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Land Management highlights in-house savings, asks for modest equipment and fee authority
Summary
Land Management told the FY2027 workshop it saved about $160,000 last year by completing survey and real-estate tasks in-house, highlighted new GIS tools that aided derelict vessel tracking and compliance, and requested a $55,000 survey truck, $5,000 for student support and a $200 administrative lease fee per county authority.
The Land Management Director told the St. Johns County FY2027 budget workshop the department’s 25 staff perform survey, real estate, GIS and property-management tasks that support nearly every county infrastructure project. The director said the team saved “approximately $160,000” in FY25 by handling survey-related projects internally rather than contracting them out.
The presentation emphasized GIS work the department has used to coordinate with city and state partners on derelict vessels and coastal‑violation tracking; staff said a new workflow with the environmental division drove “almost 50% increase in compliance.” The department requested modest capital and operating items: a survey truck (line‑item $55,000), $5,000 to supplement the county’s GIS student program, and a proposed $200 administrative fee the board may add to the county fee schedule to offset lease‑management costs.
The county’s budget staff explained Land Management sits in the Transportation Trust Fund and that a year‑to‑year decline shown in the department charts primarily reflects one‑time capital match funding for the Summer Haven project in FY26 rather than an ongoing cut. County officials and the director discussed how early transportation planning and a stronger GIS committee could reduce future acquisition costs by identifying right‑of‑way needs earlier.
No formal action was taken; the workshop is informational and will feed the recommended budget that goes to the board in July.
