Minutes

Marion Soil and Water Conservation District (MSWCD)

Regular Board Meeting

2710 East Silver Springs Boulevard

Ocala, FL 34470

June 12, 2023
9:30 AM

PLEASE NOTE: Individuals wishing to address the Board will need to sign in. A three-minute time limit will be administered to each of these individuals. PLEASE MUTE ALL PHONES. This agenda acts as a guidance for the structure of the meeting. Thank you.

I. Call to Order
Vice-Chairman Vivi Serena called the meeting to order at 9:31 AM.

•  Roll Call

Vivi Serena, Vice-Chairman/Treasurer
Justin Albright, Supervisor
Lee Black, Supervisor
Richard McGinley, Supervisor

Absent
Brent London, Supervisor

Others in Attendance
Ann Bishop, MSWCD Staff
David Shults, Citizen (left at 11:09 AM)
Robert Jones, UF/IFAS Gadsden County (phone: 10:03 AM – 10:23 AM)
Tammy Hinkle, FDACS (phone: 10:23 AM – 11:03 AM)

•  Proof of Publication

Star-Banner – On December 17, an email was sent regarding this meeting; a reminder was sent on June 5.
Florida Administrative Weekly – It was posted in the FL Admin Weekly on December 30.
NRCS – On December 17, an email was sent regarding this meeting; a reminder was sent on June 5.
Marion County Board of County Commissioners – On December 17, an email was sent regarding this meeting; a reminder was sent on June 5.

II. CONSENT AGENDA
(A motion to approve the items on the consent agenda is to approve items if unanimous consent from last workshop meeting.)

i. MSWCD Board Minutes
ii. MSWCD Board Financial Report
PROPOSED MOTION: Richard McGinley moved that the MSWCD consent agenda be approved as presented. Justin Albright seconded; all were in favor.

III. Committee & District Officer Selection
PROPOSED MOTION: Richard McGinley nominated Vivi Serena for the position of Marion SWCD Chairman.
Justin Albright seconded; all were in favor.

PROPOSED MOTION: Justin Albright nominated Richard McGinley for the position of Marion SWCD Vice-Chairman. Lee Black seconded; all were in favor.

PROPOSED MOTION: Richard McGinley nominated Lee Black for the position of Marion SWCD Secretary.
Justin Albright seconded; all were in favor.

PROPOSED MOTION: Lee Black nominated Vivi Serena for the position of Marion SWCD Treasurer.
Richard McGinley seconded; all were in favor.

PROPOSED MOTION: Richard McGinley nominated Justin Albright for the position of Public Relations Representative. Lee Black seconded; all were in favor.

The Board all agreed that the collectively would run the contests, scholarship and awards ceremony instead of electing a Committee Chair to these.

IV. Meetings

• MSWCD

The Board agreed to keep the meetings at the same time and day.

•  NACD

The Summer NACD Meeting was discussed.

• IAAP

The IAAP Summit was discussed. Since the Board did not have a quorum at the last meeting, Vivi Serena approved for Ann Bishop to attend the IAAP Summit in Orlando: July 17-19.

•  SENACD

The SENACD Annual Meeting was discussed. Since the Board did not have a quorum at the last meeting, Vivi Serena approved for Ann Bishop to attend the SENACD meeting, August 6-8 in Savannah, GA, and for the District to cover the cost of the FCDEA State auction item, which FCDEA will reimburse, as both have done previously. Justin Albright will let the Board know if he will be able to go to this meeting.

• SECDEA

The SECDEA Annual Meeting was discussed. Since the Board did not have a quorum at the last meeting, Vivi Serena approved for Ann Bishop to attend the SECDEA Annual Meeting in November and that the Board will cover the cost of FCDEA items, which FDACS will reimburse, like both have done before.

•  AFCD/FCDEA

PROPOSED MOTION: Justin Albright moved that the MSWCD allow supervisors and staff to attend the AFCD and FCDEA meetings in September in Gainesville. Richard McGinley seconded; all were in favor.

The AFCD Meeting will be held at the UF Hilton Conference Center, 1714 SW 34th Street, Gainesville, FL 32607, on September 26-27. The FCDEA Meeting will be held September 25.

V. NRCS Report
Monica Jones is the acting District Conservationist since Oneisha Gary-Cyprian has moved. Ann Bishop stated that she also requested the District storage key back; Vivi Serena agreed that we need to get it back from NRCS.

VI. FDACS Report

•  Cost Share

The Board discussed the cost share program(s).

