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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-10-2023 NRB Minutes w/AttachmentNATURAL RESOURCES BOARD MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JANUARY 10, 2023 Chairman Stadelman called the Natural Resources Board meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. II. Pledge of Allegiance was recited by all. III. Roll Call Present: Ms. Haggerty Mr. Carrano Ms. Callaghan Mr. Stadelman Ms. Billman Dr. Carrier Dr. Mosblech Not Present: Mr. Bradley — Excused Ms. Ware — Excused Also Present Ms. Felicia Gordian, Environmental Technician Ms. Lisa Frazier, Community Development Director Mr. Joseph Perez, AV Technical Assistant Ms. Janet Graham, Technical Writer IV. Aooroval of Minutes Mr. Stadelman asked all Board members if they had had a chance to review the Minutes of December 6, 2022. All indicated they had. Mr. Stadelman then called for a motion. A motion approving the Minutes of December 6, 2022 was made by Mr. Carrano, seconded by Dr. Carrier, and approved unanimously via voice vote. V. Announcements A. Tree City USA Recognition Mr. Stadelman announced that Sebastian once again is recognized with a Tree City USA designation. NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD PAGE 2 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JANUARY 10, 2023 Ms. Gordian stated she has worked with the application, and she received recently a letter from the Arbor Day Foundation thanking Sebastian for participating in Tree City USA and being a community member. She also received a press release that can be sent out about the Arbor Day Foundation/Tree City USA and the City's participation in it. She stated she also has some Tree City stickers that will be applied to the signs that she has. She is not sure exactly when those will get put up. She has spoken to the Sign Department regarding the stickers. She stated Sebastian has received this recognition for 20+ years. Ms. Billman asked what qualifies a city for the Tree City USA recognition. She opined that there is room for improvement in that regard. Ms. Gordian agreed. She listed the requirements as, "Maintaining a tree board or department, having a tree care ordinance, dedicating an annual community forestry budget of at least $2.00 per capita, and hosting an Arbor Day observance and proclamation." Mr. Stadelman stated he would like to add in a "Members Matters' section to the agenda. Ms. Frazier suggested that during the "Announcements" section would be the appropriate time for items to be brought up and discussed among members of the Board, since "Members Matters" is no longer an item to be put on the agendas. Mr. Stadelman called on the Board members who had items they wanted to discuss. Dr. Carrier reviewed that this Board has talked from time to time about issues, particularly with regard to loss of seagrass within the Lagoon. The Board has talked about perhaps visiting the Florida Oceanographic Society in Stuart and the MRC in Melbourne. He stated that the MRC is having a meeting, "Save Our Seagrasses." He suggested that all the NRB's board members should subscribe to the MRC to keep track of what is being done by this group. He described two days of meetings that are being held with scientists who are involved with seagrass restoration, coastal zone management particularly with shoreline restoration, etc. He added that there is an open reception on Thursday, January 26t', 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the Lagoon House in Melbourne, 3275 Dixie Highway, and suggested that some members of the NRB might like to attend. He has printed information, and he would be happy to provide it to anyone who is interested. Ms. Callaghan stated that she attended the Marine Mammal Lunch -and -Learn today held by the MRC. One of the announcements was regarding what Dr. Carrier just announced. She also stated that the FAU.edu website has a section listed as "Citizen Scientists" if anyone is interested in helping to do dolphin spotting. They are looking for participants to spot these animals, and the only requirement is that the photos are to be taken from land. These photos help with the tracking of the dolphins. NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JANUARY 10, 2023 VI. Aaenda Modifications — None VII. Public Input — There was no one in Chambers or on Zoom. Vlll. Unfinished Business A. Sustainable Sebastian 1. Presentation: Accomplishments & Goals (pg. 6) 2. Open Discussion PAGE 3 Ms. Frazier reviewed that last month she stated that she and Ms. Gordian were going to get together and review the Five -Year Action Plan. She stated that a lot has been accomplished since the resolution was passed and approved in 2019, even during the COVID pandemic. They delineated what they considered to be the projects that were of most importance. That is what is going to be presented tonight, and then she and Ms. Gordian will invite feedback from the Board members. Ms. Gordian reviewed the history of the Sustainable Sebastian project. She stated that the project was initiated in 2019. There are six primary initiatives, which were displayed on the monitor, and she explained each initiative. She reviewed and explained the goals of the Sustainable Sebastian initiative through 2024. She then called for questions/comments from the Board members. There was extended discussion and questions by the Board members regarding maps of the City which display the green infrastructure items. Ms. Gordian stated that there are also Parks and Properties maps available. She offered to send out copies of these maps to the Board members. There was also discussion of what the history of activities has been regarding these areas on the maps. Ms. Frazier stated that she and Ms. Gordian have been working on this, and a baseline green infrastructure map has been created. It contains all of the City's public properties. Those are connected with the public rights -of - way, i.e. canals, etc. There is still work to be done, and Ms. Frazier outlined some of that, and she invited input from the Board going forward and explained the procedure for Board members to work with Ms. Gordian in this regard. Ms. Gordian suggested having a workshop to go over the maps, etc. Ms. Frazier stated that the Regional Planning Council was successful in getting grants, and they are going to work together with all the stakeholders to identify ways that we can help our resiliency without hardening. She stated that she can report back to the Board what comes out of that. Mr. Carrano NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD PAGE 4 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JANUARY 10, 2023 suggested putting that on next month's agenda. Ms. Frazier and Ms. Gordian agreed. There were other questions/comments regarding green infrastructure, electric vehicles, connectivity