01-09-19 ESC Meeting MinutesMINUTES OF
CITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH
ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP COMMITTEE MEETING
JANUARY 9, 2019
ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT:
Judith Leroux, Chair
Bruce Andrews, Vice Chair
Dawn Scott, Secretary
Sarah Boren
Linda Chipperfield
Sarah Dark
Chip Drysdale
Bonnie Hanson
Steve Kallao
STAFF:
Shane Corbin, Director of Planning and Community Development
Jennifer Johnston, Building Department
OTHERS:
Tony Pooley
Amy Palmer
1. Call to order.
The meeting was called to order at 6:15 p.m. in the Commission Chambers by J. Leroux.
2. Approval of the minutes.
D. Scott brought the motions to approve the minutes from the November 7 and November 14, 2018
meetings, which passed unanimously. D. Scott brought the motion to approve the minutes from the
December 12, 2018 meeting. J. Leroux asked that item 4 regarding the planting plan be changed
from "no feedback" to "no negative feedback." The motion to approve the minutes from the
December 12, 2018 meeting passed with no opposition.
3. Courtesy of the floor.
Steve Foraker addressed the Committee. He stated that from the Tree Subcommittee, he sees a
problem in that the Subcommittee was not meant to be compromising in dispu#--abetween City staff
and the tree ordinance. He stated the Subcommittee could compromise the tree canopy away and
asked why does Lucas Tree Service not know when permit is needed. He said a stiff fine is needed
and the Subcommittee needs to look at best practices to change the ordinance. He said he would
like to hear how the revisions of the tree ordinance are coming, and that tree companies should not
be allowed to do business in the City if they don't know the code.
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Cindy Anderson, City Commissioner, addressed the Committee. She thanked the Committee for their
hard work and was looking forward to the revisions to the tree code. She said that the City
Commission was working on plans and priorities for coming year and the tree canopy is a priority.
She said she wanted to address the issue that a homeowner could not plant trees in the right of way
in front of her house. She stated she hopes that planting in the right of way is allowed in the code,
and also hopes someone will explore with the homeowner about planting mitigation trees on adjacent
properties. She said she hopes homeowners are given as much area as possible for mitigation
planting, especially on smaller lots.
Tony Pooley said he is committed to sustainability in the area and is happy to be here and looking
forward to working with everybody.
Amy Palmer said she is looking forward to the opportunity to work with the Committee, and has been
watching meetings and reading minutes. She said she has lived in Atlantic Beach since 1995, and
cares deeply about community.
S. Dark addressed C. Anderson's comment about planting mitigation trees in the right of way. S.
Corbin said it is not policy that homeowners can plant in the right of way. B. Hanson discussed utility
issues in right of way. B. Andrews and C. Drysdale discussed planting in the right of way.
4. Report on LEED for Cities process.
S. Boren discussed the progress on the Subcommittee's progress towards obtaining the LEED for
Cities certification and presented the data collected towards the base point score. She stated that the
Subcommittee can then make recommendations towards future goals. She said the last step is
creating a roadmap for future certification. S. Corbin said the Subcommittee met with the City's
department heads. She stated that the City of Atlantic Beach could be the first city in Florida to get
certification.
5. Report on Arbor Day event, January 18, 2019.
S. Corbin said he has been gathering bids and has received one quote for prices on tree plantings.
He stated the goal is to plant one tree for Arbor Day, and the live oak in Johansen Park. J. Leroux
asked the Committee if 10:30 AM would work, and S. Corbin agreed.
6. Review of PowerPoint year-end ESC report for Commission.
S. Corbin presented the presentation prepared by staff describing the activities of the Environmental
Stewardship Committee for the past year. He stated the Parks Master Plan will be kicking off on
January 16th. S. Boren challenged the Committee to find five more people to take the Parks survey.
L. Chipperfield recommended adding the time the Committee spent visioning and planning their
priorities to the presentation. J. Leroux said she would forward the visioning document to S. Corbin.
S. Boren asked if the resiliency grant could be included with the presentation, and S. Corbin stated it
would be an item for this current year. J. Leroux asked the Committee if they approved the
presentation, and there was no opposition.
January 9, 2019 Environmental Stewardship Committee Meeting Minutes Page 2 of 3
7. Election of Officers for 2019.
D. Scott described the responsibilities of secretary, and said she would like to give someone else a
chance to serve as secretary. S. Dark said there would be vacancies on the Tree Subcommittee as
well. S. Boren volunteered to be secretary, and the motion to appoint her as secretary passed with
no opposition. B. Andrews described the Vice Chair responsibilities, and B. Hanson volunteered for
the position. B. Andrews nominated her, C. Drysdale seconded, and B. Hanson was appointed with
no opposition. S. Dark nominated B. Andrews as Chair, the motion was seconded by D. Scott. S.
Boren asked J. Leroux how much time was spent preparing for meetings, and J. Leroux said that
working with staff made the job easier, but it would be difficult to say how many hours per week were
spent. The motion to approve B. Andrews passed with no opposition. S. Dark stated she would like
to stay on the Tree Subcommittee, and a permanent space and alternate space would need to be
filled. C. Drysdale stated he would do his best to continue serving on the Tree Subcommittee, but
due to work concerns, he may need to be replaced in the future. S. Dark described the Tree
Subcommittee duties, and stated there had been two appeals. C. Drysdale stated reaching out to
citizens on social media and explaining the ordinance has helped. B. Andrews stated the
Committee's role is to ensure the ordinance is being administered accurately, and to look at permit
applications and play a watchdog role.
8. New business.
L. Chipperfield stated that the previous year's goals should be revisited and new goals for this year
should be re-established. B. Andrews asked if the Committee would be interested in holding a
workshop, and would follow up with meeting suggestions. S. Boren stated it would be great to be
aligned with the Commission's priorities, and she would send out the priorities to the Committee.
9. Adjournment.
The motion to adjourn was brought by B. Andrews, and passed with no opposition. The meeting
adjourned at 7:06 pm.
(Minutes respectfully submitted by Jennifer Johnston on February 8, 2019.)
Sarah Boren, Secretary
ATTEST:
ShanVCorbin, Director of Plahning and Community Development
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