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LRRC Minutes 05/19/2016 May 19,2016 MINUTES OF THE COLLIER COUNTY LOCAL RULE REVIEW COMMITTEE May 19, 2016 Naples, Florida LET IT BE REMEMBERED that the Collier County Local Rule Review Committee ("LRRC"), having conducted business herein, met on this date at 3:00 PM in REGULAR SESSION at the Collier County Growth Management Department Building, in Conference Room #609-610, 2800 N. Horseshoe Drive, Naples, Florida, with the following Members present: Chairman: James Kalvin Vice Chair: Marilyn Tempest Members: Nancy J. Anderson David C. Boesche Joshua Maxwell Nancy J. Richie Jeremy Sterk Conference Call: • Cliff Holland—voting member • Susan Snyder—voting member • Michael Crofton —voting member • Scott Calleson, Environmental Specialist, FWC (non-voting member) Non-Voting Members: Roger Jacobson, Harbor Master—City of Naples. Gary McAlpin, Manager— Coastal Zone Management ALSO PRESENT: Debbie Wight, Collier County Capital Projects Planning I. CALL TO ORDER: 1 May 19,2016 Chairman James Kalvin called the meeting to order at 3:00 PM and a quorum was established—seven voting members were physically present. Cliff Holland and Susan Snyder confirmed their attendance via conference call at 3:00 PM. Scott Calleson, Florida Fish U& Wildlife, also confirmed his attendance via conference call. Michael Crofton confirmed his attendance via conference call at 3:30 PM. During the discussion that ensued, several points were made; among them • The format of the minutes is "summary" and not verbatim. • Josh Maxwell was duly elected by the Committee as its Secretary and was authorized to draft the Report which will be sent to Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission. • Public comments would not be edited by members of the Committee—only the person who made the initial comment could clarify his/her remarks. • The Minority Report(s) were written by the member(s) submitting it and would not be changed by the Committee. The reports will be included with Final Report. • All public input, including comments, will be provided to the FWC. • If the Committee wished to revisit a previously voted upon issue, a member of the majority must move to introduce the issue for reconsideration. If the motion passed, the issue could be reviewed. • The meeting held on May 13th was a "Non-Working/Information Only"meeting because a quorum was not achieved and no issues could be voted on. II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES—APRIL 8, 22,AND 29,2016: • April 8th: Page 6(R)—the word "paining"was corrected to "planing" Page 7(R)—the word "national"was corrected to "natural" Nancy Richie moved to approve the minutes as amended. Jeremy Sterk offered a Second in support of the motion. The motion was unanimously approved. • April 22"d: Page 2(R)—Nancy Anderson's comments were revised as follows: Ms. Anderson submitted a three-page document entitled, "Notes from Nancy Anderson for April 22, 2016 meeting." • Reducing Boat Speed: At the April 8th meeting, she provided a review—"Slower boat speeds reduce risks to manatees"by Calleson and Frohlich. She referenced Page 302 of the review: "The third rationale used as a reason not to require slower boat speeds is that slower speeds cause more of a boat to be below the surface of the water and thus available to strike a manatee. The argument is essentially that requiring boats to be operated at or below Slow Speed(which requires planing-hull boats to be operated off-plane and completely settled in the water) increases the risk of collisions because manatees have to be deeper in the water to avoid the boat. 2 May 19,2016 Although the underlying premise of this argument is true for planing-hull boats (i.e., the draft of a planing-hull boat is less when it is operated on- plane), the difference in draft does not necessarily reduce the risk of collision. Any potential reductions in certain aspects of risk are also countered by the reduced reaction times and increased impact energy that come with higher speeds. Slower speeds unquestionably provide boat operators with more time to see manatees and take avoidance actions, and blunt force inquiries that do occur will be less severe and likely less lethal, when boats are traveling at slower speeds. " • April 22nd: o Page 3(R) (Nancy Anderson's comments)—the word "versus"was changed to "and" in the first sentence. o Page 4(R) (Nancy Anderson's first comment)—the word "partially"was inserted before the word "patchy" in the first sentence. The 3rd sentenced was changed as follows: The Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve Staff noted the seagrass has declined significantly in the area