Submitted by Suanne Z. Thamm
Reporter – News Analyst
December 6, 2018 5:34 p.m.
When is an emergency really an emergency?
The Fernandina Beach City Commission (FBCC) spent considerable time grappling with this question during their December 4, 2018 Regular Meeting following Commissioner Chip Ross’ motion to expand the agenda to include discussion and action on a resolution that would allow the city to engage the services of the North Florida Land Trust (NFLT) to negotiate for the purchase of approximately 7.5 acres of vacant land located on North 11thand 12thStreets. Under FBCC rules of procedure, an item can only be added with such short public notice if 4/5ths of the FBCC agree that the item needing action constitutes an emergency.
Following 45 minutes of often rancorous debate, commissioners not only agreed unanimously to add the item to the agenda, but also went on to pass the resolution on a 5-0 vote.
The resolution authorized the NFLT to acquire appraisals and conduct other due diligence in determining the suitability for purchase of the land for conservation and/or passive parkland. However, any contracts for purchase of the property, currently owned by the Episcopal Church, must ultimately be approved by the FBCC.
Nature of the Emergency
In requesting FBCC consideration of this item, Commissioner Ross acknowledged that while the need to act was not an emergency in the same vein as matters of public safety, there was an urgency to act quickly. He provided the FBCC with the back story that led up to his requesting prompt consideration of the proposed action.
Ross said that he learned on December 1 from a constituent that the land in question had been advertised for sale. Since the property had appeared on the list of properties that might be acquired for conservation purposes in the city, Ross investigated and determined that the Episcopal Church had recently placed the land on the market with a $350,000 asking price.
The property consists of 5.92 acres and is zoned R-2, meaning that 40-50 houses could be built on the property. Currently, the property is completely wooded and adjoins other properties that are also good candidates for conservation. Ross said that he had contacted the church about their intentions for the land in September, and that he had been under the impression that the church would contact him if they decided to sell it.
Ross said that he had contacted the listing agent stressing that he was not representing the city. He was told that a developer is already interested in the property, and that there is a smaller adjacent property also available. Because this matter has been widely shared on social media, Ross indicated that interest from other potential purchasers might emerge which could generate a bidding war for the property.
Ross reported that he had been in contact with Marc Hudson of the NFLT to see if that organization might help the city negotiate for and possibly purchase the property. The NFLT is a charitable non-profit with the mission of “preserving the natural areas, historic resources and working lands of North Florida.” The organization regularly negotiates and acquires real estate, having acquired or facilitated the acquisition of more than 18,000 acres of natural preserved land in North Florida. Ross further reported that the NFLT was interested in facilitating in this particular acquisition and would finance an amount equal to 50 percent of the current listing price for one or both of the properties.
“I fully agree that this is not an emergency,” Ross said. “But it is an urgency if we want not to lose an opportunity. I do not want to see it purchased by a developer and put into housing. If we follow the usual procedure [in adding the item to a commission meeting agenda], we will not be able to consider it until our January 4thmeeting. I fear that by then the land may be under contract with another purchaser. I would urge my fellow commissioners not to squander this opportunity. We are all committed, I think, to preserving our island and I think this is an opportunity where we can make a difference.”
Vice Mayor Len Kreger agreed with Ross and seconded his motion to add the item to the agenda. He said the action presented an opportunity for the city to “get ahead of the power curve.”
Commissioner Phil Chapman said that although he would love to see the city acquire this parcel of land, he had issues with the process. He said that commissioners had just been handed the proposed resolution with no time to study it. He had questions regarding funding guarantees and prior contact with the church. “If I were to approach the church,” Chapman said, “one of the questions I would have for them is ‘What would Jesus do?’” With the information in front of him, he expressed concern that the church was more concerned about dollars than people. “I would like to see us acquire this property,” Chapman said, “but I’m having a hard time with the rush with which it is being done. Where is the city’s part of the purchase price going to come from?”
In response to a question from Chapman, City Manager Dale Martin said that if the FBCC decided not to consider it as an emergency item at the current meeting, he would have it added to the agenda of the December 18 meeting.
Commissioner Roy Smith agreed with Chapman. He expressed problems with what he saw as last minute additions to the agenda in addition to many unresolved questions as to how the city proposed to pay for acquiring conservation lands. “Since my time on the Commission, I’ve seen more and more things, especially this past year, just pushed through that shouldn’t have been. We’re going to keep doing that and eventually it is going to bite the city. There’s all kinds of stuff that gets pushed through and that’s when we make mistakes.”
