Agenda 12/02/2008 Item #10E
Agenda Item No, 10E
December 2, 2008
Page 1 of 4
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Recommendation that the Board of Connty Commissioners provide the County Manager
or his designee with guidance on whether reimbursement to the Conservation Collier
Program from other County Departments for Panther Habitat Unit Mitigation Credits at
the Starnes property is appropriate, and if appropriate, guidance on the amount of the
reimbursement.
OBJECTIVE: To have the Board of County Commissioners (Board) provide the County
Manager or his designee with guidance on whether reimbursement to the Conservation Collier
Program from other County Departments for Panther Habitat Unit Mitigation Credits (PHUs) at
the Starnes property is appropriate, and if appropriate, guidance on the amount of the
reimbursement.
CONSIDERATIONS: At the June 26, 2007 Board meeting, the Board unanimously directed
County staff to seek the ability to receive mitigation credits from lands acquired through the
Conservation Collier program (Agenda Item lOA).
On December 17, 2007, Conservation Collier, on behalf of Collier County, and the Corkscrew
Regional Watershed Ecosystem Land and Water Trust (CREW) acquired the Starnes property for
$5,332,000, CREW contributed $300,000 toward the purchase of the property.
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Staff is presently working on the agreements required to create the Starnes PHU Conservation
Bank and will bring the proposed agreements to the Board for consideration after all other
agencies involved have signed the agreements. Because the Conservation Collier Land
Acquisition Advisory Committee's (CCLAAC's) recommendation was different than staffs
recommendation on this item, and because other County departments are anticipating the need
for the Starnes PHUs in December 2008, a Board decision regarding reimbursement ofPHU cost
is necessary prior to the Board's consideration of the agrecmcnts that create the Starnes PHU
Conservation Banle
The following items are required by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in
order for Collier County to use the PHUs at the Starnes property.
I. Initial removal and perpetual control of invasive, exotic vegetation on site (with the
exception of torpedo grass).
2. Creation of a Conservation Easement over the Starnes property,
3. Creation of a Habitat Management Plan - vision for the property in the future.
4. Creation of a Management Agreement with the South Florida Water Management
District for long-term management.
5. Creation of a Trust Fund expressly for management of the Starnes property in perpetuity.
6. Monitoring and Reporting - annual invasive pl.illt survey and periodic vegetation and
wildlife monitoring survey. Reports must include management and monitoring actions,
PHUs used, PHUs remaining, and status of trust fund.
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Agenda Item No, 10E
December 2, 2008
Page 2 of 4
As Conservation Collier staff works through securing PHUs for the Starnes property, we have
worked with the USFWS to determine the best method to distribute PHUs. In the model
proposed by Conservation Collier staff, Conservation Collier would "own" the PHUs and charge
a "per PHU" reimbursement to any County department requiring PHUs. At issue, is the amount
per "PHU" to be charged.
Conservation Collier funds and staff time have been and continue to be expended to complete the
requirements necessary to secure the Starnes' PHUs. Conservation Collier staff developed a
conceptual reimbursement schedule to include monies spent on Conservation Collier staff time,
monitoring costs, and 25% of land maintenance costs.
The following considerations support charging County Departments according to this
reimbursement schedule:
I. Conservation Collier monitoring costs typically include only photo point surveys and
plant inventories. The cost of vegetation and wildlife monitoring transects, exotic plant
mapping, and wildlife surveys ($613,500) are not typical expenditures under the
Conservation Collier program. These additional monitoring activities are only being
done on the Starnes property because they are a requirement of the USFWS if the County
is to use the Starnes property PHU s.
2. The staff time represented above does not include typical administrative duties under the
Conservation Collier program. This cost ($3,330.70) refers only to the Conservation
Collier staff time that has or will be devoted to writing agreements and reports that are
only necessary because they are a requirement of the USFWS if the County is to use the
Starnes PHUs.
3. Land maintenance costs within the Starnes property that Conservation Collier would
normally incur include exotic plant removal, prescribed burning and mowing. Currently,
approximately 25% of all Conservation Collier expended maintenance costs are defrayed
by grants. Because of its location, condition, and habitat for listed species, the
probability of receiving grants for at least 25% of land management activity costs on the
Starnes property would be high; however, the use of the property for panther mitigation
precludes the County from applying for any federal or state grants for these activities, It
would be reasonable then to make 25% of land managemcnt activity costs ($155,267)
reimbursable.