over the past ten years. o Page 4(R) (Chairman Kalvin's first comments): the word "vast"was changed to last" o Page 4(R) (Chairman Kalvin's second comments): changed as follows: "A technical correction—a petition has been filed to down-list but it has not yet been completed—it is still in the process." o Page 13(R)—"Linda Roth"was incorrectly identified as the Clam Bay user. (Speaker is unknown) o Page 14(R)—"Marcia Cravens"was incorrectly identified as the speaker (top of page). The corrected speaker was Linda Roth. o Page 14(R)—the spelling of the word conservation was corrected (see: Mary Johnson under Public Speaker). o Page 15(R) -the figures for the motion (bottom of page) were changed and the correct count was: "Motion carried, 6—"Yes" .... o Page 17(R) (Nancy Anderson's comments)—the spelling of"hydrology"was corrected; "Picayune Canal" was corrected to"Faka Union" Canal. Josh Maxwell moved to approve the minutes as amended. Nancy Richie offered a Second in support of the motion. The motion was unanimously approved. • April 29th: Page 4(R) (middle of the page)—the vote on the motion was correct as stated in the minutes. Discussion ensued; it was confirmed that eight members had attended the meeting. The vote was 7— "Yes"and two were opposed. Jeremy Sterk moved to approve the minutes as amended. David Boesche offered a Second in support of the motion. The motion was unanimously approved. 3 May 19,2016 Chairman Kalvin's letter to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission was revised. The third paragraph was changed as follows: "Minority opinions are provided for areas that were not unanimous. Significant public input on some of the areas discussed has been provided and is attached for your review." Cliff Holland moved to approve the amended language. Nancy Richie offered a Second in support of the motion. Motion carried unanimously. III. PUBLIC COMMENT: (1) Marcia Cravens stated she has submitted a public records request for the audio of the meetings and was surprised that they had not all been recorded. (2) Capt. Bill Walsh—a charter captain—stated he has fished the area for 22 years and is a local who is affected by the Committee's decision. He was surprised by the recommendation concerning the permits and was concerned about the absence of notice to specific stakeholders (permit holders) by Collier County. He noted the permits were introduced during the 1990s as a way to compensate those who were impacted by the extension of the "No Wake" Zones. Only 33 permits were issued. Not all permit holders are on the water at the same time. He stated to lose his afternoon trip (2nd charter) would cut his income by 50%. He further stated the guides have become the Stewards of the environment because they protect the manatees and educate the public. (3) Capt. Mark Ward—a charter captain since 1987—stated the guides are highly skilled and conscientious. The permits are critical to his and their livelihood. During the winter, there are times when he can't fish. He certainly will not be able to fish Johnson Bay if he must remain at Slow Speed. No one knows the water better than the guides and they know which areas to avoid. They impact Naples' economy. (4) Peter Dugan—a Clam Bay resident—has seen manatees in and out of Clam Pass. He stated they have been sighted even during the dredging and will provide documentation. (5) Linda Roth—a Clam Bay stakeholder—stated she was concerned about the Repot because only the Committee will determine what is contained in it and it was being compiled by only one member of the Committee. She stated the majority report was too long while the minority reports were too brief. (6) Marcia Cravens—requested that a draft of the final version of the report should be posed online prior to the vote in the interest of transparency and public information. She was concerned with the accuracy of the information in the report—especially with regard to Clam Bay. (7) Capt. Todd Geroy—has been a Naples captain since 1981 —stated he owns two shallow- draft skiffs. He agreed fishing guides are also advocates of the environment. He stated if the permits were eliminated, then access to certain fishing areas would also be eliminated which would severely cut into his business. He suggested the FWC should create a decal or some other item to easily identify Guide boats as working vessels and not pleasure boats. (8) Frank Donohue—has been a resident for 20 years—stated the guides are the safest boaters on the water and not having the permits would affect their livelihood. He stated 4 May 19,2016 Collier's original Plan served as a model for the State and he supported continuing the permit program. (9) Mary