11-14-18 ESC Meeting MinutesMINUTES OF
CITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH
ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP COMMITTEE MEETING
NOVEMBER 14, 2018
ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT:
Judith Leroux, Chair
Bruce Andrews, Vice Chair
Dawn Scott, Secretary
Bonnie Hanson
Steve Kallao
Chip Drysdale (arrived at 6:25 PM)
STAFF:
Shane Corbin, Director of Planning and Community Development
Jennifer Johnston, Building Department
1. Call to order.
The meeting was called to order at 6:01 p.m. in the Commission Chambers by J. Leroux.
2. Approval of minutes.
The minutes from the previous meeting held on November 7, 2018 were not available for
approval at this meeting.
3. Courtesy of the floor.
There were no speakers present to address the Committee.
4. Final review of tree ordinance suggested changes per workshops.
S. Corbin presented proposed changes to the tree ordinance to the Committee. He said he
expected the Commission to approve their proposed changes, and the Committee could either
have draft changes prepared to give to Commission or take more time to prepare the changes.
J. Leroux asked the Committee if they would like to take more time, and the members agreed.
B. Hanson stated she doesn't understand requiring applicants mitigate for the footprint of their
home on a vacant lot. S. Corbin explained the history of the ordinance, and said the decision
was made to require mitigation regardless of a building's footprint, most likely due to
homeowners tearing down smaller, older homes and building larger homes. B. Hanson stated
the mitigation requirement could cause a hardship in the situation of building a new home on a
vacant lot.
S. Kallao stated he understood her concerns, and said that people building in Atlantic Beach
would not be poor, and people may take advantage of the requirement to plant less trees.
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B. Andrews said he felt that people would clear cut lots, and the mitigation requirement would
help ensure that the minimum amount of trees were taken down when building. He said that
building a home in Atlantic Beach would be an investment.
B. Hanson said she was concerned about people who bought vacant lots prior to the change to
the tree ordinance, and how they would be affected.
S. Kallao stated that she was speaking about grandfathering people who bought lots prior to
any change, and asked how many people could potentially be affected.
B. Hanson stated if someone met the prior ownership criteria, they could appear before the
Community Development Board.
D. Scott stated her concerns for hardships pertained to tree trimmers, not to vacant land
owners. She said she sees vacant land on the west side of Mayport Road being held and now
sold, but being sold to builders. She asked if that situation could fall under the criteria to obtain
a waiver or variance.
J. Leroux stated the proposed changes to the tree ordinance could offer relief to applicants
regarding the area that mitigation trees could be planted, and the applicant could request a
variance, rather than a waiver, if someone wants to request a variance.
B. Andrews asked what a homeowner would do in the case where mitigation trees couldn't be
planted in the 1/4 mile radius area or wanted to plant mitigation trees on public property.
S. Corbin stated the changes haven't been drafted yet and these changes could be included in
the revised ordinance. He said criteria would have to be included to make sure the City could
agree to maintain any mitigation trees planted in the City's right-of-way.
J. Leroux stated that the City is already looking for areas to plant trees, and it would be better
to encourage people to plant on private property.
The committee discussed mitigation on City property with the City's approval, and all agreed it
should be included in the proposed changes.
S. Corbin stated that tree mitigation funds could be used to plant on private property if the
ordinance clarified an educational component for planting in the front yards of private property.
C. Drysdale stated that the ordinance could include language about adopting a tree when a
tree is removed. B. Andrews stated that it would have to be written so that an applicant could
not take advantage of the mitigation.
S. Corbin stated it would have to be limited to one tree visible from the public right-of-way per
household.
J. Leroux asked the Committee if they agreed on adding the private property mitigation item to
the ordinance.
B. Andrews said he had reviewed a permit recently where the mitigation proposed was
oleander, and he would like to remove oleanders from the approved mitigation list, due to it
being poisonous and a bush.
S. Corbin stated the next step is for the ESC to vote on recommendations to present to
Commission, then staff will draft the code language based on the Commission's directives,
then the ESC can make their final recommendation on the draft code language, then present
the final code language to Commission.