Smith questioned how much development could actually occur on the land in question, given its topography. He said the land was in the flood plain and looked as though it could have wetlands on it. It had also been rumored to have been used as a dumpsite in years past. “We’ve got to have a much better idea of what the price will be, because we could get into a bidding war on this land,” Smith said. “Right now you are talking $65,000 per acre for undeveloped land.”
Ross said that he appreciated the concerns that Chapman and Smith raised, but he reminded everyone that the resolution was not a commitment to purchase the land. Rather it was a motion to add the item to the agenda so that the city could get the NFLT to negotiate on its behalf. Once the item is placed on the agenda, commissioners can decide who will negotiate on their behalf, if not NFLT. “All we are committing to is having someone negotiate for us so somebody else doesn’t get in first and we lose the land.” Ross said that he had spent a long time working with the church to try to avoid this situation, but for some reason that did not work out.
“My biggest frustration with this job [as commissioner],” Ross vented, “is the total, total, total lack of urgency in government. Government just sort of drifts on and on and on. This is an opportunity to show the people that we can do something. But what we do is we put it off, kick the can down the road, two weeks … I’m sorry. You’ve hit a sore point. I’m through.”
Kreger backed Ross’ arguments. He suggested that this could be a prod to other groups in the community to get involved with purchasing lands for conservation.
Commissioner Smith said, “Commissioner Ross has to learn that government works slower than people would like, but that’s the way it is. … We’re dealing with people’s money here, taxpayers’ money. If we move fast on stuff we are going to mess up. The other thing I would say is I don’t want you involved in any of the negotiations. I don’t want you even there. Because that may be why the church pulled back because of the way you came onto them. Because you’ve done that before.”
Chapman lamented the city’s failure to move forward on conservation land purchases but still questioned the wisdom of “just jumping into it.” He said he would have preferred if someone had gone to the church over the weekend to try to determine what was going on. “We’re trying to vote on a lack of information,” he said. “If anyone has spoken with church leaders, please tell me, because that could influence how I vote.”
Ross said that he had spoken to church leaders that day, who had indicated that they were interested in conservation, but they requested that the city provide a negotiator. “This isn’t a done deal,” Ross stressed. “All we’re asking is that [an authorized party] be able to talk with the church sooner rather than later. We are not spending a single nickel on that.”
Ross then turned to Smith. “I take great umbrage at your remarks, Commissioner Smith. But the population has voted and settled that issue. I shouldn’t have said that. But I encourage you, Commissioner Chapman, to at least consider bringing this forward so I can give you more information and we can decide if we want someone to negotiate for us.”
Smith came back at Ross. “That was a very poor statement you just made, Commissioner Ross. A spanked dog will bark. You’ve been like this the past year. You try to run the whole commission. There are five of us up here, and you don’t seem to understand that. You go out and get involved in things that technically you shouldn’t be involved in. Take the criticism well because it’s due.”
Mayor John Miller weighed in last, agreeing with the urgency to move ahead now. He addressed Chapman saying that it was too late to talk about what should or could have been done earlier. “If we [add this to the agenda] tonight, I don’t see anything bad happening. If we don’t act, the worst case is seeing a sold sign go up on the property. Because we have now made a public issue that this land is available for purchase.” Miller said that this is the only parcel of this size available in the city for possible addition to conservation lands. He agreed that the land was developable but surrounded by other wetland parcels.
After 23 minutes of discussion, Mayor Miller called for the vote. Despite what appeared to be misgivings of both Smith and Chapman, the motion passed unanimously.
Consideration of the emergency resolution itself
Trudy Richards, a member of the Amelia Tree Conservancy and the Vestry Committee of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, addressed the Commission. She said, “I don’t know a lot about this land, but I’ll tell you what I do know. At one time [the church] talked about using this land for affordable housing. But there are wetlands on the land and it has been used as a dump, with permission. My understanding is that it would need to be remediated before it could be conserved.”
“Jesus does care, Commissioner Chapman,” Richards said, “but the church is a non-profit organization that squeaks by every year. We never have a surplus. We spend every penny we raise, all for the good of the community. That’s what Jesus would do.”
She said the land had been gifted to the church years ago and has been put on the market where it has already attracted expressions of interest. “We have a fiduciary responsibility to our membership to be thoughtful and practical with our assets.” Richards said that the priest would prefer for the land to be conserved and that he even thought the listed price “might be a little high.”
She concluded by saying that development is rampant in the city and this might be the city’s opportunity to slow it down.
City Attorney Tammi Bach read the proposed resolution and thanked Marc Hudson of the NFLT for help in its drafting.
Theresa Prince, an attorney with the firm Tomasetti & Prince, also addressed the commission. She explained that she represents a trust that is very interested in investing in the North Florida Land Trust, donating to it, and designating where funds should be spend. She said that she would work with her client and the NFLT, should the FBCC pass the resolution, to see if there was interest in contributing to this purchase.
