland Sound, the tidal inlet between Cumberland Island, Georgia and the northern tip of Amelia Island.

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