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02-28-07cep Minutes of February 28, 2007, Tree Conservation Board City Ce~n'.is,ion p C::y N:c c^cr rJ City Attorney MINUTES OF THE ~ ^ Press ^ File REGULAR MEETING OF THE p TREE CONSERVATION BOARD k Dzte: 5 'Z-? -07 February 28, 2007 A regular meeting of the Tree Conservation Board was held Wednesday, February 28, 2007 at the Adele Grage Cultural Center. Present were Chair Maureen Shaughnessy, Stephanie Catania, Jim McCue, Carole Varney, Planner II Erika Hall, and Recording Secretary Bambi Dickinson. Brea Paul was absent. 1. Call to Order The meeting was called to order at 7:Olpm. 2. Recognition of Visitors None 3. Approval of Minutes of February 14, 2007 Regular Meeting Stephanie Catania motioned to approve the minutes from the February 14, 2007 regular meeting with the exception of the mitigation question regarding 1863 Mayport Road. The 20" Pine and 14" Palm in the exterior zone appeared to have already been removed when the application was submitted and should have been mitigated at 100%. Staff will review the issue and report findings at the next meeting. Jim McCue seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. 4. New Business A. 88/90 Ocean Boulevard Mike Burrows, a representative from Fasanelli Development, was present to address the Board in regards to the application. Chair Shaughnessy questioned Mr. Burrows plan for replacement trees due to the application not being fully completed. Mr. Burrows responded that a landscaping plan had not been selected. Chair Shaughnessy stated that the Board would be concerned with the amount of replacement inches since the application is incomplete. A motion was made by Stephanie Catania to issue a Tree Removal Permit for 88/90 Ocean Boulevard for the removal of 1 - 12" Palm in the exterior zone to be mitigated by 6" of Palm on the site. Jim McCue seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. After the applicant left Mr. McCue pointed out that on-site retention had not been discussed. Ms. Catania stated that she thought Public Works Director, Rick Carper, reviewed on-site retention issues while doing site surveys. Planner II, Erika Hall, recalled it being discussed when she and Mr. Carper visited the site last week. C. 620 Beach Avenue -modification to existing permit Chris Lambertson, representing Elite Homes, was present to address the Board in regards to the application. Chair Shaughnessy determined from a site review that the tree in question was a Cherry Laurel and not an Oak as stated on the application. Mr. Lambertson asked if Minutes of February 28, 2007, Tree Conservation Board the Cherry Laurel was a protected tree. Chair Shaughnessy responded that it is not protected because the tree is something unique but protected due to previous mitigation. Mr. McCue inquired to the reasoning behind removing the tree. Mr. Lambertson responded that the tree was distressed and in bad shape. Ms. Varney stated that Cherry Laurels are very weedy. Mr. McCue asked Mr. Lambertson if he was allowed to put the driveway up against the property line as indicated on the plans. Mr. Lambertson stated that in Atlantic Beach you are allowed to do this. He does not think the site plans as presented will be how the property is completed. The plan provided were used for permitting purposes only and believes the finished plan will have a lot less pavers and more green spaces. Discussion ensued that the previous mitigation for the protected Oak was determined to actually be a Cherry Laurel. Carole Varney motioned to approve a Tree Removal Permit for 620 Beach Avenue for the removal of 1 - 10" Cherry Laurel in the interior zone. No mitigation is required. Jim McCue seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. D. 1250 East Coast Drive -modifications to existing Hermit Chris Lambertson, representing Elite Homes, was present to address the Board in regards to the application. Chair Shaughnessy requested the location of the driveway extensions because she is concerned about the root disturbance of a 24" Live Oak. Ms. Varney questioned why would the owners want to remove the 18" Live Oak. Mr. Lambertson explained that the tree bridges the property behind and drops tree debris into their neighbor's pool. Ms. Varney inquired as to what the dotted circular line was on the plans. Mr. Lambertson believes it was a drip line to keep the building a certain distance from that particular tree. Mr. McCue requested why the 16" and 30" Magnolia are being removed. Mr. Lambertson responded that it was for additional parking. The owner does not like the big Magnolia leaves dropping on his cars and removing the trees is his choice. Ms. Varney noted that there are a lot of questions that are not clearly represented in the diagram and Mr. Lambertson seems unsure about the plans. She stated to Mr. Lambertson that he has been though the tree permitting process before and why are there not any landscaping plans? Mr. Lambertson responded that his client is hiring a landscape architect that will develop a detailed plan in the future. Mr. McCue asked Ms. Varney are strongly she felt about moving on without actually seeing or having a plan in place. Mr. Lambertson indicated that the landscaping plan is some time off. A motion was made by Stephanie Catania to request the Building Official to grant a Tree Removal Permit for 1250 East Coast Drive for