By Tracy McCormick-Dishman
Nassau County commissioners adopted a $453.3 million budget Sept. 28 that closes the Bryceville library and keeps reduced hours in Yulee and Fernandina Beach, during a packed meeting that ran more than three hours and required an overflow room. Later in the evening, commissioners postponed a vote on Wards Creek, a proposed development of nearly 380 acres off Old Nassauville Road, after neighbors presented binders of documents challenging the application.
Final budget adopted, 5-0
Commissioners approved the fiscal year 2026-27 budget of $453,302,264 on a 5-0 vote, on a motion by Commissioner Jeff Gray, seconded by Commissioner A.M. “Hupp” Huppmann. They also voted 5-0 to set a countywide millage rate of 6.5178 mills and a Municipal Service Taxing District rate of 2.1479 mills, for a total of 8.7617 mills. Assistant County Manager Marshall Eyerman said the countywide rate amounts to only a 1.91% increase, below the 3.4% rise in the Consumer Price Index in August. Commissioner John Martin said this is the sixth consecutive year the board has lowered the millage rate.
County Manager Taco Pope reviewed the budget process, which began with the board’s winter strategic planning session in February and continued through workshops, including a six-hour budget workshop June 22 that is available to watch on the county’s website. “We’re not going to rehash everything over the course of twelve months in a single public hearing,” Pope said.
Pope said libraries were one of many cuts across nearly every department, and he warned that reduced roadside mowing will likely become “a flashpoint” by spring. He said the county has begun studying special taxing units, known as MSTUs, that would give services such as libraries, animal services or parks their own millage rate, so residents could see and choose their level of funding.
Eyerman told commissioners the state projects Nassau County could lose about 45% of its property tax revenue by fiscal year 2031-32 if Amendment 3 passes in November.
Amendment 3, on the Nov. 3 ballot, would raise the homestead exemption on non-school property taxes to as much as $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028, and lower the annual cap on assessment increases for non-homestead property from 10% to 5%. It needs 60% of the vote to pass. Supporters, including Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida Realtors, say it would give homeowners significant property tax relief. Opponents, including many local government officials, say the lost revenue would force cuts to local services.
Residents speak for libraries, commissioners respond
Ten residents spoke during the budget hearing, nearly all in support of libraries.
Agnes Lyden of Fernandina Beach said libraries bridge the digital divide for families who can’t afford high-speed internet.
Daphne Gideon of Yulee described a recent visit to the Yulee branch with her granddaughter, where she saw adults tutoring students, new residents signing up for library cards and college students studying together. “Your vote needs to represent what you really value in this community,” she told commissioners.
Chadd Charland of Fernandina Beach, a conservationist and writer running for the District 15 seat in the Florida House with no party affiliation, described libraries as sanctuaries for people without safe homes. “Closing libraries and cutting hours shouldn’t be seen as savings,” he said. “They are losses.” He urged commissioners to send the budget back to staff. “Libraries are not a perk. They’re not an amenity like a pickleball court. They are essential,” he said.
Gary Morgan of Yulee questioned the county’s transparency. He said the county negotiated a three-day-a-week lease for the Yulee branch with Florida State College at Jacksonville (FSCJ) in February, but the community wasn’t told until April that the reduced schedule would start in July. He asked why citizens weren’t involved in the decision. County officials did not respond directly to that timeline at the meeting.
Martin, whose District 1 includes the Fernandina Beach branch, called Brandy Carvalho, director of strategic advancement and economic resources for the county manager’s office, to explain the Saturday closure. Carvalho said Saturday had the lowest attendance of any day, and the library needed two consecutive closed days. She noted the branch stays open until 8 p.m. two evenings a week. Martin said he “can be swayed” and suggested delaying the library cuts a year to see how Amendment 3 turns out.
Commissioner Klynt Farmer said satellite book boxes won’t replace libraries but could “soften the blow” in underserved areas. He said he has been advised by legal counsel to stay neutral on Amendment 3 because of a board he serves on.
Huppmann said he read the entire history of the county library system and found that branches have opened, closed and shifted over the years. He said he believes the special taxing unit approach will be better for libraries long term. “These are tough choices,” he said.
Chair Alyson McCullough said, “We’re not cutting services. We’re consolidating services,” and said the decision was driven by the possible effects of Amendment 3, not by any lack of support for reading.
Gray said the county added money so the Yulee branch could stay open three days a week rather than close after FSCJ began charging rent. He said he considers hiring 18 firefighters an essential service and that he has to “look at the big picture.”
Martin urged residents to vote no on Amendment 3, calling it “a disaster for Nassau County.”
Wards Creek vote postponed to Oct. 26
Commissioners postponed a decision on PUD25-003, the rezoning of about 379.81 acres east of Old Nassauville Road and Tammy Trail, at the end of Frank Ward Road, from Open Rural to Planned Unit Development. The applicants include Blueberry Patch Partners LLC, trusts of the Ward family and Fernandina Intracoastal Land Company LLC/Ashton Jacksonville Residential LLC. The property is in District 2.
Rezonings are quasi-judicial hearings, which means commissioners must base their decisions on evidence entered into the record, such as sworn testimony, documents and expert reports, rather than on public opinion alone. Residents who speak at the Oct. 26 hearing will be sworn in and may submit evidence.
