Mortgage Broker in Malabar, FL

"The Indian River Lagoon, America's most diverse and beautiful estuary, is vital to our economy and environment, yet its future is uncertain. Preserving and protecting the lagoon is beneficial to ours and future generations." - Richard Baker, president of Pelican Island Audubon Society

Located in Brevard and Indian River counties, Indian River-Malabar to Vero Beach Aquatic Preserve encompasses 28 miles, totaling 29,000 acres of the lagoon. The aquatic preserve begins just north of Turkey Creek at Castaway Point in Palm Bay, extends south to northern Vero Beach corporate limit and includes waters of Turkey Creek and St. Sebastian River, which are the main tributaries of the aquatic preserve.

The tidal influence of the Sebastian Inlet and wind-driven currents provide flushing of the aquatic preserve and regulate its salinity. Palm Bay, Malabar, Sebastian, Vero Beach, Orchid and Indian River Shores are incorporated cities that lie along the aquatic preserve boundary. Unincorporated cities include Floridana Beach, Melbourne Shores, Grant, Micco, Wabasso, Roseland and Gifford.

The aquatic preserve is accessible from the east by U.S. Highway A1A and from the west by U.S. Highway 1. Numerous parks and boat ramps provide direct public access to the aquatic preserve.

The Indian River Lagoon Aquatic Preserves are a proud partner of the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics and were selected as a 2017 and 2018 Leave No Trace Hot Spot. To learn more about Leave No Trace in the Indian River Lagoon, contact Kaitlyn Britton, 772-429-2995.

The Indian River Lagoon Aquatic Preserves provide a variety of volunteer opportunities from projects in ecosystem science, restoration and spoil island activities. Volunteers help with activities such as wildlife monitoring, annual seagrass monitoring or microplastic sampling. The Shoreline Restoration Project enables volunteers to get involved in shoreline stabilization through native plantings. On spoil islands, volunteers take a hand in improving visitor access through activities such as invasive plant removal or installing picnic tables, fire rings or human waste bag dispensers.

Counties:

Brevard

Indian River

Location:

Managed Location Contact:

Matthew Anderson

Email:

Matthew.R.Anderson@FloridaDEP.gov

Phone:

772-429-2995

Publication References:

Indian River Lagoon Aquatic Preserves System Management Plan

Total Acreage:

29000.00

Managed-Regulated:

Managed

Receives State Funding:

Yes

State Owned:

Yes

Public Access:

The aquatic preserve is a popular destination for boating, fishing, kayaking and appreciating nature. Sebastian Inlet State Park, which borders the aquatic preserve, has boat launches and a non-motorized boat launch for kayaks, canoes and sailboats. It's also a popular destination for swimming and sunbathing. Manatees can be seen congregating in St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park from November to March in the C54 Canal.

The spoil islands of the aquatic preserve are popular destinations for picnicking and camping.

Archaeological Resources:

The Florida Department of State's Division of Historical Resources' Master Site File indicates there are scores of historical sites adjacent to the Indian River Lagoon Aquatic Preserves System.

Archaeological sites date from 10,000 B.C. to 1700 A.D. and include Spanish Fleet Survivors and Salvors Camp, Jungle Trail and Mount Elizabeth.

Historical sites include architectural, military, social, transportation, commerce and conservation sites. Many of the aboriginal shell mounds along the Indian River Lagoon Aquatic Preserves System were destroyed for roadfill for U.S. highways 1 and A1A, and other highways and train beds.

A Brevard County judge ordered Brevard County and Malabar Town officials to meet to try to resolve their disagreement over how many trees need to be chopped down in a sanctuary for threatened Florida scrub jays.

The resolution attempt must be made before a trial on the matter — and the public gets to weigh in, as well, according to Judge George T. Palk's March 6 order.

The conflict is over removal of several thousand trees on the 577-acre Malabar Scrub Sanctuary. The county says the trees need to come down to save the scrub jays. The town says the county wants to cut too many and it would ruin the shaded oak hammock trail beloved by hikers and bicyclists.

What happens next?

Per the judge's ruling, county and town officials will hold a public special joint meeting at 10 a.m. Monday, May 1, at First Baptist Church of Malabar. The goal: resolve their dispute over how many oaks and other trees must go to clear the way for healthier habitat for the jay and other threatened species that prefer open sandy spaces.

Can you go?

Yes. The agenda says the public can comment: three minutes per speaker, with each speaker getting one chance to speak. To speak, you must fill out a speaker card.

How did it come to this?

The conflict stems from land designated as habitat for scrub jays — birds on the verge of extinction. And while Malabar Scrub Sanctuary is in Malabar, it is managed by the county's Environmentally Endangered Lands Program (EEL) as part of a lease agreement with the state.

Biologists and the county say the habitat at the sanctuary has become overgrown, so thousands of trees must go.

Did Brevard have a permit to remove the trees?

Yes, then no. Malabar had issued a permit to the county in May 2021. But the permit expired before the county could begin work. Then when Malabar realized the extent of the planned clearing, town officials denied the county's request to extend the clearing permit and threatened to charge $40 for each tree removed, under a new town code that had taken effect since the county's previous permit had expired.

