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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-13-2026 Fairhope Enviornmental Advisory Board Meeting Minutes MEETING MINUTES ~ STANDARD MONTHLY MEETING MARCH 13, 2026 / 3-4 PM, FAIRHOPE PUBLIC LIBRARY ~ UPSTAIRS BOARD ROOM ATTENDEES COF Officials: Nicole Love, Michelle Melton FEAB Board Members: Ben Frater, Anna Keene, Carl Couret, Amy Paulson, Sarah Bogdanovich, Jennifer Foutch FEAB Members Absent: 2 Official Quorum Count: 6 FEAB Active Participants: Janine Normand, Nancy Harrison, Lance Slater, Gustavo Douaihi, Gary Gover Honored Guests Rachel Ball, Baykeeper; Susan Ledlow, Resident; Randy Harrison, Resident Minutes Author: Nicole Love Commencement: Amy called the meeting to order at 3:00 p.m. SUMMARY OF SALIENT DECISIONS, DISCUSSION, AND ACTIONS ● SWAMP subcommittee will meet April 10th at Anna T. Jeanes ● Greenspace team will meet April 10th at Giddeon Room (Ben to confirm) DETAILED MINUTES 1. Housekeeping a. RESOLUTION: February meeting minutes approved b. ACTION: Nicole will check with Jenny Wilson to see when Nigel will be approved for reinstatement. c. Will target late Fall for the annual meeting with City staff and Mayor – date TBD. 2. Bee City Discussion – Nancy Harrison a. Nancy did some research on becoming a Bee City and also on becoming a Monarch City. There are some overlapping requirements. b. Bee City did have more requirements than Monarch City and requires an annual fee ($300). i. Nicole mentioned if an initiative requires additional money and staff time then it may not be feasible. c. Discussed the possibility of doing both. d. Nancy will continue to research both programs and come back to the group with more details. 3. Priority Initiatives and Subcommittee Reports a. Greenspace & Native Habitat – Ben/Steven i. City is advancing with their initiative of creating an interactive webpage that will provide detailed information on existing City parks. FEAB will assist by providing data. i. Meeting with City staff and FEAB greenspace team scheduled for March 19th. ii. FEAB Greenspace team continue to work on quantifying and qualifying greenspaces. i. Nicole asked the Team to perhaps think about changing the name from “greenspace” to “nature spaces or natural spaces” to avoid any confusion with greenspace identified in the subdivision regulations. iii. FEAB greenspace team will meet April 10th. b. SWAMP – Sarah B. i. Current compost hub at Anna T. Jeanes needs to move just a little bit. i. Subcommittee will meet April 10th at Anna T. Jeanes to help move the compost hub. ii. Sarah is applying for a US Compost grant to add more examples of ways to compost to the compost hub c. Monarch/Bee City - Nancy i. d. FHS Future Farmers of America (FFA)/Update – unfortunately it appears this project will likely not go forward. 4. New Items a. Nicole mentioned the City will be submitting ACAMP grant to hire a consultant to assist with the development of the stand-alone LID ordinance and would like FEAB to be a partner in that effort. b. Nicole also mentioned that Baldwin County plans to host Daphne, Baldwin County and Fairhope Environmental Advisory groups together in late Summer for a meeting – more details to come. 5. Wrap up a. Next Month: Goodwyn, Mills, Caywood (GMC) - Magnolia Beach Shoreline Restoration project b. Involvement & Education Opportunities: (?) c. Future Agenda Items i. New Parks and Recreation Chairman, Mike Baugh ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 4:00 p.m. NEXT MEETING: May 13, 2026: 3-4, Fairhope Public Library Upstairs Boardroom. Subcommittees will meet in April 10th 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 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 (225) 772-0258 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 Michelle Melton, COF Planning and Zoning Department michelle.melton@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