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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02-03-2026 NRB AgendaNATURAL RESOURCES BOARD AGENDA REGULAR MEETING TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3RD, 2026 - 6:00 PM 1225 MAIN STREET, SEBASTIAN, FL “To improve the quality of life in Sebastian by nurturing the balanced relationship between our citizens and our environment by protecting, preserving, and promoting our natural resources.” 1)CALL TO ORDER 2)PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 3)ROLL CALL 4)APPROVAL OF MINUTES – ACTION ITEM Item A. January 6th, 2026 - Natural Resources Board Meeting Minutes 5)ANNOUNCEMENTS 6)AGENDA MODIFICATIONS 7)PUBLIC INPUT 8)UNFINISHED BUSINESS Chair announces the title of the item Staff Presentation Public Input Staff Summation Chair calls for a motion Board deliberation and roll call vote Item A. Sustainable Sebastian 1.Goal 7B - Great Air Potato Round-up – Saturday, February 14th, 2026 2.Goal 12A – Inaugural Public Environmental Poll 9)NEW BUSINESS Chair announces the title of the item Staff Presentation Public Input Staff Summation Chair calls for a motion Board deliberation and roll call vote Item A. Comprehensive Environmental Guide – Proposal by Board Member Frank Trinkle Item B. Earth Day & Arbor Day Celebration Preparations – Saturday, April 18th, 2026, 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM 10)ITEMS FOR NEXT AGENDA AND DATE: Tuesday, March 3rd, 2026 1.Sustainable Sebastian 2.Great Air Potato Round-up – Debrief 3.Earth Day & Arbor Day Celebration Preparations 11)ADJOURNMENT ANY PERSON WHO DECIDES TO APPEAL ANY DECISION MADE ON THE ABOVE MATTERS, WILL NEED A RECORD OF THE PROCEEDINGS AND MAY NEED TO ENSURE THAT A VERBATIM RECORD OF THE PROCEEDINGS IS MADE, WHICH RECORD INCLUDES THE TESTIMONY AND EVIDENCE UPON WHICH APPEAL IS TO BE HEARD. SAID APPEAL MUST BE FILED WITH THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE WITHIN TEN DAYS OF THE DATE OF ACTION. (286.0105 F.S). IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT (ADA), ANYONE WHO NEEDS SPECIAL ACCOMMODATIONS FOR THIS MEETING SHOULD CONTACT THE CITY'S ADA COORDINATOR AT (407)-589-5330 AT LEAST 48 HOURS PRIOR TO THIS MEETING.TWO OR MORE ELECTED OFFICIALS MAY BE IN ATTENDANCE. NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JANUARY 6, 2026 I. Chairperson 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. Ware Mr. Trinkle Ms. Thompson Ms. Shellenberger (a) Mr. Krauss Mr. Stadelman Mr. Bruggen Mr. Carrano Also Present: Felicia Gordian, Environmental Technician Joseph Perez, AV Technical Assistant Janet Graham, Technical Writer IV. Approval of Minutes A. December 2 nd, 2025, Natural Resources Board Meeting Minutes All having indicated they had reviewed the Minutes of December 2nd, 2025, Mr. Stadelman called for a motion. A motion approving the Minutes of December 2nd, 2025 as presented was made by Mr. Carrano, seconded by Ms. Ware, and approved unanimously via voice vote. V. Announcements th and 18th at Riverview Park. The Art Club will have two tents there. It is free to the public, and there will be entertainment and food as well. VI. Agenda Modifications -- None VII. Public Input -- None VIII. Unfinished Business A. Sustainable Sebastian Ms. Ware announced that the Fine Art and Music Festival is going to be held on January 17 NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD PAGE 2 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JANUARY 6, 2026 Mr. Stadelman reviewed that Sustainable Sebastian is the five-year plan for the environment to keep us on track. 1. Goal 6B -- Tree City USA Growth Award Update Ms. Gordian announced that staff has officially received the Growth Award for the 2025 fiscal year. This is a fantastic achievement. The City had not been able to achieve this the past few years because we had not made enough progress. Within the past year, we were able to do so. She thanked Ms. Thompson for providing her with all the documentation that she needed to fill out the application . It helped streamline the process with that. So now the City is recertified as a Tree City USA once again, and now we have the Growth Award for this year. She added that she has already received the regular Tree City USA materials, such as decals and stickers that will be going to go up on the signs in the City. Mr. Stadelman made some comments in regard to this program. Ms. Gordian added that staff is already in communication with members of the Parks, Recreation and Facilities Department. They are already beginning to compile data that we are going to need for next year’s certification. That process begins in late September/early November. The application typically has to be in during the month of November. She said that staff is starting to compile those things that they started doing as soon as the fiscal year changed from the 2024/2025 to the 2025/2026 fiscal y ear. 2. Goal 7B -- Great Air Potato Round-Up -- Saturday, February 14 th, 2026. th. He showed a Valentine reminder to the members. Ms. Gordian said that this year’s save-the-dates were designed to look somewhat like a valentine card intentionally because we were trying to play into the idea of having couples and families and loved ones come out, and everyone who wants to celebrate that day can get together and help collect the heart-shaped leaves, playing into that aspect of the air potato