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02-13-19 ESC Meeting MinutesMINUTES OF CITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP COMMITTEE MEETING FEBRUARY 13, 2019 ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: Bruce Andrews, Chair Sarah Boren, Secretary Linda Chipperfield Sarah Dark Judith Leroux Amy Palmer Tony Pooley STAFF: Shane Corbin, Director of Planning and Community Development Jennifer Johnston, Building Department 1. Call to order. The meeting was called to order at 6:00 p.m. in the Commission Chambers by B. Andrews. 2. Approval of the minutes. The motion to approve the minutes from the January 9, 2019 meeting was brought by J. Leroux and seconded by S. Dark. The motion passed with no opposition. 3. Courtesy of the floor. No visitors were present for courtesy of the floor. 4. Review of park master plan. S. Corbin discussed the park master plan survey and workshop meetings. He said public comments were collected into a spreadsheet to identify trends, including bathrooms, fountains, public art, bat boxes, and more options that are still being collected. B. Andrews asked about the National Parks representative working with the Florida Association of Landscape Architects L. Chipperfield asked about setting priorities after collecting feedback, S. Corbin said staff can make recommendations but ultimately, recommendations would come from the ESC. S. Boren asked if staff was expecting certain items to be recommended, and S. Corbin said the request for bathrooms was surprising. S. Corbin said the survey will be active for one more month. A. Palmer asked where the funding would come from for the priorities, S. Corbin said most likely from the general fund, and the Commission would decide where to spend money. S. Corbin said the City has an engineer on staff that can help with budgeting. S. Boren asked if staff had considered the overlay plan of the park February 13, 2019 Environmental Stewardship Committee Meeting Minutes Page 1 of 4 master plan, resiliency plan, and stormwater plan, and S. Corbin said it has been discussed. T. Pooley asked if FEMA tools had been used for mapping, and S. Corbin said Jones, Edmunds, and Associates had been tasked with the stormwater plan, along with the new City engineer. S. Boren said she had been contacted about Howell Park, but it could be discussed under new business. A. Palmer said she had heard that Howell Park might be used for the overall stormwater master plan, S. Corbin said it has come up during the impervious surface ratio discussion. He said that it didn't seem like there was much traction for that option. 5. ESC tree planting plan status. S. Corbin discussed the tree planting plan and presented the changes made to the plan, including location and species of trees. He said that before the underground utilities can be located, the proposed tree planting areas must be flagged, and a purchase order will be submitted for flags. B. Andrews asked if it would be possible to order different colors to represent the different species to be planted. S. Dark asked if Johansen Park was the priority, and B. Andrews said yes. S. Dark discussed alternate species that could be planted in Johansen Park. B. Andrews said he had concerns about the circle of trees planned, since Johansen Park is very natural. S. Dark said that the circle effect may go unnoticed, and clumps of trees appear more natural. J. Leroux stated she liked the circle. A. Palmer said the City has a dearth of hardwoods, and asked if different species would be considered. B. Andrews said the species selected were already in the area, and S. Dark said that the trees selected will help with erosion control, as Johansen Park is a low lying area. B. Andrews asked the Committee if they had issues with changing the plan as necessary, and J. Leroux said she had no problem with changes made. T. Pooley asked if the City would consider reclaiming any historical wetlands, and S. Corbin said it could be discussed. T. Pooley discussed coastal live oaks found in wetland areas. S. Corbin said City staff had asked if the location of the Donner Park planting would affect the adjacent tennis courts with debris. S. Dark said that the species selected, Washingtonian palms, grow at twice the rate of sabal palms and drop less debris. S. Dark asked about maintenance of sabal palms, and stated the Washingtonian palms at Donner Park should be farther apart. S. Corbin said the areas in Donner Park are the only areas west of Mayport Road identified for planting. S. Dark discussed other areas for planting in Donner Park. A. Palmer said it would be nice to consider locations for spectators to get out of the sun and into shade during the summer. S. Boren discussed diversity of trees to allow for birds, color, and pollination. B. Andrews said that could be considered. T. Pooley asked if tree selection would be included in the LEED for Cities certification, and S. Boren said not at this time, but could be included in the future roadmap. S. Dark asked if walkability and shade would be included for LEED for Cities, and S. Boren said it could be included in the future roadmap for recertification. 