Commissioner Hammond directs staff to study smoke-free parks and a boat-slip transfer program from Conservation 2020 lands

Commissioner Hammond asked the board to direct staff to research two policies he said could affect county parks, beaches and public access to waterways. The board approved both directions with motions, seconds and no recorded objections.

On the first item Hammond asked staff to identify model ordinances used by other Florida counties that ban smoking on county-owned parks and beaches and to return with a recommendation. Multiple commissioners and two members of the public spoke during the discussion; one public commenter expressed concern about enforcement and personal liberties.

On the second item Hammond asked staff to inventory boat-slip credits attached to Conservation 2020 preserve parcels and to return with options for (1) retaining some slips for public access where appropriate, (2) surplusing slips for sale back to the private market, and (3) creating a transfer program that would deposit proceeds into a management fund for Conservation 2020 properties. Commissioners asked staff to include an assessment of sites along rivers where county boat ramps or access points might be built from Conservation 2020 parcels. The board directed the county manager and county attorney to investigate and report back; the motion passed with no recorded objection.

Hammond said the smoking-item request was motivated by litter at parks and beaches and cited neighboring counties and the City of Fort Myers as precedents that used a state-granted local option. On boat slips, he said some Conservation 2020 parcels hold far more credits than the county would likely use and that surplus credits could be returned to public use or fund preserve management.