– No Till Drill (Update)
Richard McGinley mentioned what AGI stated about the no till drill. Ann Bishop mentioned what Brown and Brown quoted. Robert Jones (Robbi) of UF/IFAS, Gadsden County, was called at 10:03 am, explained his no till drill program, and answered questions. The Board collectively decided that it would not be advisable to pursue the no till drill.

Tammy Hinkle was called at 10:23 am. She mentioned that Angela Weeks-Samanie is no longer with FDACS and that James Fort is still the contract manager of the cost share. Tammy and Ann Bishop gave a recap of the cost share, what funds were spent, and what funding was left for this year.

• Tech Contract

– Hot Spot
Vivi Serena and Angela Weeks-Samanie of FDACS approved the purchase of a hot spot, and it will be reimbursed through FDACS. Ann Bishop was in discussion with Tammy Hinkle about this purchase. Tammy mentioned that we might need another pre-approval for this purchase since Angela is no longer with FDACS.

– Technicians
• Resignation
Jeffery Platt gave his resignation, and then, left a few days after he gave his notice.

• Hiring (Update)
Tammy Hinkle mentioned with the new transitions, FDACS might not hire the technician(s). She is waiting for approval to interview the candidates that we have. Also prior to Angela leaving, the pay and experience requirement were discussed. Tammy will try to find out about this as well.

Ann Bishop discussed with Tammy about collaborating on developing a training manual, as well as, coming up with new interview questions; Tammy agreed and stated that she will get with Ann. In addition, Ann Bishop also asked Tammy if MSWCD can have the tech for the first week or just a few days to train them on district protocols; Tammy agreed.

During the meeting at 10:19 am, Ann Bishop received a letter of resignation from Brent London.
David Shults gave the Board a brief autobiography and why he wants to serve on the Board.

PROPOSED MOTION: Richard McGinley appointed David Shults to Seat 3 on the MSWCD Board. Lee Black seconded; all were in favor.

VII. Staff Report & Recap

•  Outreach

– Project Learning Tree (Recap)
Ann Bishop gave a recap of Project Learning Tree (PLT) and how it ties into the new theme for next year’s NACD: “May the Forest Be with You”.

– Contests (Update)
Ann Bishop gave a recap of the contests and awards. The Board was reminded that they need to start planning for next year’s contests. The Board reviewed the thank you letters.

– Scholarship (Update)
Ann Bishop gave a recap on the scholarship.

– Library Events
The library events will focus on water conservation and will be held on July 11 and July 20. Ann Bishop is developing a program for these two events.

•  Miscellaneous

– Financials (Update)
Ann Bishop mentioned that the Marion County Budget needed to be revised since the Board added the additional position and this was discussed with Vivi Serena. The Board discussed the Budget and how they want to present it to the County Commissioners. The Board collectively decided that they would stay later on July 10 to discuss the Budget Workshop that will be held on July 13.

– Tent (Update)
Ann Bishop mentioned that she could not find tent that met the Board’s qualifications. Vivi Serena purchased a tent without a logo from Amazon and will sent Ann the information.

– OPPAGA (Update)
Ann Bishop gave a recap of the initial survey requested by the Office of Public Policy Analysis and Government Accountability (OPPAGA) and what they do.

– Public Request
Ann Bishop gave an overview of the public request.

– SJWMD Cost Share
The Board reviewed the information.

– NWF Voluntary Public Access Habitat Incentive Program
The Board reviewed the information.

VIII. Upcoming Events
– Sales Use Tax Due – June 15
– FCDEA Monthly Meeting – June 20
– Fourth of July – July 4 – Office Closed
– AFCD Quarterly Meeting – July 7
– MSWCD Monthly Meeting – July 10
– Library Event Freedom – July 11
– Budget Workshop – July 13
– NACD Summer Meeting – July 15-19
– FCDEA Monthly Meeting – July 18
– IAAP Summit Meeting – July 17-19
– Library Event Sankofa – July 20
– BMP Quarterly Meeting – August 2
– NACD SE Regional Meeting – August 6-8

IX. General Public Comments

X. Supervisor Comments

XI. Meeting Adjournment
– Our next meeting is July 10, 2023 at 9:30 AM in the Growth Services Building.

– With no other business needing addressed, Chairman Vivi Serena adjourned the meeting at 11:36 AM, until our next meeting.
MSWCD’s regular meetings are held at 9:30 AM on the 2nd Monday of each month, and their workshops are held the 4th Monday of each month at 9:30 AM, tentatively. Both meetings are located in Growth Services, located at 2710 E. Silver Springs, Ocala, FL 34470. For more information, call (352) 438-2475.