The third annual HBCU Beach Day, set to bring hundreds of college students together on April 12, is facing unexpected pushback after Jacksonville Beach officials denied the event’s permit and issued cease-and-desist letters to its organizers.

Tyree Jackson and Jarrod Gunn, the event’s organizers, say they were blindsided by the decision. “It's historical for the Black community,” Jackson told First Coast News. “Just to bring everyone together and just to show everyone that we can come together and we can have a good time, and we can do everything the right way without having any issues.”

However, City officials say the event violated local guidelines. Jacksonville Beach requires special event applications to be submitted at least 90 days in advance—a deadline organizers missed by about a month.

According to Sgt. Tonya Tator with the Jacksonville Beach Police Department, the policy is about safety. “There's rules, state statutes, there’s city ordinances, all of those are in place to protect everybody from the people that are visiting here,” she told reporters. 

RELATED: How HBCU Teams are Being Stripped of Their Stars—And Why It Matters to Everyone

Still, Jackson and Gunn insist they were misled about the permit process. “We weren't told that we can't even have the event,” Jackson said. “From the email, we thought that everything was a go.”  Then came the cease-and-desist letters on March 28—just two weeks before the event. By then, students had already made travel plans. “People already booked hotel rooms, Airbnbs, got rental cars and all types of stuff,” Jackson continued.

Jackson offered to hire security and pay for police presence at the beach, but said that the proposal was declined. “We actually want to do it the right and the legit way,” he added. 

In a statement, Jacksonville Beach City Manager Mike Staffopoulos explained the permit denial, stating that, “The permit was denied because it was not timely filed according to the requirements within the Special Events Policy. In order to maintain successful, safe events, it is imperative that the Special Events Policy is strictly and consistently enforced with all applicants.”

As of now, it's unclear whether the event will proceed, or how city officials might respond if it does.