itself, to garner more support . She said if the board members are planning to attend, she will need to know soon. We will have one board meeting before the actual event itself, so we can discuss who is going to be there during what timeframes. She estimated that the whole event is going to run from 9:00 a.m. until about 1:00 p.m. She asked that board members let her know when they will be attending so that she can set up a tentative schedule. Mr. Bruggen reviewed that the Solid Waste Department is going to help us out with the disposal of the pepper plants and the air potatoes. He asked them if they wanted to set up a tent as well so they can do their outreach as well . He is going to contact the Police Department to see if they want to put up a little booth as well for the kids . He is going to send an email out tomorrow to Ms. Halleran the Pelican Audubon Society who is Mr. Stadelman stated this will be held on Saturday, February 14 NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD PAGE 3 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JANUARY 6, 2026 helping us with this event. She was seeking some grants for some awards to give out for the biggest air potato, the funniest one, etc. Mr. Bruggen is also looking at a couples’ award since it is Valentine’s Day, potentially a dinner, and he will be doing that Saturday. He will also look into getting some type of food truck there for the event . There will also be outdoor restrooms. Ms. Gordian added that within the last half-hour of each shift we will bring all the volunteers back, and we will officially do awards for that group for each shift at that time. Mr. Bruggen added that he hopes to have the buckets and shovels as well as gloves for that project. Mr. Stadelman stated that this would be a good opportunity to contact the schools about this event. Ms. Gordian said staff will contact any particular schools that the board members think would be most interested, and she asked them to let her know . Ms. Ware suggested the Charter School, and Ms. Gordian stated she would contact them. Mr. Stadelman suggested the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts and the ROTC might be interested. Ms. Gordian asked if any of the board members knows that he/she will not be able to attend. No one said they could not attend as of this date. Mr. Krauss asked if there is any value to the air potato. He mentioned this because with a lot of invasive species one of the ways that, as their paradigm changes, people can decide that they can use the air potatoes for use in other endeavors and several board members discussed this matter. Mr. Bruggen wanted to add information about Brazilian Pepper Trees. He said that he recently learned there are six animals that eat th e Brazilian Pepper Trees. They eat the berries and the leaves. He said he will do a little more research on this. 3. Goal 12A -- Inaugural Public Environmental Poll Ms. Gordian said staff has put out the poll for folks to fill out. She said she has had many responses already. She has now generated a separate folder within her inbox just for the poll. Staff will tally it up early in February. That is when we will cut it off for receiving responses. Ms. Ware said that Sebastian Daily has already published an article on this poll. She also asked if Ms. Gordian would send an email link to the board members so they can send it to their friends and take it themselves. NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD PAGE 4 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JANUARY 6, 2026 Mr. Stadelman stated that this poll will be helpful going forward. He also suggested adding an AI chat bot to the official City of Sebastian website. Mr. Krauss reviewed how the board arrived at this poll after much general discussion, and he applauded the board members’ participation and interest in the poll. He added that the more Sebastian participants we get to participate in the program, the stronger the conclusions and support for the comments that people add are going to be. Mr. Stadelman also suggested sharing the poll with other groups outside of the City, and that can also be very helpful. Mr. Trinkle opined that when he looked at the survey, the most helpful item on the survey was the open comment boxes. Mr. Bruggen asked if there is a question in the poll as to whether a person is a full -time or part-time resident. Ms. Gordian said there is. 4. Goal 15 -- Partnership with Treasure Coast Food Bank to Address Food Insecurity th, 2025, and this was a great success. It was hosted in the overflow parking lot of Riverview Park complex. The City is looking forward to doing another event with the Treasure Coast Food Bank later this month. She stated it will be on January 24th and it will be held from 8:00am to 10:00am. The plan is to host it here at the City Hall Complex. Mr. Bruggen reviewed that the first event was coordinated with the Parks, Recreation and Facilities Department, as well as the City Manager had to give approval for all of that . He thanked the City Manager and Richard Blankenship, Parks and Recreation Depa rtment Director for allowing it. He said the parking lot was very busy the whole time, and there was a lot of food available, and he mentioned some of the items that were available . He thought it went very well. He stated that there will be a meeting to discuss where the need is in the surrounding