Fernandina Beach

by AMELIA A. HART

amelia.hart@mynassausun.com

A proposal to annex 53 oceanfront properties off South Fletcher Avenue that is shaping up as a showdown on beach driving is one vote away from going before both city voters and the area’s residents.

A divided City Commission voted 3-2 Tuesday night to approve an ordinance that would put a petition to annex 14.27 acres south of the city limits and north of Peters Point Park before voters Nov. 4.

Because ballot referendums need to be filed with the state by Aug. 28, the City Commission has scheduled a special meeting to have a second reading of the ordinance at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 26, in City Hall.

A Fernandina Beach resident died Monday in a single-car accident on Florida A1A at Racquet Park Drive.

Eumar J. Montalvo, 29, died at the scene of the 2:15 a.m. crash, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
The cause of the accident is not yet known.

Montalvo, who was wearing a seat belt, was going south in a 2002 BMW when the car went off the road and struck a tree. The impact of the crash caused the car to overturn and hit a second tree, according to the FHP report. — Times-Union staff

By WENDI ZONGKER

wendi.zongker@mynassausun.com

Nassau County authorities say they are close to solving a string of bank robberies in Nassau County by masked gunmen.

The First Coast Community Bank in Yulee was robbed July 7, followed by the Southeastern Bank in Yulee on July 19 and the First Federal Savings Bank in Fernandina Beach on Tuesday.

David Sanders, 42, and Brendan Leighton, 20, are in custody and Nassau County Sheriff Tommy Seagraves said they were still being questioned Wednesday, but Sanders is charged with three counts of robbery and Leighton with one.

Wow ... what a Fourth of July evening we saw this year! Downtown was just bustling with thousands who came to see the Sounds on Centre concert, the First Friday Art Walk, and, of course, the fireworks!

You could not have asked for better weather: The sky was clear, there was a gentle west-bound breeze, and it was not too muggy (just right for a fireworks display). The schedule for the evening was perfect. First, art enthusiasts gather downtown to visit the art shops and catch special offers and showings there; it's a nice evening stroll.

by AMELIA A. HART

amelia.hart@mynassausun.com

Danny Leeper tendered his resignation as Fernandina Beach fire chief at 4:45 p.m. today, meeting a deadline set by the U.S. Office of Special Counsel.

The office ruled June 20 that Leeper’s run for the Nassau County Commission put him in violation of the federal Hatch Act, which restricts partisan political activity by government workers whose jobs involve programs funded by the federal government, and gave him until today to end his candidacy or resign his job.

"I choose not to disregard the opinion or disregard the law. I don't want to be in violation of the law. I'll just find another way to change the law,” Leeper said this afternoon.

The office found Leeper in violation because he is listed as a contact person on a grant application to the Department of Homeland Security for a pair of night-vision goggles and because he supervises the applicant, then Deputy Fire Chief Jeffrey Bunch.

The grant was awarded in December, but the goggles have not yet been delivered, so the grant is still considered open.

By WENDI ZONGKER
wendi.zongker@mynassausun.com

FERNANDINA — Jeffrey Bunch turned in his radios and uniforms and cleaned out his office today, officially resigning as the Fire Department's Deputy Chief.

Bunch, who tendered his resignation last week, planned to stay on staff until the end of the month. However, he said he went to work this morning knowing he would resign today after being disappointed with last night's City Commission meeting.

At that meeting commissioners discussed at length a grant Bunch wrote for a pair of night vision goggles that has led to Fire Chief Danny Leeper being told by the U.S. Office of Special Counsel he must resign from his position or withdraw his candidacy for the Nassau County Commission.

The commissioners took no action on a plan to alter the grant to help Leeper keep his job.

Bunch said he is now looking at local job opportunities as well as some abroad.

by AMELIA A. HART

amelia.hart@mynassausun.com

FERNANDINA BEACH -- City commissioners declined tonight to either reject or alter a federal grant for night-vision goggles that is forcing Fire Chief Danny Leeper to resign his job next week or give up his run for the Nassau County Commission.

Commissioner Ron Sapp asked fellow commissioners to reject the goggles as a way to help an "exemplary" city employee leave the employ of the city with "honor."

When no commissioners seconded that motion, Sapp made another asking the city contact the federal government to switch the contact name on the grant application from Leeper to Police Chief Jim Hurley.

By AMELIA A. HART
amelia.hart@mynassausun.com

FERNANDINA BEACH — A visiting Birmingham, Ala., woman apparently was bitten by a shark this morning in the ocean of Beach Access 39 opposite Ozell Avenue.

Deputy Fire Chief Jeffrey Bunch said the woman, identified in a Fernandina Beach Police press release as Jennifer Castion, told him she was wading about chest deep in the water around 11 a.m. when she felt something grab her leg.

After a struggle, it let her leg go, Bunch said. Once ashore, the woman’s husband wrapped her leg in a towel, took her to the nearby beach house where they were staying and called 911, he said.

A Birmingham, Ala., woman apparently was bitten by a shark this morning while wading in the ocean off Fernandina Beach near beach access No. 39.

The incident occurred at about 11:10 a.m., according to a press release this afternoon.

Police have identified the victim as Jennifer Castion. She received severe lacerations to both sides of her lower right calf and was transported to Shands Jacksonville.

“Dangerous Conditions” and “Dangerous Marine Life” flags have been placed at all guarded areas at city’s beaches.

Location supervisors are now patrolling the beaches to alert other beachgoers of the potential danger and to advise them to use caution or elect not to swim today.

The beach has not been closed and swimming is still being permitted.

According to police, air surveillance the length of the island Amelia Island revealed no sign of sharks. The local Civil Air Patrol has been asked to keep an eye on the shoreline and to report any sightings throughout the weekend.

Lifeguards will monitor the ocean throughout the weekend and will report any changes in conditions or access by the public.

Call Fire Rescue at 277-7332 for updates.

The City Commission met with the Historic Fernandina Beach Association June 10 to discuss how the two could work together more closely to create a long-term vision for downtown and the Historic District overall. The meeting covered a variety of topics, such as waterfront redevelopment, maintenance of the downtown area, events for downtown, and the most important item: participation in the Florida Main Street program.

The Main Street program could provide a vast amount of expertise and resources to our downtown, and has been used very successfully in other towns around the state. I’m really hopeful that the city and the HFBA can work together to bring this program here.