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10-8-25 ESC Adopted MinutesMINUTES Environmental Stewardship Committee (ESC) Meeting Wednesday, October 8, 2025 - 6:00 PM City Hall, Commission Chamber 800 Seminole Road, Atlantic Beach, FL 32233 Present: Bruce Andrews, ESC Member Amy Palmer, ESC Member Christina Kelcourse, ESC Member Amy Franqui, ESC Member Daniele Giovannucci, ESC Member Todd Miner, ESC Member Absent: Anastasia Houston, ESC Member Jeannie Gracy, ESC Member Sarah Boren, ESC Chair Also Present: Amanda Askew, Neighborhoods Department Director (NDD) 1. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL The meeting was called to order at 6:00 p.m. by Amy Palmer who was chairing the meeting in Sarah Boren's absence. 2. APPROVAL OF AGENDA A. Amy Palmer asked if there were any requests to make changes to the agenda order or suggest new business. There were no requests for changes. MOTION. To approve the agenda. Motion: Bruce Andrews Second. Todd Miner Bruce Andrews (Moved By) For Amy Palmer For Christina Kelcourse For Amy Franqui For Daniele Giovannucci For Todd Miner (Seconded By) For Motion passed 6 to 0. 3. COURTESY OF THE FLOOR (5 MINS.) There was no public comment. Environmental Stewardship Committee (ESC) October 8, 2025 Page 1 of 7 4. CHAIR REMARKS Amy Palmer noted that Sarah (absent) had put forward a motion regarding Residential On-site Stormwater Retention that would be discussed later in the meeting. 5. CONSENT AGENDA A. Approve minutes of the August 27, 2025 regular Environmental Stewardship Committee meeting. B. Approve minutes of the September 2, 2025 ESC Tree Subcommittee meeting. C. Approve minutes of the September 10, 2025 regular Environmental Stewardship Committee meeting. D. Approve minutes of the September 24, 2025 regular Environmental Stewardship Committee meeting. E. Items ESC has consensus to share with Commission in the next 30 days F. ESC Proposed Promotional Content Through End of November 2025 G. FYI Report: Interesting Information and Resources MOTION: Amy Franqui identified several inaccuracies in the meeting minutes. After discussion about the process for correcting minutes using Al transcription, ESC decided to pull all minutes from the consent agenda to allow for corrections to be submitted to staff. Amy Franqui agreed to send corrections to staff ahead of the next meeting. To approve the agenda without the minutes: Motion: Daniele Giovannucci Second: Bruce Andrews Bruce Andrews (Seconded By) For Amy Palmer For Christina Kelcourse For Amy Franqui For Daniele Giovannucci (Moved By) For Todd Miner For Motion passed 6 to 0. 6. 90 DAY CALENDAR AND ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCE TRACKER A. 90 Day Calendar The committee reviewed upcoming dates and assignments. Dan Giovannucci confirmed he will attend the October 13th commission meeting. Amy Palmer noted that the October 27th commission meeting remained open. Amy Franqui volunteered to cover it. The committee also reassigned the November 24 commission meeting from Amy Franqui to Todd Miner. Environmental Stewardship Committee (ESC) October A, 2025 Page 2 of 7 Key upcoming events discussed included the October 26th "Treats and Trees" giveaway at the Sunday Farmers Market, the November 6th HOW series, and adjusted the ESC meeting schedules for November and December due to holidays (meetings moved to third Wednesday instead of fourth). Director Askew also noted that the Tree Subcommittee appeal hearing would be held October 15th at 6 p.m. MOTION. To approve the 90 -day calendar: Motion: Daniele Giovannucci Second. Bruce Andrews Bruce Andrews (Seconded By) For Amy Palmer For Christina Kelcourse For Amy Franqui For Daniele Giovannucci (Moved By) For Todd Miner For Motion passed 6 to 0. B. 2025 Organization Excellence Tracker Amy Palmer asked ESC to review the tracker and then passed around a sheet for members to estimate their September volunteer hours for ESC work, including meeting attendance, reading materials, commission meetings, and project work. C. ESC Member To Do List with Action Items When asked if members had questions about their assigned items, no immediate concerns were raised. Amy Palmer suggested members could provide updates during closing remarks. 