J. Leroux made a motion to vote on the proposed recommendations, C. Drysdale seconded
the motion. The motion passed with no opposition. S. Corbin said his next step is to speak
with the City Manager and schedule the meeting to present the items to Commission, most
likely in January.
B. Andrews stated the Committee has not really solved the issue with folks seeing trees come
down and being able to prevent it, and there doesn't seem to be an appetite to make the
ordinance stronger and preventing homeowners from taking down trees. He said he thinks the
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City has a good ordinance and is being administered well by staff, but large oaks will continue
to come down, but will be replaced with new plantings.
J. Leroux stated that tree canopy monitoring has started, and the Committee can give the
public information regarding the tree canopy.
B. Hanson stated the next step would be to educate the public on how the ordinance works the
way it does.
5. Discussion of Arbor Day January 2019 event/tree planting; Heritage Tree designation
and planting maps, etc.
S. Dark and J. Leroux both identified a tree at the corner of Country Club Lane and Park
Terrace East as a potential heritage tree for Arbor Day 2019.
D. Scott asked what steps needed to be taken when the Committee needs to order supplies,
like the heritage tree plaque. S. Corbin stated if the Committee would contact him and provide
details, he will handle the purchase order.
B. Andrews motioned to make the Country Club Lane and Park Terrace East tree a heritage
tree, D. Scott seconded, and the motion passed with no opposition.
S. Corbin stated the Commission has to designate the heritage tree, and the ESC should
present it at the same meeting as the tree ordinance changes.
S. Corbin stated the tree mitigation fund was available for a public planting, and researched
the possibility of planting up to 200 trees. He said 8 planting sites were identified, and more
could be identified on the west side of Mayport Road. He asked the Committee if they wanted
to move forward with this idea for presentation to Commission for approval.
C. Drysdale stated that trees help keep cars out of homes and businesses that border the right
of way.
D. Scott stated that an artist's rendering may help Commission to visualize what the trees will
look like after planting, and also asked if Howell Park was an option for a planting site, since
that park lost so many trees after previous storms.
B. Andrews asked if the Commission needed to know exactly what trees would be planted, S.
Corbin stated an outside professional could be brought in to consult on the plantings. S.
Corbin stated they could ask Commission if they agree to the locations, then move forward.
B. Andrews stated he didn't think outside help would be needed, and that the Committee could
ask GreenScape for assistance. He talked about the repercussions of COJ mismanaging their
tree funds, and now residents could call the City for a tree, and COJ would come and plant a
tree. COJ is bidding out tree planting and maintenance services as well, with a 2 year
warranty. B. Andrews got prices from their tree supplier, and the plantings could cost near
$30,000, and did the Committee want to spend half the mitigation fund on plantings. He also
asked if the Committee could use less trees but use COJ trees that COJ would maintain.
J. Leroux said the COJ applications are not in place yet, due to the amount of money it would
cost.
B. Hanson stated she would like to see north Seminole Road, near Oceanwalk, planted with
shrubs. S. Corbin stated funds could be used for landscaping/beautification and no -mow
areas that require lower maintenance, and J. Leroux said workshops could be held for further
discussion. B. Andrews said the Committee should workshop the top 3 choices after getting
Commission approval.
B. Andrews made a motion to authorize S. Corbin and ESC members to present the concept of
planting locations and rough budget to Commission, and then workshop ideas for plantings.
B. Hanson and D. Scott seconded the motion, and the motion passed with no opposition.
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6. New Business.
C. Drysdale stated he saw dangerous trees on the west side of Seminole Road in the right of
way due to thick vines growing there, and asked if it is Public Works' responsibility to clean out
the vines. S. Corbin said he would follow up with Public Works.
7. Adjournment.
The motion to adjourn was brought by B. Hanson and D. Scott and passed with no opposition.
The meeting was adjourned 7:22 PM
(Minutes respectfully submitted by Jennifer Johnston on November 30, 2018.)
ATTEST:
Dawn colt, Secretary
Shane Corbin, Director of Planning and Community Development
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