ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — Could a carousel come back to St. Augustine? It looks like it.
"This was one of my favorite stops with my grandchildren," Ed Moitoza said Tuesday, pointing to Davenport Park.
The park has a playground and picnic tables now, but where a carousel once stood, there is just a concrete pad and a patch of grass.
For 25 years, a carousel swirled in Davenport Park in St. Augustine, drawing in families and children.
"It was the biggest bargain in America," Moitoza recalled. "One dollar for a ride! When the carousel left us, it was a sad day for my grandchildren.
It was a sad day for many people on the First Coast when the carousel owner’s family moved it to south Florida in 2019.
Now comes a man named J.W. Brinkley of Jacksonville. He spoke to St. Augustine City Commissioners Monday.
"My children and grandchildren enjoyed the carousel," Brinkley told commissioners.
He wants to lease space in that same park and put a new carousel there.
"We’re not looking at this as a business venture or a profit-making opportunity.," Brinkley noted. "We’d like to have a trust set up, and it would never leave St. Augustine."
People at the park Tuesday liked that plan, for the most part.
Since the carousel was removed, the nearby road intersection has been built out. This is where May Street, San Carlos, and San Marco Avenue all connect in a round-about situation. Some wonder with this intersection that is sometimes tricky to maneuver, if a carousel the best idea for this spot.
Moitoza said, "I don’t think people in America have figured out roundabouts, so I find this hazardous down here."
City leaders are simply considering the carousel plan right now. They want more information about the volume of the carousel’s music because it’s next to the Waterworks Building, a community center that has live performances and meetings. City leaders may also reign in the hours of operation, which according to city documents, the suggestion is to have the carousel operate until 10 p.m.
But for the most part, people at the park and library told First Coast News they welcome another carousel.