St. Augustine Vice Mayor Barbara Blonder said the city’s Nights of Lights extravaganza should not extend into Martin Luther King Jr. weekend, arguing the three-day commemoration ought to remain focused on celebrating King’s life and legacy.
Blonder said city leaders had been “chastised” in county discussions for their decision to shorten the event. She countered that the city is opening the festival a week earlier in November and suggested that estimates of lost business are “questionable.”
“What was said over and over again is that Martin Luther King holiday is a three-day weekend, and we took that away from the business community,” Blonder said at last week’s City Commission meeting. “I struggle with this because Martin Luther King Jr. commemoration and holiday is a three-day weekend celebrating his life, his achievements, the challenges that he went through. And it’s a call to service.”
She added that the holiday should highlight King’s legacy rather than serve as a commercialized extension of the festival.
“No offense to weddings,” she said. “But the focus in my mind should be on on that, that part of our community and our national identity.”
The upcoming festival is scheduled to run from Nov. 15 through Jan. 11, instead of extending through the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend as in past years.
At a recent County Commission meeting, Commissioner Ann Taylor criticized the change, saying it unfairly curtailed local commerce.
“We did not get complaints in January. January was not a problem,” Taylor said. “By shortening it, it took away a lot of funding — it hurt a lot of our businesses. There were a number of events planned in January. We had a three-day MLK holiday weekend, hotels were booked, weddings were planned. There was absolutely no reason to shorten Nights of Lights in January when January was never the problem.”
Mayor Nancy Sikes-Kline agreed with Blonder’s position while also thanking the St. Johns County Commission for approving additional bed-tax funding to support festival improvements.
She also stressed that the money does not come from property taxes.
According to the mayor, the funding will go toward better workforce parking, expanded shuttle use, and improved pedestrian and vehicle mobility.
The goal, she said, is to enhance the visitor experience while easing the burden on residents who’ve grown tired of the swelling crowds.
Sikes-Kline closed by praising city staff, including the legal department and City Manager David Birchim, for managing what she described as an “intense week.”
More discussion is expected at next week’s Tourist Development Council meeting, particularly on whether visitor bathrooms qualify for bed-tax funding.
