ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — Entrepreneurs in St. Augustine are appealing to city officials to prolong the celebrated Nights of Lights festival by an additional two weeks into January. They believe this extension could preserve thousands of jobs. However, as of Tuesday, the commissioners are not in favor of the proposal.

Irving Kass, who owns the St. George Inn and Bin 39 Wine Bar, spearheaded the initiative at a recent city commission meeting, advocating for the event to continue until January 25.

“There’s still an opportunity to implement this change, but action must be swift,” Kass urged.

During his appeal, Kass highlighted that extending the event could generate an economic impact of $120 million, offering a financial lifeline during a month that typically sees sluggish business activity.

“With one action, you can stabilize January, protect jobs, reduce layoffs, and give small businesses the chance,” he said to commissioners. “They are not just numbers, they are families and neighbors who keep the city welcoming and vibrant.”

He argued it’s a simple fix.

“It’s just logical that we could create a more stable environment for people to work and get quality hours all the way through January,” he said.

The event used to be longer, but was cut shorter by a week ahead of the 2025 season.

The city manager pushed back on the request, citing contracts for shuttles, portable bathrooms, barricades and cleaning services that expire at the end of the current event duration. 

“Most of the services that are provided during the Nights of Lights season are contractual services that we have with private entities, private businesses,” City Manager David Birchim said at Monday’s commission meeting. “Those contracts end on January 11th.”

Extending could mean a loss of certain services and facilities for visitors, which was a big focus in this year’s planning phase.

“If we did extend the Nights of Lights for 2 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 with shuttling, bathrooms, barricades, etc.,” Birchim said.

Commissioners already approved the schedule by resolution, and the next meeting is Jan. 12, one day after the planned end.

Birchim says approving an extension Monday without a formal resolution raises questions for the city attorney.

Kass dismissed the obstacles.

“Five people can take one hour to make sure that 10,000 people get 40 hours a week for 2 weeks,” he countered.

Kass vowed to keep fighting through a grassroots campaign with other business leaders.

“I think the commissioners are being very short-sighted and need to step up and look out for people because the employees are the most important part of our community,” he said.

The city confirmed no extension is planned. Nights of Lights remains set to end Jan. 11.