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************************************************ Item 1 Minutes Submittal of the Minutes of the June 12, 2001 Cabinet Meetings. (See Attachment 1, Pages 1-2) RECOMMEND
APPROVAL Item 2 Forty-six (46) 1.5-Acre Aquaculture Leases/Alligator Harbor Aquaculture Use Area REQUEST: Consideration of authorization to issue forty-six 1.5-acre aquaculture leases within the Alligator Harbor Aquaculture Use Area to qualified applicants. COUNTY: Franklin APPLICANTS: Forty-six (46) individual lease applicants LOCATION: Sections 27, 34 and 35, Township 6 South, Range 2 West, in Alligator Harbor, Alligator Harbor Aquatic Preserve, near the town of St. Teresa Beach. CONSIDERATION: The lease fees for each of the 46 individual aquaculture leases within the Alligator Harbor Aquaculture Use Area will be $51.90, representing (1) a base annual rental fee of $15.95 per acre and fraction thereof; and (2) an annual surcharge of $20.00, representing $10.00 per acre and fraction thereof, for deposit in the General Inspection Trust Fund pursuant to section 597.010, Florida Statutes. 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: On February 27, 2001, the Board of Trustees authorized the use of approximately 100 acres of sovereign submerged lands for an aquaculture use area in Alligator Harbor, Franklin County. On March 29, 2001, the Board of Trustees approved the application process to select qualified applicants for individual lease parcels within the aquaculture use area. To encourage economic development in the region, the following criteria were incorporated into the application process: 1) applications were considered on a first-come, first-served basis, with Franklin County residents having first priority and Wakulla County residents having second priority; 2) preference was given to first-time leaseholders; and 3) the size of individual lease parcels was established at 1.5 acres. All
of the qualified applicants submitted complete aquaculture lease applications
in compliance with the approved application process. After the specified
application period, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
(DACS) reviewed the applications for completeness, evaluated business
plans, and requested a background check by the Florida Department
of Law Enforcement and the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
to ensure that applicants had no public health or marine resource
violations or felonies. Applicants verified their county of residence
by submitting a Florida Driver's License showing their current address,
their Voter Registration, their Homestead Exemption documents, or
a notarized affidavit and supporting documentation attesting that
they were renting or living in a residence. Staff requested confirmation
of these documents from the Franklin and Wakulla County Tax Appraiser's
Office, the Supervisor of Elections, and the Clerk of Court. Once
the application and background checks had been completed, applications
meeting all requirements were deemed complete. ************************************************ Item 2, cont. The terms and conditions for aquaculture leases in the Alligator Harbor Aquaculture Use Area will include: a ten-year lease term; assessment of an annual fee and surcharge; and a provision prohibiting the transfer or sale of the lease for three years. Upon approval from the Board of Trustees, the potential lessees must have their individual lease parcel surveyed and submit the survey and legal description to the Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) Bureau of Surveying and Mapping for approval. After DACS receives the approved survey and legal description of the lease parcel, the lease instrument will be executed. Lessees shall have their leases recorded with the county and with DEP's Division of State Lands and mark their leases according to their lease agreement. 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." A consideration of the status of any local government comprehensive plans was not made for this item. DACS has determined that the proposed action is not subject to the local government planning process. (See Attachment 2, Pages 1- 23) RECOMMEND APPROVAL TO ISSUE FORTY-SIX 1.5-ACRE AQUACULTURE LEASES WITHIN THE ALLIGATOR HARBOR AQUACULTURE USE AREA TO QUALIFIED APPLICANTS; SUBJECT TO APPLICABLE LAW AND RULE REQUIREMENTS, FINAL ACTION BY THE U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS, AND COMPLIANCE WITH THE LEASE AGREEMENTS Issue forty-six (46) individual aquaculture leases within the Alligator Harbor Aquaculture Use Area. ASSESSMENTS/COMMENTS 1. On June 18, 2001, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (DACS) received applications according to the specified application process. Staff stamped the date and time the application was received and assigned a file number to each application to verify the order in which applications were received. Completed applications were sorted into groups by county: there were 48 complete applications from applicants identifying themselves as residents of Franklin County. Since residents of Franklin County were given first priority, the first 46 qualified applicants, all residents of Franklin County, selected from the 46 available lease parcels. Upon approval from the Board, aquaculture leases will be issued to qualified applicants listed in Table 1 in the order that the applications were received to comply with the first-come, first-served provision. When all available leases have been granted, the remaining qualified applicants will be placed on a waiting list for leases that may become available in the future (Table 2). 