03/15/2023 Environmental Advisory Board Meeting Minutes March 15, 2023
City of Clearwater
Main Library- Council Chambers
100 N. Osceola Avenue
Clearwater, FL 33755
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Meeting Minutes
Wednesday, March 15, 2023
4:00 PM
Special Meeting
Main Library - Council Chambers
Environmental Advisory Board
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City of Clearwater
Environmental Advisory Board Meeting Minutes March 15, 2023
Rollcall
Present 4 - Chair Jared Leone, Board Member Marita Lynch, Board Member
Glenna Wentworth, and Board Member Sheila Sullivan
Absent 1 - Vice Chair John Thomas
Also Present— Micah Maxwell — Chief Innovative Officer, Nicole Sprague — Deputy City
Clerk
1. Call To Order
The Chair called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m. at the Main Library and
read the Environmental Advisory Board's mission statement.
2. Approval of Minutes
2.1 Approve Environmental Advisory Board Meeting Minutes from October 19, 2022.
No Action Taken— Continued to next meeting.
3. Citizens to be Heard Regarding Items Not on the Agenda: None.
4. New Business Items
4.1 Elect Chair and Vice Chair
Member Sullivan moved to reappoint Jared Leone as Chair. The motion
was duly seconded and carried unanimously.
Member Sullivan moved to appoint Marita Lynch as Vice Chair. The
motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously.
4.2 EAB/Staff Alignment
In an effort to maximize the efficiency for all involved, staff would like to begin a
discussion on Board/Staff alignment, in an effort to clarify the board's core
purpose, what the board does, its strategies for success, and the priority of the
board in the near term.
Chief Innovation Officer Micah Maxwell said the Sustainability Coordinator
position will be advertised soon. He provided a worksheet based on the
book "The Advantage"by Patrick Lencioni, mapping out a path forward for
the board. He encouraged members to review the worksheet and bring
topics for discussion at the next meeting. He said he filled out the worksheet
based on what is written in code related to the board as well as utilizing
information from his department to give members a starting point for
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City of Clearwater
Environmental Advisory Board Meeting Minutes March 15, 2023
discussion. Comments were made that the worksheet was completed
with thoughtfulness, it is a document that can be updated and amended
going forward. In response to a comment, Mr. Maxwell said the document
can be set up to address upcoming projects the Board would want to
discuss, such as Complete Streets and the tree inventory and removal
program.
An individual supported Greenprint 2.0 and suggested the strategic plan be
incorporated into the standard operating procedures as the goals will turn
into budget items moving forward.
4.3 Near Term Planning Discussion
In an effort to inform the board of issues that they may have interest in that are
more near term, staff has identified some potential areas of interest and would
like some feedback on whether these are truly of interest to the board, with the
understanding that staff may need to prioritize these items in an effort to
maximize effectiveness, and that this lists not exhaustive.
Building maintenance
City Fleet
Reclaimed Water Masterplan
Watershed Master Plans
ROW Tree Management
Solid Waste/Recycling
Comprehensive Plan
Mr. Maxwell reviewed recent and upcoming projects. He said there is a lot
opportunity for positive environmental impact. He said Planning and
Development will provide a presentation on the City's Comprehensive Plan
to get feedback. There was Board consensus to hold a special meeting on
May 17, 2023 to review the presentation.
Mr. Maxwell updated the Board on recent organizational changes and said
the Solid Waste/General Services Department has been split into two
departments, each with an assistant director. He said fleet maintenance is
planning for updated infrastructure and upgrades to the power supply to
cover the demand for power when the fleet gets upgraded to electric
vehicles. City mechanics will need to be trained on the upkeep of electric
vehicles.
In response to questions, Mr. Maxwell said the issue with placing solar
panels on city facilities is not finding installation locations but the human
resources component. He said city staff is needed to manage the installation
project and contractors as well as ongoing maintenance of the panels.
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Environmental Advisory Board Meeting Minutes March 15, 2023
General Services and Public Works are experiencing staff capacity issues
and there is not enough people to manage the existing infrastructure. The
MSB garage would not be a good candidate for solar panels as the electricity
cannot be transferred to the MSB because of the railroad tracks that run in
between the two structures. However, the idea of a robust charging station
for the city fleet in that location has been discussed. The General Services
building is a great location for solar as it is a massive structure without a lot
of trees. The solar feasibility study is in the hands of staff who are evaluating
the information and applying it to the current environment. Staff is mindful of
not creating savings in one area that would result in spending in another
area. He said peel and stick solar panels were initially planned for the new
fire station on Clearwater beach but the panel manufacturer went out of
business. The funding for the peel and stick panels has been isolated until
another alternative is found. He said a green finance program has not been
developed but there have been conversations on how to allocate solar
installation rebates. He said staff received the sustainability plan last week
for Imagine Clearwater and it is being reviewed to make sure it aligns with
Greenprint. Council is scheduled to see the plan the same week as the next
EAB meeting.
One individual encouraged the board to look for sustainability
opportunities for the new city hall. He said Largo has an EV charging
ordinance in place for new construction.
4.4 Board Member Discussion Items
Based on independent communication from board members, staff has placed
the following items on for discussion:
1. The Sustainability Conference
2. Update on the issues surrounding Urban Forestry
3. Update on the issues surrounding Recycling
Chair Leone requested a future discussion regarding pesticide and
herbicides, what is being used on public land so the board can provide
feedback. He would like the board to discuss a cigarette smoking ban on the
beach. The legislature has allowed local communities to draft a ban and the
county has been pursuing it, but other beach communities have decided not
to pursue it due to enforcement challenges. He would like to discuss what,
as a community, can be done regarding litter and he would like to know more
about the City's composting program. He would like to continue field trip
meetings to Cooper's Bayou and Lake Bellevue and get updates on the
projects in those areas. He expressed a concern regarding the lights at
Nova Southeastern University's campus, which abuts the bayou, and said it
looks like daytime at night and is interested to know the interaction of the
lights and the wildlife.
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City of Clearwater
Environmental Advisory Board
Meeting Minutes March 15, 2023
Mr. Maxwell said Public Works is currently looking at Cooper's Bayou and
what future improvements are needed at that site.
In response to a comment, Sustainability Specialist Melody Yin said even if a
Building Better Neighborhoods conference is not held, a series of
sustainability workshops can be held with different topics. She said she will
provide an update to the board in April regarding red tide and that there is
upcoming stormwater educational outreach program.
In response to a question, Mr. Maxwell said Greenprint feebate program
has not been implemented yet.
Member Wentworth said the Sierra Club is in support of the Drew Street
Complete Streets project.
Mr. Maxwell said Council will discuss a letter of support to FDOT for the
project in April and said the Board will have an opportunity to provide
Council feedback at their April meeting. Comment was made that the
Complete Street project is relevant to the Board as Greenprint provides
for the increase of different types of mobility and Druid Trail is just south
of the corridor.
One individual supported the smoking ban on the beach and said he sits
on the County parks board who recommended the County Commission
vote to approve the ban.
5. Board Members to be Heard: None.
6. Adjourn
The meeting adjourned at 5:56 p.m.
Attest:
Board Re orter .411"--
City of Clearwater
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