areas. Ms. Gordian said there were 21,957 pounds of food distributed at that event, and approximately 18,297 meals in total were distributed. She added that there were many volunteers there, and she would be glad to see volunteers from the Natural Resources Board at the coming events. She noted that prospective volunteers need to register with the Treasure Coast Food Bank in order to participate in their event. Ms. Gordian stated that there was the first Mobile Pantry event with the Treasure Coast Food Bank on December 19 NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD PAGE 5 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JANUARY 6, 2026 Mr. Bruggen voiced some ideas he has for this event going forward. B. Event Debrief 1. Christmas Parade Ms. Gordian thanked all the board members for helping with the Christmas Parade. She stated that we will definitely have to prepare for more candy and more seeds for the next time. She said the float was a hit, and it was a lot of fun . She asked for any suggestions for next year. Ms. Thompson said the seed packets were a hit with the adults, and obviously the candy was a hit with the kids. We ran out early, but it was definitely successful and a lot of fun. Mr. Trinkle said that this was his first Christmas Parade here in Sebastian . He had no idea it would be as big as it was. The streets were packed from the starting point to well beyond where it ended. He thought it was just incredible. Ms. Thompson said Mr. Trinkle did a good job on the microphone. There was also general discussion (all in good fun) about how the NRB float can compete with the City’s float next year. IX. New Business Mr. Stadelman announced that the Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program has an opening for the small grants. If anyone has an idea for the Lagoon improvement, the time has just opened up, and he thinks it is short. He thinks these grants are for $5,000.00 or less. A. Annual Selection of New Chair & Vice Chair Mr. Stadelman called or nominations for the new Chairperson . Ms. Ware nominated Mr. Stadelman. Mr. Carrano seconded the motion for Mr. Stadelman as Chairperson. Mr. Stadelman accepted the nomination. Mr. Krauss had some ideas regarding nominations in the future. Mr. Stadelman called for nominations for Vice Chair. A nomination for Mr. Carrano as Vice Chair was made by Mr. Stadelman and seconded by Ms. Ware. Mr. Carrano accepted the nominations. There being no further nominations, the voting was closed with Mr. Stadelman and Mr. Carrano being elected as Chairperson and Vice Chair for the next term. X. Items for Next Agenda and Date: Tuesday, February 3 rd, 2026 NATURAL RESOURCES BOARD PAGE 6 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JANUARY 6, 2026 A. Mr. Trinkle would like to have as an agenda item to explore the concept of a thin, magazine-style environmental education guide for Sebastian. He said the idea is to complement our existing pamphlets and Sustainable Sebastian goals by providing a more durable resource that stays in hotel rooms, vacation rentals, and new homes, particularly targeting visitors, snowbirds and new residents who may not be familiar with Florida’s environmental sensitivities . This would not replace current materials, but help tie them together in a way that encourages practical everyday stewardship. B Sustainable Sebastian C. Great Air Potato Round-up -- Final Event Preparations & Plans XI. Adjournment There being no further business, a motion to adjourn was made by Mr. Carrano, seconded by Ms. Ware, and approved unanimously via voice vote at 6:47 p.m. By:__________________________________ Date: _____________________ Charles Stadelman, Chairperson jg Sebastian's Great Air Potato Round-up Saturday, February 14th, 2026 Time Milestone Shift 1 Shift 2 8:00 AM Set up and briefing for board members 9:00 AM Event Begins! 10:00 AM 11:00 AM Shift Change (Please arrive 10 minutes early for briefing) 12:00 PM 1:00 PM Event Ends; Tear Down Any board members who can stay for the duration of the event are encouraged to do so. Natural Resources Board Schedule Earth Day and Arbor Day - Saturday, April 18th, 2026 Prospective Responsibilities of the Natural Resources Board Prep Work Seed packet creation Scavenger hunt development Activity development & preparation Acquisition of giveaway items Flyer distribution and event advertising Poster Contest Judging (if needed to assist the Sebastian River Art Club) Day-of Set up of the NRB Booth and wrap up at the end of the event Assisting vendors in finding their booth locations as needed Managing activities at the booth (such as engaging with the public, the scavenger hunt, coloring pages, etc.) Managing the Raffle (including the distribution of the tickets, organization of the prizes, and contacting the winners) Volunteer coordination (if additional volunteers are assisting with the event) Master of Ceremonies (announcements from the stage) Earth Day and Arbor Day Celebration Saturday, April 18th, 2026 - 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM Time Milestone Shift 1 (Set-up)Shift 2 (Booth Attendants & 1 MOC) Shift 3 (Booth Attendants, 1 MOC, & Event Wrap-up) 7:00 AM Event Set up Begins. 8:00 AM 9:00 AM 10:00 AM Event Begins! 11:00 AM 12:00 PM 1:00 PM 2:00 PM 3:00 PM Event Ends! Any board members who can stay for the duration of the event are encouraged to do so. Natural Resources Board Schedule