2. The size of individual lease parcels was set at 1.5 acres. Since the number of qualified applicants exceeded the number of available leases, the number of leases was increased from 37 to 46 by reducing the size of individual lease parcels from 2.0 acres to 1.5 acres, thereby accommodating additional applicants (Figure 1). The size of the leases was determined after all applications, received during the prescribed time period, were evaluated. The lease parcels account for 68.85 acres, the easements between the leases account for 20.58 acres, and the vessel corridor accounts for about six acres of the overall aquaculture use area (Figure 2). 3. Staff, in cooperation with the University of Florida, conducted four public workshops to provide an overview of hard clam aquaculture in Florida, to inform prospective applicants about the application and review process, to assist applicants in completing the applications, and to allow qualified applicants to select individual lease parcels. 4. The Franklin County Board of County Commissioners was the initial applicant for the Alligator Harbor Aquaculture Use Zone and has supported the application and selection processes. No objections were received from the public during the public workshop to assign individual aquaculture leases. Staff did receive some complaints throughout the process concerning specific applicants that identified themselves as residents of Franklin County. All qualified applicants who have parcels assigned to them have demonstrated residency using at least one of the methods established for the selection process (Table 1). The qualified applicants, lease file numbers, and lease parcel numbers are listed below. Applicant's Name File Number Parcel Number
Dorothy Moneymaker Joyner 19-AQ-917 F-42 Applicant's Name File Number Parcel Number Wayland
Beckham 19-AQ-936 F-33 5. Leases shall not be transferred for three years after the lease is executed. Three years provides adequate time for a lessee to make a bona fide effort to meet their business plan and for DACS to determine if the lessee is complying with their lease agreement. Failure of the lessee to comply with the business plan during the initial three years of the lease term will result in the lease reverting back to the state. When the lessee makes a bona fide effort to meet the business plan during the first three years of the lease term, then the lease can be transferred, assumed or sold in whole or in part. Section 253.71(6), F.S., provides that leases granted under this act shall be assignable in whole or in part with the approval of the Board of Trustees. Under this section, a special lease condition can be included in the lease agreement providing that the Board of Trustees will not approve lease transfers or assignments during the first three years of the lease term. SPECIAL LEASE CONDITIONS 1. A provision shall be included in the lease agreement providing that the Board of Trustees will not approve lease transfers or assignments during the first three years of the lease term. 2. The business plan submitted for approval of the lease shall become part of the lease agreement. Reasonable compliance with the development plan and minimum production requirements is mandatory. For the purpose of stipulating an effective cultivation performance standard, required under section 253.71(4), F.S., the Lessee shall make a reasonable and bona fide effort to culture hard clams in compliance with the lease agreement and business plan.
The Legislature declares in section 253.68 (2) (a), F.S., that aquaculture shall be recognized as a practicable resource management alternative to produce marine aquaculture products, to protect and conserve natural resources, to reduce competition for natural stocks, and to augment and restore natural populations. Furthermore, and for the purposes of this section, the Legislature declared that aquaculture is in the public interest. Section 253.68 (b) adds 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. DACS' positive recommendation affirms that the proposed aquaculture project is consistent with these requirements. Section 258.42, F.S., provides that aquaculture is in the public interest and that aquaculture leases may be authorized in aquatic preserves. DACS encourages the cultivation of hard clams as a practicable method to protect shellfish resources, while providing a valuable seafood product. This form of resource management is considered to be in the public interest. |
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