The Historic District is Your Pay Check
Fernandina Beach is rich with history. Yet while you might give this fact a kindly nod, you are missing the point. I mean Rich with history, as in money-rich.
The Historic District of Fernandina Beach is not just another pretty face. It is a powerful economic engine that in large part fuels our local economy. Tourists come here for the history, the vintage homes, shops, and restaurants that make up this District. Every inch of this District is important to our economy, and must be preserved and maintained. The very future of our local economy depends upon it.
The Port Authority wants to rezone a half-acre parcel of land (for a large employee parking lot) within the Historic District that recently held 2 historic houses. Yes, this is the same Port Authority that authorized the destruction of these houses (and yes, with the City making grievous errors to comply with this request).
Rezoning within the Historic District for a parking lot is shortsighted at least, and economically fatal at worst. Consider the fact that a historic house lost to a parking lot is never coming back. Once property zoning is changed, it is likely that property will be commercial forever. I argue that this is not what we need in our Historic District.
When a business owner cries that he can’t make money downtown, he only need look to a shrinking Historic District and the dwindling tourist trade. Want more profit? Preserve and support the Historic District. Want a stronger future for your business? Make sure the Historic District stays historic.
Any farmer knows that you plant before you reap. Additionally, there is a period of time before the harvest that you care for the crop. Our Historic District is no different, except that our crop can be vast amounts of cash. Or, the crop can be dried up sales. The funny thing is, it’s your choice, and it’s right now.
Consider the examples of Savanna, St. Augustine, and Charleston. These towns have treasured their historical structures and encouraged them to form an economy that is both charming for tourists and very profitable for residents. Consider the fact that a hotel, just the size of Hampton Inn downtown, can employ 50 or more people, all on a postage-stamp sized lot (The Ritz Carlton employs over 600)!
Consider the fact that in downtown Fernandina Beach alone, there are at least 17 blocks (including the side streets) of retail and service businesses that have evolved specifically to cater to the tourist trade. That is millions of dollars, going directly back into our economy right here.
It’s a huge industry unto itself, and yet, it pales in comparison to other cities that are utilizing their Historic Districts appropriately. We can do so much better than we are now.
The residents and businesses of the Historic District have quietly allowed their local government to dictate to them what the District should be, and yet we see that the local government has added one failure after another to it’s credit. These failures have resulted in lost houses, lost revenues and a future economy that could slip away.
With a diminishing Historic District, we can almost set the date by which there will no longer be a District that can attract visitors for our economy. If we allow the rezoning and paving of only one –half acre per year, what will there be left in 50 years?
What do I suggest? Glad you asked!
- Retain the good zoning of residential and home-based business for the District.
- Be certain the District retains the charm of a historic residential neighborhood, not the chopped-up appearance of an area under siege from neighboring industrial owners.
- Strictly adhere to design concepts for historic values when applied to new construction.
- Encourage the repair and renovation of dilapidated houses. Officially condemned, unsafe, housing that has historic value, should be restored as soon as possible.
- Empower the Historic District Council with real enforcement capabilities; and real funding to save structures.
The future of our downtown depends on the success of our Historic District. Commercial encroachments and secured parking lots are not going to be attractive to our visitors/customers. And if they don’t like it, they will not come downtown.
Rezoning the Historic District for a parking lot may play very well to the politicians that are pressing for this action, but it will not benefit the citizens or businesses of Fernandina Beach. It is foolhardy to allow the systematic dismemberment of this wonderful and irreplaceable resource.
As a homeowner or business owner in the downtown area, you should consider the long-term implications of loosing another piece of the District to rezoning.
If you agree the future of a successful downtown is too important to pave into industrial parking lots, advise your City Commissioners. Tell them to protect your future by preserving our history.