Elizabeth Back of the county Planning Department said Wards Creek is the first PUD to go through both the Planning and Zoning Board and the County Commission under new county rules that require developers to notify neighbors before applying. A community meeting was held Oct. 20, 2025. Lindsay Haga of England-Thims & Miller, representing the applicant, said the project would dedicate roughly 500 acres of marshland to the county and include a waterfront park and a mobility trail.
Seven residents spoke against the project. Matthew Tipton of Spring Hill Road said the developer’s environmental survey was done in August 2025, before a site plan existed. Pat McCarthy of Flatwoods Trail questioned the project’s acreage figures and its small lot sizes. Carl Freeman said the plan could violate the county’s 50% floodplain cap. Paul Gibbs, who owns property on Tammy Trail, and John Ferrell Burkett of Clements Road raised concerns about flooding and traffic. Burkett said he has lived in the area for 62 years.
Carey Fettig of Spring Hill Road presented binders to each commissioner, which the board voted 5-0 to accept into the record. She said a letter she described as a state title determination shows the marshland beyond the mean high-water line belongs to the state, and that a survey attached to one of the property deeds shows about 242 acres of land, not 379. Tom Keenan of Nassauville said the county should confirm title and boundaries before counting the marsh as a public benefit.
Emily Pierce of Rogers Towers, representing the applicant, said the survey attached to the deed does not control the application and the state letter is not a legal opinion of title. She said title work will be completed after the property is purchased, and that the developer has agreed to convey any privately owned marsh to the county. Ryan Carter, a wetland scientist with Carter Environmental Services, said the St. Johns River Water Management District reviewed and approved the wetland boundaries.
Huppmann asked whether the board could table the item so he could review the new material. Farmer then said he could not support the project. “I just would like to know how and how we dropped the ball,” he said. “I just don’t think they got what they need.” He moved to deny it, but County Attorney Denise May noted that a denial would bar the applicant from reapplying for a year. The applicant agreed to a continuance, and Farmer changed his motion. Martin seconded, and the motion carried.
Gray said the Planning and Zoning Board should be where these issues surface, and Huppmann noted that the material residents presented had never gone before that board. Pierce said the developer had reached out to neighbors by email and phone but had not held a second full community meeting, and agreed to hold one before the next hearing.
Martin urged residents to bring their concerns to that community meeting, rather than “a book at the last minute.”
Also approved
All items passed unanimously.
- Proclamations naming October Domestic Violence Awareness Month and Oct. 4-10 Fire Prevention Week.
- A $289,209 federal grant through the Florida Division of Emergency Management for phase two of the Thomas Creek land acquisition plan.
- A $500,000 Florida Department of Law Enforcement grant for phase four of the Public Safety Training Complex.
- The annual State Aid to Libraries grant, about $25,000.
- A $5.52 million advance of the Sheriff’s Office budget allotment to help it meet a $2.2 million reimbursement grant.
- A $6.25 million Florida Job Growth Infrastructure Grant for roads serving an industrial and commercial site near U.S. 301 and Interstate 10.
- A mobility reimbursement agreement with Wildlight LLC for East Nassau road improvements, paid from mobility fees.
- A $315,000 property purchase on Old Nassauville Road from Jonathan and Hannah Oliver.
- A land use change and rezoning for about 2.06 acres on State Road 200 between Duval Road and Pine Grove Place.
Coming up
- Oct. 1: The county’s new fiscal year begins. The Yulee branch is open Monday and Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 6 p.m., and Tuesday, noon to 4 p.m. and 5 to 8 p.m.
- Before Oct. 26: The Wards Creek applicant has agreed to hold a community meeting with neighbors. A date and location have not been announced.
- Oct. 26, 5 p.m. or later: Wards Creek hearing resumes.
- Oct. 29: The Bryceville branch, 7280 Motes Road, closes permanently. Until then, it keeps its regular hours, closing at 6 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays and at 8 p.m. Thursdays.
- Nov. 3: General election, including Amendment 3.
- February 2027: The board’s winter strategic planning session, where the 2027-28 budget begins and special taxing units for libraries may be discussed.
Commission meetings are held at the James S. Page Governmental Complex, 96135 Nassau Place, Yulee. Residents may speak for up to three minutes on agenda items.
Contact your commissioner
John F. Martin, District 1 (Fernandina Beach) (904) 570-2594, jmartin@nassaucountyfl.com
A.M. “Hupp” Huppmann, District 2 (South Amelia Island, Nassauville, O’Neil) (904) 319-0686, ahuppmann@nassaucountyfl.com
Jeff Gray, vice chair, District 3 (Yulee, Chester, Blackrock) (904) 570-1946, jgray@nassaucountyfl.com
Alyson R. McCullough, chair, District 4 (Hilliard, Bryceville, Boulogne, Kings Ferry, Nassau Oaks) (904) 319-0689, amccullough@nassaucountyfl.com
Klynt A. Farmer, District 5 (Callahan, West Yulee) (904) 570-1357, kfarmer@nassaucountyfl.com
Under Florida’s public records law, emails sent to county officials about government business are public re
