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Home My WebLink About10-10-2025 Fairhope Environmental Advisory Board Meeting Minutes MEETING MINUTES ~ STANDARD MONTHLY MEETING OCTOBER 10, 2025 / 3-4 PM, FAIRHOPE PUBLIC LIBRARY ~ UPSTAIRS BOARD ROOM ATTENDEES COF Officials: Michelle Melton, Nicole Love, Justin Hammers FEAB Board Members: Ben Frater, Gary Gover, Nigel Temple, Jennifer Foutch, Anna Miller, Jim Horner, Carl Couret, Steven Scyphers FEAB Members Absent: Amy Paulson Oﬃcial Quorum Count: 8/9 FEAB Active Participants: Sarah Bogdanovich, Jeanine Normand, Sarah Chandler, Jamie Crawford Honored Guests Kelsi Furman Minutes Author: Sarah Chandler Commencement: Jennifer called the meeting to order at 3:00 p.m. SUMMARY OF SALIENT DECISIONS, DISCUSSION, AND ACTIONS ● RESOLUTIONS: ○ Sarah Bogdanovich has been appointed as a full Board member. It will go to the Council next month. DETAILED MINUTES 1. Housekeeping a. RESOLUTION: Board unanimously approved September Meeting Minutes b. New Council will be in soon and may have a liaison or may not c. Meeting frequency/cadence i. Reminder Beginning 1/2026, Regular FEAB meetings to meet bimonthly, sub-committee meetings in oﬀ-months. 2. Priority Issues & Subcommittee Reports a. Sustainable Waste Management (SWaMP) – Sarah B/Sarah C/Jennifer/Gary i. ACTION: Group will meet when the new meeting cadence starts b. FHS Future Farmers of America (FFA) i. ACTIONS: The group tried to set up a meeting in October and it got canceled. Hope that it will be rescheduled c. Greenspace and Native Habitat i. Greenspace Assessment Working Group – Ben 1. Jim Horner, Sandy Tormone and Katie Bolton will likely participate a. ACTION: Ben to start a new Greenspace Assessment Working Group ii. Greenspace Management - Justin 1. Pond does not have algae anymore. Flooding has improved. 2. New nature park is open. Nature Center is not. Kayak launch, outdoor classroom, and other features will be in next phase. iii. Keeping LUP Current - Gary 1. Recommends that we do an annual report to keep the LUP alive by providing a report to the Planning Commission on improvements/modiﬁcations. 3. New Items a. Mobile Bay dredging operations - Jennifer i. Realtors Association signed on as an advocacy support entity to help with more environmental solutions for dredging in the Bay ii. Bay Keepers encourage us to keep calling representatives and keep the pressure on iii. Fairhope Mayor, Daphne, and Spanish Fort has signed on to support b. Butterﬂy gardens i. Nancy wanted a butterﬂy house installment at the Nature Preserve. The City said it was not feasible. ii. She asked at the last meeting if FEAB members would put them at their houses. iii. There is a new butterﬂy garden at the Nature Preserve and it's going very well c. Storm drain art projects and competition coming up across storm drains d. Fly Creek look ñ i. ALDOT is presenting their plans to the community. It will be good for the environment, bad for traﬃc. 4. Wrap up a. Involvement & Education Opportunities i. Green Drinks is ending, again ii. ALDOT is having a presentation at the FYC at 5:30 on October 15th iii. Nov 4th - Best Practices for Erosion Control Workshop at the Auburn Research Center b. Future Agenda Items i. Future: New Parks and Recreation Chairman, Mike Baugh ii. Future: Greener By the Yard - Johanna; Troy, Extreme Turf iii. Future: Networking - Rhydonna Mosely, FEEF - Pelican’s Nest ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 4 p.m. NEXT MEETING: November 14, 2025: 3-4, Fairhope Public Library Upstairs Boardroom. Kathy Barnette to attend November meeting. FEAB CONTACT INFORMATION: Chairperson: Amy Paulson amy.paulson@yahoo.com (251) 654-7401 Board Members: Sarah Bogdanovich smbogdanovich@gmail.com (727) 421-7321 Carl Couret ccouretjr@yahoo.com (251) 518-6376 Jennifer Foutch Foutch.jennifer@gmail.com (618) 318-0354 Ben Frater ben.frater@gmail.com (404) 314-8815 Jim Horner none (251) 928-9722 Anna Miller anna@keenliving.pro (251) 279-0395 Steven Scyphers sscyphers@southalabama.edu (334) 701-8864 Nigel Temple 757nigel@gmail.com (757) 803-3589 Active Participants Sarah Chandler sarahchandler504@gmail.com (504) 239-6651 Lance Slater lanceslater@gmail.com (251) 599-5259 Jamie Crawford 7jamiecrawford7@gmail.com TBD Cynthia Rush crush300@gmail.com (251) 223-3880 Cassidy Redding credding@southalabamalandtrust.org (971) 724-8130 Jean Normand DrJNormand@aol.com (251) 278-4866 Nancy Harrison twicethroughdunloe@gmail.com (251) 923-9453 Carole Tebay cftebay@gmail.com (850) 466-6592 Gustavo Douaihi gdouaihi@gmail.com Gary Gover govers@bellsouth.net (251) 990-8662 CITY CONTACTS: Nicole Love, COF Grants Coordinator nicole.love@fairhopeal.gov Justin Hammers, COF Urban Forrester justin.hammers@fairhopeal.gov Christina LeJeune, COF Planning and Zoning Department christina.lejeune@fairhopeal.gov MEETING REFERENCES FEAB Vision: to serve as a trusted, scientific resource providing a local environmental perspective to policy decisions to ensure environmental matters are given full consideration in the City’s decision-making processes. We strive to positively affect the quality of life for all residents, their connection to our local ecosystems, and the resilience and sustainment of Fairhope as a small, yet world-class, city. FEAB Role: the FEAB is dedicated to increasing awareness of environmental issues, offering recommendations to City administrators, and providing state-of-the-science consultation in the implementation of sustainable solutions. MEETING READ-AHEADS Land Use Plan - Environmental Issues. See FEAB NOTES and 2024 FEAB LUP SUPPORT LETTER TO CITY. The following list identifies specific sections of the LUP that are relevant to the FEAB’s mission, speak to member professional expertise, or have been identified as Board priorities. We offer our utility to the City as you identify opportunities and track progress across the LUP and particularly for the following Tasks: Ongoing ● Task C-2: Preserve natural areas and wetlands for recreational use ● Task C-3: Enforce green space requirements within new developments ● Task C-6: Encourage pest control and landscaping companies to implement best practices when applying pesticide and fertilizer ● Task C-7: Promote living shorelines ● Task C-8: Preserve and maintain gullies for recreational areas ● Task C-11: Implement Low Impact Development through the use of green infrastructure ● Task C-12: Construct Low Impact Development pilot projects in public right-of way and green space ● Task G-1: Design more parks for passive recreation Year 1: ● Task C-9: Develop and/or update City codes to protect the environment ● Task C-10: Identify development incentives for environmentally-friendly project components Year 2-3 ● Task C-4: Develop and implement green space maintenance plans for areas that are not covered by existing maintenance agreements ● Task E-20: Develop a citywide Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Greenways Masterplan Year 3-5 ● Task G-2: Develop new parks in the eastern and southern portions of Fairhope