6. LEED for Cities update. S. Boren updated the ESC on the status of the LEED for Cities roadmap submittal. S. Boren sent a submittal draft to S. Corbin, who made edits, with the next step of submitting the draft to the City Manager, then to the public for input. S. Corbin said he wanted the document to be suitable to be presented to Commission. S. Boren said that what is submitted to the GBCI for submittal does not commit the City to anything. She said the roadmap was based on Washington D.C.'s submittal, but does not yet include the social justice category. She said she wants to prepare to submit, then come back to review the roadmap and make updates. S. Boren explained the LEED for Cities program for an audience member. S. Corbin explained how the LEED for Cities score was obtained, and how the February 13, 2019 Environmental Stewardship Committee Meeting Minutes Page 2 of 4 roadmap will direct policy and decisions in the future to improve the score. An audience member asked about the Howell Park arboretum, and B. Andrews said it was only an idea at this point. T. Pooley asked how to guarantee the longevity of the LEED for Cities program, and to prevent it from being slashed in the future. S. Boren said that ordinances could be adopted, but wanted the Committee to think about how to protect the program. 7. Tree permit infographic. L. Chipperfield presented the infographic she prepared to guide tree removal applicants if a permit is required. She said it did raise the question regarding interior construction for the $10,000 construction limit. B. Andrews discussed the requirement and mitigation. L. Chipperfield said the requirement can overcomplicate the application process. S. Boren said that interior construction work can damage trees with trucks and equipment. S. Dark said she would like language to be included on the document for a tree removal affidavit. A. Palmer asked if there is a notification on a job site to specify no trees will be removed. B. Andrews said he would like to include legacy trees as an item on the infographic. S. Dark said the species name should be specifically called out for the trees. T. Pooley asked if legacy trees should be called protected trees. T. Pooley asked if real estate agents and homeowners are given preemptive information when buying a home, and sharing information to the community. S. Boren said that a welcome package could be given out letting homeowners know about the tree ordinance. T. Pooley stated branding and communication to the public can get buy -in from the community. J. Leroux said that public education was a priority but had not yet been addressed, and realtors may be happy to disseminate information to new residents. S. Boren discussed a public relations class at UNF that wrote their senior thesis campaign for a non-profit she worked with to raise awareness for a tiny house community, and the possibility of using the next class to write a campaign for their initiatives at no -cost. 8. New business. S. Corbin discussed the February 20, 2019 City Commission workshop regarding rights-of-way. He said that homeowners put rocks and reflectors in the right-of-way and the City's position is that they should not be allowed to, but would allow trees to be planted in the right-of-way. The City Manager said he wanted the Commission to discuss the issue at the workshop. B. Andrews said that there is confusion between right-of-way and streetscape, and one could argue that a tree is part of the public good, versus a rock doesn't benefit the community. S. Dark stated there is one permanent and one alternate vacancy on the Tree Subcommittee, due to Chip Drysdale withdrawing from the ESC. S. Dark and B. Andrews discussed the duties of the Subcommittee. J. Leroux discussed the need for an additional member from Chip Drysdale's district. The Committee discussed the sea oats planting project presented by the Mayor at the State of the Beaches event. J. Leroux said that Chip Drysdale served on the forming committee, and has been a stalwart member of both the forming committee and the ESC, and thanked him for his service. S. Boren said that Commissioner Norris will be discussing plastic at a presentation and asked if the Committee would like to support her efforts. 9. Review of draft 2019 ESC work plan. February 13, 2019 Environmental Stewardship Committee Meeting Minutes Page 3 of 4 S. Boren discussed the work plan she created from the Committee's discussions and agendas. She said she also added the City Commission's visioning priorities. She said that there is a lot of duplication and not all areas need to be adopted into the Committee's final work plan. S. Corbin said the Committee members could send their suggestions to him and he would add it to the plan. L. Chipperfield discussed the communication and public education aspect of the plan. J. Leroux discussed how mitigation banks and the marsh master plan is not feasible in the City anymore. S. Boren stated a marsh protection plan could be incorporated into the parks master plan item. B. Andrews said that not every item listed can be achieved, but should be documented. S. Boren said that the Committee could use the next meeting identifying which items to prioritize. The Committee discussed sending priority items to S. Corbin to add to their plan. S. Corbin also said trees were being removed in Howell Park for drainage purposes. 10. Adjournment. The motion to adjourn was brought by B. Andrews, and passed with no opposition. The meeting adjourned at 8:16 pm. (Minutes respectfully submitted by Jennifer Johnston on April 5, 2019.) Sarah Boren, Secretary ATTEST: Shane Corbin, Director of Planning and Community Development February 13, 2019 Environmental Stewardship Committee Meeting Minutes Page 4 of 4