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Conservation committee outlines CEP fund mechanics, potential projects
Summary
Conservation Advisory Committee chair Charlie Bond explained the CEP (Conservation and Education Program) mechanism: an estimated $5 per month per household fee collected through HOAs, the fund siloed for conservation projects, with the first invoices due Jan. 1 and projected annual revenue rising with build-out.
Charlie Bond, chair of the Conservation Advisory Committee, briefed the council on the committee’s role and the Conservation and Education Program (CEP). Bond said the CEP was established by resolution and ordinance to mitigate development impacts to open space, habitat and farmland. The program offers developers an option to mitigate impacts by paying into a centralized CEP fund rather than pursuing site-specific mitigation alternatives.
Bond described the funding mechanism: roughly $5 per month (about $60 per year) charged per household, invoiced through homeowners associations to create a siloed conservation fund that cannot be used for general fund purposes. He said the first HOA invoices are scheduled to go out Jan. 1; staff’s estimate was roughly $17,000 after the first year and about $235,000 per year at full build-out. Candidate uses include Charles Wood Park improvements, wetlands-banking approaches, invasive species control (noting yellow starthistle as regional concern) and small-parcel farm preservation programs.
Bond stressed the CAC’s technical expertise—natural resources, cultural resources and economic planning—and suggested the commission will partner with the conservation district and others to develop grant-ready projects. Council members asked timing and reporting questions; Bond said the CAC plans to meet quarterly and bring project recommendations to council on a regular cadence.
The council received the report and asked staff and the CAC to continue refining project timelines and budgets for council consideration during upcoming budget and capital-plan conversations.