for people to get around such as bike lanes and sidewalks. Ms. Frazier said that her department is working on sidewalks, etc. Ms. Callaghan said that this item is on the five-year City of Sebastian's list of activities to do. She added that she is somewhat frustrated with the progress of Sustainable Sebastian, and she reviewed the many projects that have not been started. She would like to see the projects that have been started on worked on extensively before beginning additional goals. Dr. Carrier stated he is interested in the low -impact development (LID). He is aware that there are huge tasks to be tackled. He added that the potential footprint for the City of Sebastian may be increasing fairly significantly, and the developments that are being discussed present opportunities for the City as well. He would like to see the planning for the new developments begin immediately. Ms. Frazier addressed the comments by Dr. Carrier, emphasizing how important the IPM plans are that have been implemented. She would like to see two of the City's priorities in the next two years to be tree protection and the landscape code. She suggested that the next step will be putting together more of a clear, concise list of priorities. Mr. Stadelman pointed out that this Board represents the commitment that the City Council believes in, the commitment to the environment of Sebastian as an integral part of a thriving, livable community. He would also like to see the timeline on Litter Quitter be addressed. Dr. Mosblech stated that she would like to see a timeline on the landscape ordinances. Ms. Billman added that she is concerned about the landscaping, and she feels that the property owners should be informed which trees will be put on their properties, and the developers need to be sure they are putting the proper species of trees on those properties. She also agreed on the timelines being addressed on the projects that are presently in the works. She added that maybe there should be additional hours/meetings be held to address some of these issues. Mr. Stadelman stated that the Board members are now able to contact City Council directly regarding their concerns. Ms. Callaghan stated that the IPM plans are supposed to be reviewed on an annual basis, and that has not been done. Ms. Frazier stated that staff will look into that and report back to the Board. Ms. Haggerty stated that, since she is a new Board member, she would like to know how she can be brought up to date on what has transpired in the past. Mr. Stadelman recommended that she go to the NRB's website. A lot of that information is on there. She could also go to the City's offices and talk with Ms. Frazier or Ms. Gordian. Mr. Carano volunteered to look at the tree code. Ms. Gordian said she would send him the information that is available. IX. New Business A. Earth Day planning NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD PAGE 5 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JANUARY 10, 2023 L. Task Assignments (Pg. 12) 2. New Ideas Ms. Gordian stated that contained in the agenda packet there is a list of tasks that she feels are a priority (SEE ATTACHED). There were several suggestions for new activities at the Earth Day event, and the Board members volunteered or were assigned tasks to complete for the Earth Day event. Ms. Gordian asked the Board members, if they had suggestions for new activities or additions to what had been done in the past, to contact her with their suggestions. Ms. Billman stated she would like to do an educational presentation on butterflies. Ms. Gordian suggested having a contest for older students in which to participate. It was decided to do the seed packets again and the gopher tortoise display again, as well as the scavenger hunt, face painting, the poster contest, the living docks, and a raffle. There was a general consensus that the "Sustainable Sebastian" theme is an innovative idea. Ms. Frazier stated that the NRB is budgeted $2,000.00 to spend on this event, and she suggested planning the event with that in mind. There were ideas suggested on prizes to give out. The idea of having beer at the event was brought up. After a voice vote, it was the consensus that beer should be available this year as long as it is served in sustainable cups. Ms. Gordian had suggestions on additional activities that could be implemented as well as inviting educational groups related to sustainability concepts and ideas. She would like to invite other potential food vendors who have not been at the event in the past. The list of tasks and those assigned to those tasks was again reviewed so that everyone was in agreement. Mr. Stadelman stated that he has been in contact with Brian O'Neill regarding the entertainment. X. Adioumment There being no further business, Mr. Stadelman called for a motion to adjourn. A motion to adjourn was made by Mr. Carrano, seconded by Ms. Callaghan, and approved unanimously via voice vote at 8:30 p.m. By: l XA./v - Date: ��1•�I taoA.� 19 Earth Day 2023 Preparation Tasks Completion Compile List of Prospective Vendors Send Invitation Email to Prospective Vendors Include the Links to the Applications & the Save the Date Flyers Assign the approved Vendors Locations Use last years map as a template Write Response emails to vendor applications Approving or denying the application Create and Distrubte Vendor Packets PROMOTIONAL Completion Date Task v . Create a Save -the -date flyer Create an event Flyer Create Entertainment Schedule flyer Write a press release for local news outlets ACTIVITIES Completion Date Create kid -friendly scavenger hunt Create spreadsheet of Kid's activities from approved vendor applications Contact Schools that will participate in the art contest(s) Create Seed packets for Distribution Create map/directory of kids activities for accepted vendors Da Date Assigned Due Date To be included in vendor Invitation emalls Use previous flyers as templates Use previous flyers as templates use previous press releases as templates previous scavenger hunts for ideas Use booth assignment maps as a template Board Member (sj Coordfnating Staff/volunteer Earth Day 2023 Preparation Tasks VOLUNTEERS Completion Date Task Create volunteer agreement form Create Volunteer Flyer Invite Prospective volunteers ENTERTAINMENT Completion Date Task Get in contact with Tai Chi group for demonstation Have Entertainers sign agreement forms Assign time slots Details Date Assigned Due Date Include the Hold Harmless Form Distribute to local schools, organizations, etc. Include Volunteer Flyer in invitation emails Details Date Assigned Due Date Once forms are completed, return to FG so the appropriate payment can be alotted to the musician in question Board Member (s) Coordinating Staff/Volunteer Board Member (s) Coordinating Staff/Volunteer Brian O'Neill Brian O'Neill