Waterways Advisory Committee

City of Marco Island Florida 51 Bald Eagle Drive Marco Island, Florida cityofmarcoisland.com Meeting Minutes - Final Thursday, May 18, 2023 9:00 AM Community Meeting Room Waterways Advisory Committee Chair: TBD Vice-Chair: Martin Winter Committee Members: Carlos Escarra, Daniel High, Stephen Inacker, Jim Snider, Steve Sokol, Eugene Wordehoff City Staff: Justin Martin, Tara Kosieracki Waterways Advisory Committee Meeting Minutes - Final May 18, 2023 (1) CALL TO ORDER Chair Crain called the meeting to order at 9:00 A.M. (2) ROLL CALL Present: 3- Member Escarra, Member Sokol and Vice-Chair Winter Absent: 1- Member Wordehoff (3) PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Led by Chair Crain. (4) APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA MOTION by Vice-Chair Winter, seconded by Member Thompson, that the Agenda be Approved. MOTION CARRIED BY THE FOLLOWING VOICE VOTE: Yes: 5- Member Escarra, Member Sokol, Thompson, Vice-Chair Winter and Crain (5) APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES ID 23-2897 Approval of the Minutes of April 20, 2023 MOTION by Member Thompson, seconded by Vice-Chair Winter, that the Minutes of April 20, 2023 be Approved. MOTION CARRIED BY THE FOLLOWING VOICE VOTE: Yes: 5- Member Escarra, Member Sokol, Thompson, Vice-Chair Winter and Crain (6) PUBLIC COMMENT No members of the public came forward to offer comment at this meeting. (7) OLD BUSINESS Member Escarra raised questions regarding the Island's fertilizer ordinance, and Member Thompson requested an update from Public Works Director Justin Martin on the status of the active swale re-grading projects on the Island as well as the City's expected delivery of the street sweeper equipment that is currently on order. (8) NEW BUSINESS Vice-Chair Winter raised several questions regarding the status of motorized and non-motorized launch activities at Caxambas Park, and several members of the Committee provided insight on the County's plans to re-open general public access and supporting facilities at that site. (a) WILDLIFE PROTECTION ON WATERWAYS Member Escarra provided a brief visual review of his proposed 'no motor zones' around the Island, with an intention to provide a more comprehensive presentation and review of this topic at a future meeting of the Committee. City of Marco Island Florida Page 1 Waterways Advisory Committee Meeting Minutes - Final May 18, 2023 (9) STAFF COMMUNICATIONS Public Works Director Justin Martin advised the Committee that the City of Marco Island received a third grant approval in the amount of $400,000 from the State of Florida to assist in the completion of the City's tidal flushing project under San Marco Road. Additionally, he reported that the City had issued a purchase order for an Island-wide, limited-scope hydrodynamic study that is expected to be completed by the end of September, 2023. Director Martin also provided a summary of the two sea turtle incidents that occurred in the vicinity of the Tigertail Lagoon / Sand Dollar Island Project on May 15th, and he addressed a number of questions from the Committee on the contractor's mitigation activities and its plans to complete the final stages of the project with additional restrictions and without continued overnight work. Vice-Chair Winter raised concern regarding a recently-reported boat collision with a poorly marked dredging pipe, and Director Martin outlined his understanding of the incident. Chair Crain complimented Director Martin's review of the RFIs (Requests for Information) that were recently shared with the Marco Island City Council. Director Martin took a few moments to subsequently summarize other direction that he received from the City Council at that meeting regarding a canal aeration pilot program, as well as the potential for septic-to-sewer conversions for Goodland and The Isles of Capri. He indicated that additional insight on these items will likely follow when the City Council undergoes its 2024 fiscal year Capital Budget review on June 19th. Prior to the conclusion of the meeting, Public Works Director Justin Martin also: 1) advised the Committee that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will be hosting a public meeting on Marco Island regarding the Corps' Coastal Resiliency Study during the week of June 19th (actual date and location to be determined); 2) communicated that Collier County's Emergency Berm Project in the South Beach area of Marco Island will begin on May 30th with access for off-island sand transport trucks near the Tampico condominium tower at Cape Marco, and; 3) shared his understanding of the barge-mounted and residential boat-dock-mounted water skimmer technologies that were discussed at a recent meeting of the Marco Island City Council (a) ISLANDWIDE HYDRAULIC STUDY / JACK & BORE FOR CULVERTS Public Works Director Justin Martin briefly touched upon the status of these topics during the Staff Communications portion of the agenda. (10) NEXT MEETING: CONFIRMATION & ATTENDANCE Given the expected absence of Chair Crain and Member Escarra, along with no likely new information for the Committee to act upon in June, Member Thompson advanced a Motion to cancel the Committee's regular June meeting. MOTION by Member Thompson, seconded by Member Escarra, that the Waterways Committee Meeting of June 15, 2023 be cancelled, with the next meeting of the Committee to be scheduled to convene on July 20, 2023, be Approved. MOTION CARRIED BY THE FOLLOWING VOICE VOTE: Yes: 5- Member Escarra, Member Sokol, Thompson, Vice-Chair Winter and Crain (11) PROPOSED AGENDA TOPICS FOR NEXT MEETING City of Marco Island Florida Page 2 Waterways Advisory Committee Meeting Minutes - Final May 18, 2023 The Committee requested that an update on the City Council's Budget Workshops be reviewed with the Committee at its July meeting, along with any update that Member Escarra can advance regarding his proposed 'no motorized traffic zones' to protect local wildlife around Marco Island. (12) OTHER COMMITTEE COMMUNICATIONS Chair Crain commented on the lingering effect of major storms on the measured water quality of the Island's canals, and Member Thompson shared his observations regarding the continuing debris issues that face the residents and boaters around Captiva and Sanibel Islands. (13) ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Committee, Chair Crain adjourned the meeting at 10:04 A.M. _________________________________________ Jim Kornas, Recording Specialist City of Marco Island Florida Page 3