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Melbourne Beach planners send Chapter 9A back to staff after intense debate on native-plant rules and tree replacement
Summary
The Planning & Zoning Board reviewed proposed revisions to Chapter 9A (landscaping/tree ordinance), debated whether native-plant requirements should be mandatory, discussed tree-replacement standards and enforcement fees, and voted to have staff return a consolidated clean draft with a proposed 30% native-plant compromise.
The Melbourne Beach Planning & Zoning Board spent the majority of its Dec. 2 meeting reviewing tracked changes to Chapter 9A, the town’s landscaping and tree-preservation ordinance, and voted to send a revised clean draft back to staff for further work.
Town Planner Corey O'Gorman and Interim Town Manager Lisa Fraser presented a version that incorporated suggestions from the Environmental Advisory Board, the planner and the town attorney. The planner asked members to go page-by-page and identify definitions, mitigation standards and enforcement language that needed clarification.
A central dispute was whether to require a percentage of native plants in new landscaping. A board member who surveyed recent new homes argued the community does not favor natives and recommended encouragement rather than a mandate; he said his review of about 214 front yards found that 80%…
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