7. COMMISSION AND/OR STAFF REPORTS Director Askew provided several updates: Chapter 23 Revisions: Staff reviewed ESC's revisions, including the historical corridor designation. Dan Giovannucci had been working directly with staff to address points of difference. The main disagreement centered on the 3 -year versus 6 -year maintenance requirement for newly mitigated trees. Amanda and Dan had met twice and needed one more meeting to finalize. The goal was to present both versions to the Commission as aligned as possible, targeting the second October or first November commission meeting for first reading. Dan Giovannucci explained they would flag substantive differences for ESC review at the October 22 meeting, estimating about half a dozen items requiring discussion. Bruce Andrews Environmental Stewardship Committee (ESC) October 8, 2025 Page 3 of 7 asked about the 3 vs 6 -year issue and the root protection zone distance concerns on small lots that staff had raised. Howell Park Dig Out & Littoral Planting: The littoral planting would wait until spring, but trees would be planted in late October/early November. Amy Franqui had provided a tree list with species suitable for the wetter areas of the park, allowing for species diversification. Front Yard Tree Program: Amy Palmer noted she had signed up and received notification about flag placement. Amanda explained the process involves homeowners placing flags, staff verification, and photography to address issues when flags get moved. Approximately 20 applicants requested 30 trees total for the fall planting. Developer/Builder Workshop: A tentative schedule was set for an invite -only roundtable with selected contractors who frequently work with the city, including those who've had past permitting issues. The workshop aims to identify problems and explore solutions related to building codes and tree requirements. Christina Kelcourse would attend to observe and report back. Amanda noted they were transitioning to a new online permitting system that would provide transparency for applicants to track their permits' status. Right of Way Plantings: The city would order trees for right of way plantings concurrent with other plantings. Staff reached out to COJ about potentially handling some plantings but hadn't received a response. A field trip with Bruce Andrews at Johansen was still being coordinated. Residents would be notified via mailings and yard signs about opt -out opportunities. Marsh Oaks Community Center: A budget amendment for an additional $320,000 to finish construction would go before the commission on October 13th. Amanda was confident it would be approved, allowing construction to resume. A. Monthly tree report with current tree fund amount September had fewer applications but significant tree removals. The total tree fund stood at approximately $325,754. The committee noted they were running a deficit on trees planted versus removed for the year, with Amanda explaining the time lag between removal and replanting due to construction timelines. Arborist Position Update: The position was approved in the budget with two certified arborist applicants so far. The position was advertised as full- or part-time. The arborist would handle all tree -related permitting and duties. Abrielle had given notice, with her last day October 24th, having found a position closer to her new home in St. Augustine. 8. OLD BUSINESS A. Treats & Trees Giveaway - October 26, 2025 Todd Miner confirmed logistics would be like past events, with trees sorted in a cordoned area for bidirectional vehicle pickup and walk-ups. He was working through data collection issues related to Sunshine Laws and Google Forms. The committee discussed Environmental Stewardship Committee (ESC) October 8, 2025 Page 4 of 7 whether pre -registration would be used, noting past events had 75% attendance from pre - registrants with extras distributed at 11:30-11:45 AM to anyone interested. The committee extensively discussed providing mulch as the "treat" component. After considering various bag options, they settled on using repurposed paper grocery bags (like those from Publix, Trader Joe's, or Whole Foods) that attendees could bring or the committee could collect. Amanda suggested having a dump truck with mulch on a tarp. Tree care instructions would be included on tags attached to trees. Christina Kelcourse reported working with schools to distribute 400+ flyers and would place yard signs the week of October 20th. Todd suggested making flyers two -per -page to save paper. Amanda noted Abrielle was updating tree tags from magnolia to holly. The committee briefly discussed whether members should dress up as trees for the Halloween -adjacent event. Films and Expert Panels Discussion Christina Kelcourse suggested "Kiss the Ground," a documentary about soil health that Beaches Go Green had previously shown at the St. Augustine Amphitheater. Members also mentioned National Geographic documentaries on sea level rise. The committee discussed potential partnerships with Beaches Go Green and ARC for film events. Todd Miner suggested mixing documentaries with commercial films containing environmental themes, with committee members providing context before screenings. Examples included The Lorax for families and Avatar for broader audiences. Dan Giovannucci recommended combining