ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – The St. Augustine City Commission discussed on Monday evening a request from business owners who want a two-week extension of the Nights of Lights event.
During the meeting, the city manager and commissioners mentioned several “complications” when considering the extension request, especially with the current budget and services that are already in place.
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The discussion came after the St. Augustine Business Coalition urged business owners to attend Monday’s meeting to request a two-week extension while voicing concerns about the current end date for the event, Jan. 11. The business coalition said it fears an earlier date will result in reduced hours, seasonal staff being let go and employees losing income.
But during Monday’s meeting, officials mentioned one of the possible issues that would come with an extension is that the city has already acquired contractors that provide shuttle services, portable bathrooms, barricades and cleaning services, which are set to end on Jan. 11. It is unclear if they would have availability for an extension.
Depending on the cost of those additional services, if they’re even available, they would have to come back to the commission and ask for money to be pulled out of reserves to pay for it.
Another possible issue would be security.
Officials said there is a mutual aid agreement with the sheriff’s office in which they have a programmed amount of money they’ve agreed to give to the sheriff for a certain number of officers, for a certain number of hours. They would also need to update the security plan with the sheriff’s office if the event is extended.
Moreover, the current Nights of Lights schedule was passed by a resolution.
Back in March, city leaders decided to shorten the wildly popular holiday attraction because of growing concerns over traffic congestion.
City commissioners decided in a 3 to 2 vote on a compromise to shorten the event to 57 days instead of the regular 65, cutting the event by eight days.
Officials said on Monday the next available city commission meeting to pass an edited resolution would be Jan. 12, the day after Nights of Lights is scheduled to end.
“If we did extend the Nights of Lights for two more weeks, it’s possible that we would not be able to provide the same level of service to our visitors that we are providing now,” St. Augustine City Manager David Birchim said.