the removal 1 - 16" Magnolia, 1 - 30" Magnolia, 1- 6" Oak, 1-12" Palm in the interior zone and 1-18" Live Oak in the exterior zone. The 30" Magnolia in the interior zone and the 18"Live Oak in the exterior zone are to be mitigated by 15" of Hardwood for the Magnolia and 9" of Oak or tree with a similar canopy for the Live Oak. A permit was previously issued for this property and these are additions for further tree removals. Jim McCue seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. Mr. McCue inquired if the Board should require a site plan be submitted that clearly has interior and exterior zones marked on all applications. Chair Shaughnessy stated that 6a on the current Tree Board Application requires the zones be marked. Mr. McCue stated that in 2 Minutes of February 28, 2007, Tree Conservation Board the future he is going to make a motion to defer any action on applications until the forms are completely filled out. The previous applications reviewed where not complete and it makes the approval process difficult without all the correct information. The Board requested that the clerk at City Hall review applications for completion before accepting them. Ms. Hall stated she was going to start proofreading applications and reviewing them when submitted. B. 801 Atlantic Boulevard (Jax FCU) Applicant was not present to address the Board in regards to the application. Board Members recalled a previous application for the property being submitted. The application as submitted was not properly completed. A motion was made by Jim McCue to defer any action on the application until the firm can present a proper completed application and landscape plan. Stephanie Catania seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. E. Citizen report of tree removal at 825 Sherry Drive, question on 871 Sherry Chair Shaughnessy stated she had pictures dated May 26, 2006 of the property at 871 Sherry. Her concern is that the applicant waited just beyond six months after the Tree Board Application was approved to start construction on a pool. The applicant by doing this avoided mitigation and having to pay into the tree fund. The Board Members requested that 825 Sherry Drive and 871 Sherry Drive be placed on the agenda for the next meeting since no one has seen the report and follow up needs to be done. 5. Old Business A. Cynthia Doctor Ms. Hall reported that Mr. Carper had received a message from Ms. Doctor that seven trees had been planted in her yard. Ms. Varney requested that Ms. Hall be sure and that Ms. Doctor knows how to properly care for the trees. Ms. Varney inquired how a new resident moving into the community would know about Atlantic Beach Tree Ordinances. Ms. Hall suggested possibly having a notice put on the utility or water bills. In addition, maybe a handout or flyer could be given when they sign up for utilities at City Hall. A motion was made by Jim McCue to request Ms. Hall and staff to come up with an idea to include information concerning the tree ordinances in Atlantic Beach which might be tied together with the application for use of utilities. It needs to be done in such a way that a signature is obtain so that a written record exist that they are aware of tree ordinances. It is requested that a report be presented at the next meeting on March 14, 2007. Stephanie Catania seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. Minutes of February 28, 2007, Tree Conservation Board 6. Reports & Announcements A. Ms. Hall distributed a letter she had received from Greg Birdsong of JaxCornerstone Partners, LLC. The letter was in reference to the development of property on Dora Road. Chair Shaughnessy is very concerned because the letter stated bush hogging is going to be done. She stated the letter has too many verbs and Mr. Birdsong needs to slow down. Ms. Hall indicated that in her opinion a tree survey should be completed first. Ms. Catania would like to be sure that no trees are damaged or removed in the process by sending a letter to Mr. Birdsong. Ms. Varney also thinks a letter should be sent. Chair Shaughnessy stated she was very nervous when an entire property would be cleaned up in this manner. A motion was made by Jim McCue to request staff to send a letter that a tree survey should be done prior to any cleaning or clearing of the site. Stephanie Catania seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. B. Ms. Hall reported that a Mr. Charles Florida, who is an arborist, and employed by Davey Tree Company, came by and gave some brochures about the beetles causing harm to Red Bay Trees and Sphaeropsis Knot of Hollies. Ms. Hall distributed the brochures to Board Members. Mr. Florida had stated he might be available to help with changes to the ordinances and typically does not change for his input for these types of projects. C. Ms. Hall distributed 2007 calendars to Board Members with all meeting dates displayed. The Board decided that the meeting scheduled on December 26, 2007 would be rescheduled or possibility canceled. D. Chair Shaughnessy will be absent at the April 25, 2007 meeting. This date is also Ms. Varney's birthday. E. Ms. Dickinson reported that she had resigned and her last day would be March 13, 2007. 7. Adjournment A motion was made by Carole Varney to adjourn the meeting at 8:40pm. Jim McCue seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. Chairperson ~~ aD ~ ~ Date 4