Johnson express concerned for the process ... she felt it was rushed and not fair. She stated a high density of manatees have been documented in Clam Bay. She also expressed concern about the majority opinion being written by just one person. Gary McAlpin reiterated Josh Maxwell had been elected as Secretary by the Committee and had the Committee's authorization to compile the Report to be submitted to the FWC. Josh Maxwell reviewed the various Appendices to be included in the Report: • Appendix A—LRRC-submitted Minority Reports: o Includes the eleven documents submitted to date by Susan Snyder, James Kalvin, and Nancy Anderson • Appendix B—LRRC Meeting Minutes • Appendix C—LRRC Member-submitted Supplemental Material o Includes all documents and information distributed by the LRRC members o The website will remain open o Josh will add website references up to May 19th • Appendix D—Community-submitted Letters, Documents, Comments o Josh noted 29 items had been submitted to date A motion was made, and a second in support was offered, to accept the Appendices as outlines by Josh Maxwell. The motion was passed unanimously. Scott Calleson was requested to explain the process once the FWC received the Final Report and documentation from the LRRC Committee. He reminded the members that the binder which had been distributed to the members contained a summary of the basic rule making process, i.e., • Step I: Identify the need to consider rule making • Step 2: Assimilate/Compile date and assess the need • Step 3: Notify the affected County government that a rule is being considered • Step 4: Publish a Notice of Rule Development ("NORD") • Step 5: Submit the Proposed Rule and supporting data to LRRC • Step 6: Review LRRC report and Prepare FWC-Staff response • Step 7: Authorization to publish a Notice of Proposed Rule • Step 8: Publish a Notice of Proposed Rule • Step 9: Accept Public Comments and Conduct one (or more) Public Hearings • Step 10: Review Public Comments and Prepare Final Staff Recommendations • Step 11: Authorization to Adopt Rule • Step 12: Public a Notice of Change • Step 13: File the Rule for Adoption w/Department of State PUBLIC COMMENT: • Linda Roth noted Josh Maxwell had not yet submitted a minority report for Clam Bay. 5 May 19,2016 IV. REVIEW OF REMAINING MAJORITY/MINORITY OPINIONS: Josh Maxwell noted N-1 through C-8 had been previously approved. Nancy Richie moved to approve as submitted. David Boesche offered a Second in support of the motion. Motion was unanimously approved. It was suggested to review the remaining areas and vote on each individually. C9—Johnson Bay North: Option #1 was approved by the majority. Josh will correct the word "intercostal"to "Intracoastal" as appropriate. Minority opinion from Susan Snyder and Nancy Anderson. Jeremy Sterk moved to approve and David Boesch offered a second in support of the motion. Motion was unanimously approved. C10—Johnson Bay Central: Option #1 was approved by majority vote. Minority opinion from Susan Snyder and Nancy Anderson. Nancy Richie moved to approve and David Boesch offered a second in support of the motion. Motion was unanimously approved. S1 —Marco River North: Option #1 was unanimously approved. Josh will correct the word "intercostal" to "Intracoastal" as appropriate. Nancy Richie moved to approve and Jeremy Sterk offered a second in support of the motion. Motion was unanimously approved. S2—Marco Interior: While the members unanimously supported Option #2, they modified it to as Option #3 to apply the Slow Speed/Minimum Wake to the marked channel within the Marco River. The remainder of the River and the interior canals were to remain Idle Speed/Minimum Wake. David Boesche moved to approve and Marilyn Tempest offered a second in support of the motion. Motion was unanimously approved. (It was noted: In Figure 4 (Zone S2),the reference to "Coconut Island"will be removed.) S3—Barfield Bay: Option#1 was unanimously approved. Jeremy Sterk moved to approve and Nancy Richie offered a second in support of the motion. Motion was unanimously approved. S4—Caxambas Bay: Option #1 was unanimously approved. Nancy Richie moved to approve and David Boesche offered a second in support of the motion. Motion was unanimously approved. S5 - Goodland: Option#1 was approved by majority vote. One member was opposed and one member abstained from voting. This area also included the canals on either side of State 6 May 19,2016 Road 92. The LRRC unanimously agreed with Option #1 —the area will remain Idle Speed/No Wake. Jeremy Sterk moved to approve and David Boesche offered a second in support of the motion. Motion was unanimously approved. Ti —Port of the Islands: Option #2 was unanimously approved but amended the language to exclude all boaters from the newly created manatee warm water refuge. Marilyn Tempest moved to approve and David Boesche offered a second in support of the motion. Motion was unanimously approved. T2- Barron River: Option #1 was approved by majority vote. The existing zone(Idle Speed/No Wake) would remain. The minority supported changing to Slow Speed/Minimum Wake. David Boesche moved to approve and Jeremy Sterk offered a second in support of the motion. Motion was unanimously approved. Additional 30/20 Zones in 10,000 Islands: The majority of the LRRC agreed the existing zones should be left in place as they provide some level of protection to the manatees while allowing boaters to access the vast network of creeks, rivers and bays. Since the majority of this area has no marked channels the speed limits defaults to 20 mph which provides much more protection that if the zone is removed. The minority felt that the area should be marked as 30 in channel and Slow Speed out of channel to restrict faster operations. Marilyn Tempest moved to approve the amended language and David Boesche offered a second in support of the motion. Motion carried, 8— "Yes"/2— "No." Susan Snyder and Nancy Anderson were opposed. Additional Area: Clam Bay System (Clam Pass,Outer-Inner-Upper Clam Bay,and Adjacent Areas): The majority felt this area should be added as a Manatee Speed Zone as it is a sensitive area utilized by manatees and has struggling seagrass beds that should be protected to provide a food source for manatees traveling the coast. Large portion of Clam Bay are very shallow and, at low tides, are too shallow for manatees to utilize. They are restricted to channels where there is a high risk for manatee/boat interaction and the entire area should be a shore-to-shore Idle Speed/No Wake Zone. The area was previously signed as Idle Speed/No Wake but the signage was removed. The minority felt the area should be a Slow Speed/Minimum Wake zone for boater safety. Jeremy Sterk moved to approve as written and Marilyn Tempest offered a second in support of the motion. Motion was unanimously approved. Additional Area: Wiggins Pass: The majority of the Committee felt the entire Pass to the four-way intersection of the Caloosahatchee River and the Intracoastal Waterway should be modified to Idle May 19,2016 Speed/No Wake. The area is restrictive and under constant change with moving shoals requiring boaters to be very cautious while under power. The minority felt the existing Slow Speed/Minimum Wake zone should remain in place as it provides boaters adequate speed to maintain a safe speed while traveling through the swift pass. Jeremy Sterk moved to approve as written and David Boesche offered a second in support of the motion. Motion was unanimously approved. V. GUIDE/COMMERCIAL PERMITS: Gary McAlpin suggested the Committee should reconsider its position. David Boesche, as a member of the majority during the previous vote, moved to re-open the matter for reconsideration by the Committee. There was no objection from the Committee. Member comments: • They were not aware of the far-reaching effects of the previous decision. • Since the guides were not asked to attend, there was no data to support the vote. • Surprised the guides were not included since boat speeds are an issue. • The group of 33 who have permits are respected, responsible captains. It was the wrong decision to remove permits from them. • The Committee was tasked to either establish or remove manatee zones and should not vote on the issue of permits because it is not a manatee issue. Discussion ensued. Dave Boesche agreed with a Captain's suggestion that the FWC should create a decal to identify the guide boats as working vessels—not pleasure boats. He stated most of the problems stemmed from rental boaters who were ignorant of the areas and who needed to be educated. Dave Boesche moved to approve recommending Option #1 to the FWC, i.e., take no action and leave the Guide permit program in place. Marilyn Tempest offered a Second in support of the motion. The motion was unanimously approved. (Marilyn Tempest left @ 5:10 PM.) PUBLIC COMMENTS: Marcia Cravens expressed concern regarding the procedures and stated additional meetings were needed to discuss and finalize the Final Report. She suggested the Committee should request an extension from the FWC. There being no further business for the good of the County, the meeting was adjourned by the order of the Chair at 5:40 P.M. 8 May 19,2016 LOCAL RULE REVIEW COMMITTEE JAMES KALVIN,CHAIRMAN The Minutes were approved by the Committee ChairNice Chair on , 2016, "as amended" [J. 9