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Cabinet
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AGENDA
BOARD OF TRUSTEES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE & CONSUMER
SERVICES
JUNE 26, 2003 ********************************************************* Item 1
Minutes Submittal of the Minutes from the May 13, 2003 Cabinet
Meeting. (See Attachment 1, Pages 1-6) RECOMMEND
APPROVAL ********************************************************* Item 2
Jeffery G. Porter Aquaculture
Lease REQUEST: Consideration
of authorization to issue a ten-year sovereignty submerged land
aquaculture lease of approximately 1.0 acres, more or less, and the
overlying water column. COUNTY:
Wakulla
Application No. 65-AQ-998 APPLICANT: Jeffery G.
Porter LOCATION: The
requested parcel is located approximately 4.5 miles south of St. Mark's
Lighthouse in Apalachee Bay, Gulf of Mexico, within the local jurisdiction
of Wakulla County, at the following coordinates: 29o59.138'N / 84o09.128'W
(center point in latitude and longitude; decimal
minutes). CONSIDERATION: $41.90
annually, representing (1) an initial lease fee of $31.90, at a rate of
$31.90 per acre or fraction thereof, including the water column; and (2)
an annual surcharge of $10.00, representing $10.00 per acre or fraction
thereof, for deposit in the General Inspection Trust Fund pursuant to
section 597.010, F.S.
Commencing January 1, 2005, the lease fees shall be adjusted every
five years, based upon the five-year average change in the Consumer Price
Index.
STAFF REMARKS: The
applicant is requesting approval of a commercial aquaculture lease to
cultivate and harvest live rock within a parcel of sovereignty submerged
land in the Gulf of Mexico.
The requested parcel includes 1.0 acre of sovereignty-submerged
land in 17 to 18 feet of water.
The area covers a parcel about 200 feet by 200 feet containing
coarse sand and shell fragments overlying a lime rock
substrate. The proposed project involves the placement of approximately 1,000
to 2,000 pounds of quarried-limestone per year on the seafloor. Limestone will act as substrate to
attract larval marine organisms to colonize the rock and mimic natural
reef communities. Once a
desired growth stage has been achieved, the applicant will harvest the
rocks with attached marine life and sell them in the marine life aquarium
trade. The culture of
sedentary marine life, referred to as "live rock", has become an integral
part of the marine life aquarium trade, since federal and state
regulations were enacted to prohibit the harvest of natural live rock
communities. Section 253.68(2)(b), F.S., provides that "it shall be the policy
of the state to foster aquaculture development when the aquaculture
activity is consistent with state resource management goals, environmental
protection, proprietary interests, and the state aquaculture plan." Additionally, section 253.68,
F.S., provides that the Board of Trustees may lease submerged lands to
which it has title for the conduct of aquaculture activities and grant
exclusive use of the bottom and the water column for commercial
purposes.
Board of Trustees
Dept. of Agriculture & Consumer
Services
Agenda - June 26, 2003
Page Two ********************************************************* Item 2, cont. The application was noticed pursuant to section 253.70, F.S. No objections were filed for the
application.
A consideration of the status of any local government comprehensive
plan was not made for this item.
The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has determined
that the proposed action is not subject to the local government planning
process. (See Attachment 2, Pages 1-20) RECOMMEND
APPROVAL ********************************************************* Item 3
Larry E. Crosby Aquaculture
Lease REQUEST: Consideration
of authorization to renew Aquaculture Lease Number 55-AQ-338, containing
2.31 acres of sovereignty submerged lands for a ten-year
term. COUNTY: St.
Johns APPLICANT: Larry E.
Crosby LOCATION: Sections 2
and 35, Township 8 South, Range 30 East, in Matanzas River, near the town
of Crescent Beach, St. Johns County CONSIDERATION: A base
annual lease fee of $60.00, representing a base annual rental fee of
$20.00 per acre or fraction thereof; plus an annual surcharge of $30.00,
representing $10.00 per acre or fraction thereof, for deposit in the
General Inspection Trust Fund pursuant to section 597.010, F.S. Pursuant to subsection
597.010(5)(a), F.S., lease fees shall be adjusted on January 1, 2005, and
every five years thereafter, based upon the five-year average change in
the Consumer Price Index. STAFF REMARKS: On July 9, 1996, the Board of Trustees authorized
the issuance of Aquaculture Lease Number 55-AQ-338 to Mr. Larry
Crosby. Mr. Crosby provided a
sealed competitive bid for the lease of $50.00; representing a $20.00 per
acre rental fee and a $5.00 per acre surcharge. The actual lease included 2.31
acres, and the lease fees were adjusted according to the per-acre
bid. The initial request to
the Board of Trustees was amended, changing the lease term from ten years
to six years with the option to renew for a ten-year term after
appropriate comments and recommendations from St. Johns County and Board
of Trustees' approval.
Accordingly, Article 14 of the current lease agreement provides
that "this lease may be renewable (for a ten-year term), upon approval by
the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund, and upon
such terms and conditions as are acceptable to the parties hereto." This lease currently includes
portions of sovereignty submerged lands that were initially leased to Mr.
Feldhamer on October 10, 1989.
The original lease included four lease parcels that preempted five
acres; the current lease represents a consolidation of four parcels into
one parcel with a concomitant decrease in acreage. The original lease was terminated
on April 22, 1994, because the original lessee did not comply with
effective cultivation requirements.
Subsequently, the vacant lease was offered by competitive bid. Mr. Crosby was awarded the
bid, and the request to lease this parcel was taken before the Board of
Trustees for consideration.
The St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners filed
resolutions objecting to the issuance of the lease, opposing the lease on
the grounds that the lease would exclude the public from
common
Board of Trustees
Dept. of Agriculture & Consumer
Services
Agenda - June 26, 2003
Page Three ********************************************************* Item 3, cont. resources and that the aquacultural activity would restrict access,
adversely impact recreational fishing, and pose a navigational
hazard. Based on these
concerns, the Board of Trustees' approval included special conditions that
limited the term of the current lease (six years) and required appropriate
review of aquacultural activities before the current lease was
renewed. The St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners was informed of
the request for renewal on March 21, 2003. On April 22, 2003 the request for
renewal was considered by the St. Johns County Board of County
Commissioners, and it determined that the proposed activity did not
conflict with the public interest and therefore required no further action
on its part. The lessee has submitted a new lease business development plan for
the term of the lease that conforms to minimum cultivation requirements;
is in compliance with the terms and conditions of his current lease
agreement; and has no marine resource or public health violations related
to the performance of aquacultural
activities. A consideration of the status of any local government comprehensive
plans was not made for this item.
The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has determined
that the proposed action is not subject to the local government planning
process. (See Attachment 3, Pages 1-14) RECOMMEND
APPROVAL
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