partnerships rather than managing multiple ones separately. Bruce Andrews proposed creating a video about Atlantic Beach's tree canopy, showing beautiful tree -lined streets contrasted with construction sites removing trees. The video could be used for education and posted on the city website. The committee expressed interest but deferred detailed discussion to a future meeting. April 2026 Awards The committee needed to narrow five award categories to three. Current suggestions included: Tree Canopy Award, Native Planting Award, Environmental Steward of the Year Award, Sustainability & Resilience Award, and Beautification Award. Amy Palmer suggested keeping categories broad for flexibility. Dan Giovannucci proposed using a ranking survey to determine the top three categories. Bruce Andrews suggested members consider potential nominees when evaluating categories. The committee agreed to submit rankings via SurveyMonkey that Amanda would create. Environmental Stewardship Committee (ESC) October 8, 2025 Page 5 of 7 9. NEW BUSINESS A. Motion: Honor Trees Amy Palmer presented a motion to establish an Honor Trees program, similar to the front yard tree program but with plaques recognizing dedications. The committee discussed funding for plaques, with estimates of current heritage tree plaques costing $250-300. Members suggested less expensive alternatives like stakes or posts with smaller plaques. MOTION. To approve: Motion: Daniele Giovannucci Second. Christina Kelcourse Bruce Andrews Against Amy Palmer For Christina Kelcourse (Seconded By) For Amy Franqui For Daniele Giovannucci (Moved By) For Todd Miner For Motion passed S to 1. The motion passed with Bruce Andrews voting nay due to concerns about the wording implying the city would pay for plaques. Director Askew suggested implementing the program with an application fee covering plaque costs, potentially offering larger 4 -inch caliper trees as incentive. Details would be worked out with staff later. B. Motion: Residential On-site Stormwater Retention Amy Palmer noted Sarah had submitted a motion that didn't make the agenda cut off. The committee had previously passed a motion asking the commission to wait for the completed master plan before making changes to stormwater retention requirements. The commission had voted 3-2 on first reading to remove on-site retention requirements, with the second reading scheduled for October 13th. Bruce Andrews expressed concern about creating political backlash by repeatedly addressing already -communicated positions. The committee discussed alternatives including reiterating their previous position during public comment and re -forwarding their original motion to commissioners. No new motion was made. C. Feedback: Suggestions on how to improve the following items Due to time constraints, this item was deferred. Environmental Stewardship Committee (ESC) October 8, 2025 Page 6 of 7 10. 11. 12. Attest: MEMBERS CLOSING REMARKS Amy Franqui reported on the second Florida Friendly Landscaping workshop held October 3rd with 12 in-person attendees. She collected two new yard review requests and distributed mosquito dunk bucket giveaways to half the attendees. Christina Kelcourse had no additional remarks beyond previous discussion. Bruce Andrews used his time to note the extensive October 22nd working agenda, expressing concern about making progress on high-priority items like creating Friends of the Park working groups. He wouldn't attend the October 22nd meeting but could listen remotely. Todd Miner shared he had been aggregating tree data showing total inches removed versus mitigated, finding more trees and inches being removed than replaced. He offered to share the analysis when complete. Amy Palmer reported on Alachua County's stricter tree ordinance prohibiting removal of trees over 45 inches (reduced from 60 inches after incidents with 50+ inch trees being removed). The ordinance was holding and included requirements for structured construction fences rather than just orange fencing. Dan Giovannucci thanked Todd for the data work and suggested members could easily complete the task of identifying potential right-of-way planting locations during neighborhood walks. He reminded Christina to send information about her builder research to him for Commissioner Grant. RECAP OF DECISIONS, ACTION ITEMS AND NEXT STEPS A. Proposed items for October 22, 2025 ESC Meeting Agenda The October 22nd meeting will prioritize Chapter 23 revision discussion. Other items on the working agenda may be adjusted based on time needed for that priority item. ADJOURNMENT With no other business, Amy Palmer adjourned the meeting at approximately 8:00 p.m. dmq,A Amanda Askew &.a" - Sarah Boren, ESC Chair Environmental Stewardship Committee (ESC) October 8, 2025 Page 7 of 7