Here’s the part that matters — and it’s not complicated.
The original banking contract between the City of Fernandina Beach and First Federal Bank allowed the bank to pay the city substantially less than it paid Nassau County for the same services.
That difference cost Fernandina Beach taxpayers more than $1,000,000 in lost interest.
The Question That Demands an Answer
It’s not shocking that a bank would take advantage of a bad deal.
The real question is this:
Why did anyone at the city agree to it in the first place?
Someone signed a contract that treated Fernandina Beach as second-class — and taxpayers paid the price. That decision will be examined. The public deserves to know who betrayed the city and its taxpayers by approving this deal.
This Only Changed Because a Citizen Spoke Up
This contract wasn’t stopped because of internal controls or good governance.
It stopped because a citizen spoke out.
Only then did the city commission realize the city was about to be taken advantage of again — and only then did they decide to issue an RFP.
A Million-Dollar Slap in the Face
About a year ago, the city manager asked First Federal to pay Fernandina Beach the same rate it pays the county.
First Federal refused.
They chose to continue paying the city less.
That alone should have ended the relationship.
Fernandina Beach lost over $1,000,000 simply because the bank would not treat the city the same way it treated the county. The fact that this bank is still being considered at all raises serious concerns about the motives behind the RFP itself.
Ask yourself:
Would you ever do business again with a vendor who cost you over a million dollars through unequal treatment?
Now Other Alarming Behaviors: No Interviews. No Questions. No Due Diligence.
This is one of the largest financial decisions a city will make — choosing the institution that will manage roughly $40–45 million of public money.
And yet the banks who received the RFP never experienced:
- A face-to-face interview
- Any meetings with bank principals
- An opportunity for commissioners to ask questions
- Given an explanation of how or why the RFP was structured the way it was
Just paperwork. No personal connection at all. That is not normal business practice.
One of the banks who responded to the RFP has not been contacted by the City since they submitted their proposal either.
Is that normal?
A bank is being trusted to manage tens of millions of taxpayer dollars — and there isn’t even a sit-down conversation?
No interviews.
No accountability.
No clarifying questioning.
Just an impersonal RFP process that conveniently shields decision-makers from scrutiny.
Past Performance Should Have Been the First Question
The first consideration in any business relationship should always be simple:
What has our experience with them been?
That question was conspicuously absent here — for an obvious reason. First Federal’s past treatment of the city was so hard to fathom that acknowledging it honestly would have disqualified them immediately.
There Is No Justification to Continue This Relationship
There are other banks in this community willing to provide comparable services without shortchanging taxpayers.
A Final Warning to the Council
To the Fernandina Beach City Commission:
Keeping this bank — especially without interviews, scrutiny, or acknowledgment of past harm — tells the public and the State of Florida that our taxpayer dollars aren’t in good hands.
This city will likely rely on the state for support and resources in the future.
Good luck with that if this is the level of judgment you choose to demonstrate.
