Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Arbor Day Planning topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Palatka tree group meets without quorum to plan Arbor Day plantings and preserve Tree City USA status
Summary
A brief Palatka meeting convened to maintain Tree City USA recognition and plan Arbor Day activities with St. John's River State College; speakers agreed on live oak and bald cypress plantings, will confirm the date with college staff, and asked the public information officer to notify commissioners. No formal votes were taken.
The local tree committee in Palatka met briefly to maintain the city’s Tree City USA status and to coordinate this year’s Arbor Day events, but the group lacked a quorum and took no formal action.
Unidentified Speaker 1 said the meeting was being convened “to maintain our 3 city USA status with the city of Palatka” and referenced an "Arbor Day Foundation canopy report for 2025" summarizing public interest in neighborhood trees. Participants said they would partner with St. John's River State College for the main ceremony and that the college’s executive assistant, Susan Sutliff, and Amanda Temple are the contacts to confirm timing and logistics.
Speakers discussed possible dates: one participant said Florida Arbor Day is the 17th, another said the third Friday in January (Jan. 16), and a third referenced Jan. 26. Unidentified Speaker 1 said they would email Susan Sutliff to confirm the date and time.
On species and placement, Unidentified Speaker 2 proposed a live oak for the college planting and a bald cypress for a riverfront planting tied to the garden club. The group agreed to coordinate so the college ceremony would occur in the morning and the garden club planting later in the day. Logistics discussed included having Jeff Rawls or his crew prepare a roughly 24-inch hole and supplying compost; volunteers would water new trees by hand in the weeks after planting.
Speakers described past tree-care features: one recounted that heat stress had nearly toppled a young tree the previous summer but that new sprouts had since appeared and they expected healthy leaf-out in spring. Unidentified Speaker 1 asked that the public information officer be notified so commissioners could attend the event.
Because there was no quorum, no motions were seconded and the group did not take formal votes; an attempt to move to adjourn was not formalized. Participants said they would finalize date, time and roles with college staff and return with confirmed details.
Next steps: organizers will confirm the Arbor Day date and time with Susan Sutliff at St. John's River State College, notify the public information officer, and coordinate volunteers and Jeff Rawls for planting and hole preparation.
