ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – The holiday season is approaching, and with it, St. Augustine’s popular Nights of Lights event. This year, the city is requesting an additional $850,000 in funding from St. Johns County.
On Wednesday, county commissioners held a workshop to discuss the funding request and its legality.
The St. Johns County Tourist Development Council voted unanimously to recommend the $850,000 in additional funding for St. Augustine’s signature holiday event, which illuminates downtown with millions of holiday lights and draws thousands of visitors annually.
This year’s event is being scaled down by eight days and will run from Nov. 15 until Jan. 11, 2026.
The current allocation from the county for Nights of Lights stands at $200,000 for shuttle services and $100,000 for lighting. Half of the $200,000 for shuttle services is for spring shuttles, while the other half is exclusively for Nights of Lights.
The additional $850,000, while less than the city’s initial $1 million request, is urgently needed, according to City Manager David Birchim.
“If that’s not possible, we will have to scale back,” Birchim said.
Mayor Nancy Sikes-Kline expressed optimism about the funding.
“What we’d like to do is have more shuttles. We’d like to have the crash barriers to keep the vehicles out,” she said.
The funding would go toward crowd control barricades, portable restrooms, and more parking — but some county leaders questioned whether tourism dollars could be used for the city’s requests.
Sikes-Kline noted that such funds have been used for similar purposes in the past and questioned whether there had been a policy change.
Residents were also given the opportunity to voice their opinions during Wednesday’s workshop.
“If we don’t do something to improve it, this event will go away. People are going to quit coming to it,” said St. Augustine resident Scott York.
Other residents, like Marta Han, raised concerns about safety and accessibility during the event.
“It became almost impossible to go in and out of my home... It’s really a safety hazard. Any kind of assistance to alleviate this and still bring tourists to the town and the county is essential,” Han said.
The county commission is set to vote on the funding request at its next meeting at 9 a.m. Sept. 2 at the county administration building.