The total cost of monitoring, staff time, and 25% of land management activities for the Starnes
property in perpetuity is $772,098. The total number of PH Us available at the Starnes property
is 2,072.5. Therefore, the additional cost incurred to the Conservation Collier Program per PHU
is $372.54.
The majority 0 f panther mitigation credit is gained by acqumng a property within priority
panther habitat and preserving it. Because staffs proposed cost per PHU did not include land
acquisition cost reimbursement or reimbursement for restoration above and beyond what
Conservation Collier would normally do, the CCLAAC Lands Evaluation and Management
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Agenda Item No, 10E
December 2, 2008
Page 3 of 4
Subcommittee, on May 12, 2008, recommended bringing this issue before the full CCLAAC for
discussion and recommendation to the Board.
On June 9, 2008, CCLAAC carried a motion (5-1) to recommend to the Board that the
appropriate dollar amount per PHU be greater of either $1,500 per PHU (the current County
PHU contract price) or a PHU cost formula that takes into account the land acquisition costs of
the property - $2,992 per PHU.
FISCAL IMPACT: The fiscal impact to the County for utilizing the Starnes property PHUs is
$772,098. The fiscal impact to the County if the County were to purchase the same amount of
PHUs at the current contract price of $1,500 per PHU would be $3,108,750. The Starnes
property will save the County $2,336,652 off the total current contract cost of2,072.5 PHUs.
GROWTH MANAGEMENT IMPACT: There is no growth management impact associated
with this Executive Summary.
LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS: The County Attorney Office is of the opinion that the use of
property acquired by Conservation Collier for panther mitigation for County roads and facilities
is consistent with the goals, policies and objectives of the Collier County Implementation
Ordinance, provided that the sole objective for acquisition is not mitigation. The Board may
choose any of the three recommendations as they are all legally sufficient for Board action.
JAB
RECOMMENDATION: That the Board provides the County Manager or his designee with
guidance on which of the following reimbursement options to the Conservation Collier Program
from other County Departments for Panther Habitat Unit Mitigation Credits at the Starnes
property is appropriate:
Option 1: $O/PHU
Option 2: $372.54/PHU or $772,098 *
Option 3: CCLAAC recommendation - $2,992/PHU or $6,200,920 (cost of Conservation
Collier staff time, monitoring, and all land maintenance at the Starnes property + land
acquisition cost)
*Conservation Collier staff recommends Option 2.
PREPARED BY: Melissa Hennig, Principal Environmental Specialist, Facilities Management
Department
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Agenda Item No, 10E
December 2, 2008
Page 4 of 4
COLLIER COUNTY
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
Item Number:
Item Summary:
10E
Recommendation that the Board of County Commissioners provide the County Manager or
his designee with guidance on whether reimbursement to the Conservation Collier Program
from other County Departments for Panther Habitat Unit Mitigation Credits at the Starnes
property is appropriate, and jf appropriate, guidance on the amount of the reimbursement.
(Melissa Hennig, Principal Environmental Specialist.)
Meeting Date:
12/2/2008900:00 AM
Approved By
Skip Camp, C,F,M.
Facilities Management Director
Date
Administrative Services
Facilities Management
11/13/200810:43 AM
Approved By
Jennifer A. Belpedio
Assistant County Attorney
Date
County Attorney
County Attorney Office
11/13/2DOB 3:D1 PM
Approved By
Len Golden Price
Administrative Services Administrator
Date
Administrative Services
Administrative Services Admin.
11/18/20DB 3:12 PM
Approved By
OMS Coordinator
OMS Coordinator
Date
County Manager's Office
Office of Management & Budget
11/18/2008 4:04 PM
Approved By
Laura Davisson
Management & Budget Analyst
Date
County Manager's Office
Office of Management & Budget
11/20/20D8 8:31 AM
Approved By
Scott R. Teach
Assistant County Attorney
Date
County Attorney
County Attorney Office
11/20/200811:24 AM
Approved By
Leo E. Ochs, Jr.
Board of County
Commissioners
Deputy County Manager
Date
County Manager's Office
11/20/20085:56 PM
file://C:\AgendaTest\Export\117-December%202,%202008\1 O,%20COUNTY%20MANA... 11/25/2008