Fernandina Beach · Nassau County · 2026
Parking on Amelia Island
Downtown parking is still paid and is expected to end around the middle of November. The rates, the hours, what voters decided, what the commission did the next day, and which beach accesses have lots.
Right now
Downtown parking is still paid and still enforced. The city manager has said the vendor is getting 90 days' notice, and the program is expected to end around the middle of November 2026. No last day has been named.
Checked against the city's parking page and the Fernandina Observer's reports on .
Where it stands
The notice period
Day 5 of the 90 days, as of August 24
Counted from August 20, the day the notice went to the vendor by the city manager's account. Ninety days from then is November 18, if nothing changes. That is arithmetic, not a date the city has named.
Next
Tuesday, September 1 City Commission, 6 pm, 204 Ash Street
As of August 24, no agenda for it had been posted.
The record
The city's 90-day notice goes to the parking vendor, by the city manager's account. The expected end of paid parking is around the middle of November. Fernandina Observer
The City Commission votes 4 to 1 to end the parking contract at the earliest possible date. The city manager tells commissioners the contract requires 90 days' notice. Fernandina Observer
City voters pass the initiative ordinance by about 75 percent: no paid parking in the city without a referendum. The program downtown stays in place. Fernandina Observer
Enforcement begins, after a 30-day grace period. Fernandina Observer
Paid parking begins downtown. City of Fernandina Beach
The city attorney tells the commission that a yes vote on the initiative would not be retroactive. Fernandina Observer
Not settled
- The last day. The city has said mid-November, not a date.Not yet
- Annual permits. Whether a permit bought for the year is refunded in part.Not yet
- The signs, the portal and the lots. Whether they come down, and whether the lots keep rules of their own.Not yet
- What comes after. The ordinance leaves the city free to propose paid parking again, but only with a referendum.Open
Downtown
The paid zone runs from Ash Street to Alachua Street and from Front Street to 8th Street, on the street and in the city's marked lots. The first 20 minutes each day are free. After that it is $2 an hour plus fees, which on the city's own table comes to $3.07 for one hour and $9.49 for four. Enforcement runs Monday through Saturday from 10 in the morning to 8 at night, and Sunday from 1 to 6. Outside those hours, and outside the zone, street parking is not charged.
To pay, follow the sign at the space: a QR code that takes Apple Pay, Google Pay or a card, or the phone number printed on it if you do not have a smartphone. There is no app for Fernandina Beach. Loading and deliveries get 30 minutes. A vehicle with a disabled placard or a DV or HC plate parks free in any space, with no permit.
The city's public lots downtown:
- S. 4th Street, between Ash and Centre
- N. 2nd Street at Alachua
- N. 2nd Street at Broome
- N. 3rd Street at Alachua
- N. 5th Street, between Centre and Alachua
- S. 2nd Street at Ash, across from City Hall
- The City Hall lot at S. 2nd and Ash, weekdays after 5 pm and all day on weekends
- Front Street lots A through D, beside the marina. Lot D is for boat trailers and oversize vehicles, with no overnight parking.
Permits
City residents register up to two vehicles per household for a free annual permit, and extra vehicles at $24 a year. Residents who live inside the paid zone register two vehicles to park free around the clock. Anyone else, including people who live on the island but outside the city limits, pays $124 a year or $60 a month per vehicle, or the hourly rate.
Permits and citations go through the city's parking portal; the parking office is at the police department on Lime Street, weekdays 10 to 3, (904) 650-7909.
What voters decided, and what the city did next
On August 18, 2026, city voters passed a citizen-initiated ordinance by about 75 percent. It says the city shall not implement paid parking in any area within the city without majority approval in a referendum of city voters, with an exception for temporary measures during special events of up to 30 days. The ordinance is not retroactive, and the program already running downtown stayed in place. Under the city charter, an ordinance passed by initiative can be repealed or amended by a four-fifths vote of the commission.
The next evening, August 19, the City Commission voted 4 to 1 to end the city's contract with its parking operator at the earliest possible date. At that meeting the city manager told commissioners the contract requires 90 days' notice, that the notice would go to the vendor the next day, August 20, and that the program would end around the middle of November. Enforcement and collection are expected to continue through the notice period. Ending the contract early carries a cost the city put at no more than $33,150 in salary obligations.
The commission's next regular meeting is Tuesday, September 1, at 6 pm in the commission chambers at 204 Ash Street.
At the beach
The city's beach accesses close from midnight to 5 in the morning. From north to south, these have parking: North Beach Park, Main Beach at Dolphin Street, Alabama, New York, Maryland, Jasmine, Seaside Park, Askins, Mizell, Allen, North Casino, South Casino, Simmons, Hutchins, Matanzas, Manatee, Suwanee, Kissimmee, Alachua, Osceola, Ozello and Pasco. North Beach Park, Main Beach, Seaside Park and Matanzas are the accessible ones. The other numbered accesses have no parking. The city's access page lists no fee.
South of the city, the county's beachfront parks are Peters Point, Scott Road, Burney Park, the South End access and the Summer Beach walkover. Driving on the county's beaches is limited to Nassau County residents and property owners, who show ID at the attendant's booth. Active-duty military and drivers with a disabled placard or plate are the exceptions. Everyone else parks in the lots. Vehicles on the sand must be four-wheel or all-wheel drive, the limit is 10 miles an hour, and the beach is closed to vehicles from 7:30 pm to 7:30 am from May 1 through October 31, and from 9 pm to 7 am the rest of the year. Amelia Island State Park at the south end charges an entry fee.
Overnight and long-term
Lot D on Front Street does not allow overnight parking, and the City Hall lot opens to the public only weekday evenings and weekends. Call the city's parking office at (904) 650-7909 before you count on a space.
Read from the City of Fernandina Beach parking page and FAQ, the city's beach access page, the city calendar, Nassau County's beachfront parks page and Ordinance 2025-037, and the Fernandina Observer's reports of August 18, 19 and 20, 2026, on August 24, 2026. Check the city's page before you drive.
Check it yourself
Everything above is read from public sources, and you can read the same ones.
- City of Fernandina Beach, Parking. Rates, hours, the zone, the lots and permits.
- The city's parking FAQ. Prices with fees, how to pay, and how to dispute a citation.
- Fernandina Observer: the 90-day notice and the mid-November end (August 20), the commission's 4 to 1 vote (August 19), and the referendum (August 18).
- The city calendar: the September 1 commission meeting.
- City beach accesses, north to south, with parking and gate hours.
- Nassau County beachfront parks and Ordinance 2025-037, the beach driving rules.
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