Marc Hudson also addressed the FBCC to explain the process that the NFLT uses to acquire lands for conservation. He explained that there are state standards for land acquisitions, and that one of them is appraisal. “If we are chosen to represent the city,” Hudson said, “the first thing we would do is sit down with the landowner to make sure there are terms that would be workable for the city. Afterwards, we would hire an appraiser who would come up with a figure that we would bring back to the city. We try to avoid bidding wars, but everything we do is based on a sound analysis of the value of the property. We would also order up title insurance and possibly a Phase 1 environmental analysis. If we are chosen as the city’s agent, we would probably start tomorrow. We are not a rogue agent and would work closely with the city.”
All aspects of due diligence are not subject to public records laws during negotiations.
Commissioner Ross presented slides showing the parcels of land in question. He explained the ownership and interrelatedness of neighboring parcels and owners, suggesting that other owners might follow suit and dedicate their lands to conservation. He also presented a floodplain map that showed that most of the land under current consideration does not contain wetlands. He also presented a chart that showed that acquisition of this land would be helpful to the city’s flood insurance rating.
Vice Mayor Kreger said, “This is almost a no-brainer if you really think about it. It becomes more of a no brainer with potential financial help from NFLT and Theresa Prince’s client. I recommend approval of this resolution.” Ross seconded his motion.
After a brief, sharp exchange between Smith and Miller over the history of property at 14thand Lime, Miller called for the vote. Every commissioner voted in favor.
Editor’s Note: Suanne Z. Thamm is a native of Chautauqua County, NY, who moved to Fernandina Beach from Alexandria,VA, in 1994. As a long time city resident and city watcher, she provides interesting insight into the many issues that impact our city. We are grateful for Suanne’s many contributions to the Fernandina Observer.
The city really has no business buying property for conservation. Take care of the marina, city streets, storm drainage.
A nice effort to maintain the natural beauty of our coastal barrier island, expand the Tree Conservation program and preserve our wildlife sanctuaries. And if this property can include a walking/jogging trail that connects with our existing Egans Creek trails, it will be a nice addition to that program.
Funding from the NFLT and another Trust, will over 50% match the acquisition. Sounds like a Win/Win with a unanimous vote to proceed. Hope we can pull it off.
Good for the city–thank you Commissioner Ross for bringing this issue to the forefront. We need to conserve land; the rate of development is astounding. Hopefully, we can conserve some of the few parcels that are left before we are completely paved over.
Thank you commissioners Ross and Kreiger for standing up for us. This piece of land/wetlands has an amazing variety of wildlife, and should be preserved before the developers strip it, fill it, and pave our paradise. It also serves an important role in city storm water runoff. Everyone should email and phone all of our city commissioners to show support for the preservation of this land.
In gratitude to the Commissioners for this 5-0 vote FOR conservation and preservation of our precious environment. Thanks also to the NFLT and St. Peter’s Church for their participation in this issue.
A great outcome! ATC greatly appreciates the conservation efforts of our commissioners and the willingness of NFLT to bring their expertise to the table. That will provide momentum for our efforts to raise funds in support of land conservation.
Land acquisition for recreation and conservation is nothing new for the City. It is encouraged by State law, recommended by NOAA and mandated in our Comprehensive Plan. This land will help moderate island temperatures, manage stormwater runoff, clean the air and water of pollutants and provide protection from storm winds. This is all critical to ensure quality of life and a stable economy in the future of this island. Our Commissioners have been elected to do their best to construct a sound future for the City, and the Staff have been hired for this purpose as well. Yes, it is the business of the Commissioners and City Staff to buy property for the good of the community.
Thank you, Commissioners, for taking these positive steps toward land conservation. There is a sense of urgency to react to opportunities when they arise for conservation given the ever increasing rate of development in our city and on Amelia Island. Thank you, Commissioner Ross, for championing this cause and for standing up to those who continually want to delay efforts to increase land conservation.
Spending other people’s money is so easy….
agreed
If you take a moment to step back and research this parcel you will learn that it is prime property in a neighborhood that demographically and marketwise would support a “workforce housing” development.
At this price it is a “no brainer” of a deal. Perhaps the city should consider encouraging a developer (through expedited permitting, impact fee rebates tied to “workforce housing” concept. etc) to purchase for the development of “workforce housing” since its zoned R-2 and has a FLU of Medium Density, has no lowlands, is a flood zone X, and no potential wetlands.
I know preservation and conservation are at the forefront right now but lets not forget there has been a push for “affordable housing” as well that Commissioner Ross made central to his election campaign, even going so far as promising “rent control” and “price controls” at a forum.