Then what happened?

Given the impasse, county commissioners requested staff discontinue public meetings with the town on the matter, rescinded transferring the scrub lease to the town, installed barriers blocking people from entering the site and requested input from the state regarding future action.

How did a lawsuit come about?

Malabar Town Council approved an April 4 ordinance to enter into a formal intergovernmental conflict resolution process with the county, a precursor to a lawsuit if the two sides failed to agree on what trees to remove.

Under state law, court proceedings on lawsuits between local governments are abated, by court order, until all state procedural options have been exhausted.

But before the town's April resolution, county commissioners already had made their own resolution to bypass that procedure, saying the tree removals are critical to save the scrub jay.

In April 2022, Brevard County filed a lawsuit against Malabar, asking the court to declare the town’s new regulations "void, invalid, or unenforceable" and prohibiting their enforcement against the County.

But according to state law, as the town had argued and the judge ultimately agreed, the two sides must first go through a conflict resolution process before a lawsuit can ensue.

Why is the town fighting for the trees?

Many hikers and bikers say that the commissioners aren't acknowledging their love of the shaded oak hammock trails and what they add to the sanctuary. Weddings have been performed there, and for many its a favorite for daily walks.

How does cutting down trees help scrub jays?

Biologists and county officials say removing trees will recreate the scrub jay's open, sandy scrub habitat. Hawks and other birds of prey occupy the current trees and are natural predators to the scrub jays. The argument is that thinning the trees will reduce the number of predators.

Which commissioner is driving the county's stance?

Commissioner John Tobia, whose district includes Malabar, pushed for the county to put barricades at the sanctuary to prevent entrance, after the town refused to extend the county's tree clearing permit.

Why didn't Malabar extend the county's permit?

Malabar Town Manager Matthew Stinnett has said the town could not give an extension of the county's existing permit, but was directed by town council to begin negotiating the conditions of a new permit to allow work on the site. That placed commissioners at an impasse because of advice from counsel against applying for a new permit because it could affect future action.

Where can you read the court documents?

Go to http://brevardclerk.us/case-search. Click on General Public Court Records Search, then search for case number: 05-2022-CA-022983.

What?

Special Joint Meeting between Brevard County Commission and Town of Malabar to discuss removing thousands of trees from Malabar Scrub Sanctuary

When: 10 a.m. Monday, May 1, at First Baptist Church of Malabar, 1665 Malabar Rd., Malabar.

Contact Waymer at 321-261-5903 or jwaymer@floridatoday.com. Or find him on Twitter: @JWayEnviro or on Facebook: www.facebook.com/jim.waymer

Jim Waymer

Malabar tried to stand up against Brevard County, which plans to saw down untold thousands of trees to make way for more threatened Florida scrub jays, gopher tortoises and other endangered wildlife that voters decided twice to protect. In the end, the town of just over 3,000 residents failed.

On Tuesday, Brevard County Commissioners decided to block off the Malabar Scrub Sanctuary's entrances until the town renews an expired permit for the county to remove the trees that block sunlight and hide raptors that feed on the threatened jays. The commission also decided to bill the town the cost of installing and removing those barriers.

Brevard also will look into the legalities of whether a clearing permit from the town is even required given that the sanctuary is on state conservation land. Brevard wants the sanctuary's tall pines and oaks thinned out by March, when scrub jays begin scouring the land for twigs and palmetto fibers to build their nests in smaller trees and shrubs.

"If this permit is extended, all this goes away," County Commissioner John Tobia said Tuesday. "I'm sorry it had to get this far."

Malabar residents have raised concerns about the county cutting down too many trees, especially the removing of some 100 oaks that provide a shady canopy along a stretch off trail that's popular among hikers, mountain bikers and joggers.

County officials estimate they'll have to remove 10,000 to 20,000 trees to bring the 577-acre sanctuary to the desired one or two acres per tree. Those who've walked, peddled and marveled along the canopied trails for years just don't get why so many trees have to go.

The town's greenways committee proposed a compromise plan that claimed fewer trees. But county officials said a scrub jay scientist and a review by Brevard's Environmentally Endangered Lands Program (EEL) science committee of that plan last Friday determined it was not compatible with the restoration needs of the site.

The sanctuary's forest thickened and cluttered up the open spaces scrub jays evolved to live in, due to decades of fire suppression to protect homes. Now the shady oak hammock that provides joy to hikers also provides good hideout perches for hawks to pick off jays at will.

Several local conservationists have spoken in favor of EEL's tree removal plan during Tuesday's meeting and at a commission meeting earlier this month. But some in the town counter that it all just seems too much, too fast.

"We learned about this when the signs went up," said Murray Hann, one of the roughly 400 members of the Brevard Mountain Bikers Association, which has been trying to get the county to scale back the tree cutting.

Malabar Town Manager Matt Stinnett said the town had issued a permit to the county, which had begun the land clearing project in early December. But when visitors saw a sign about the project posted at the sanctuary and brought concerns to the town's attention, town officials then noticed the county's permit had expired. And in the interim, the city's code had changed, now requiring a $40 per tree permit fee but not addressing conservation lands.

On Monday, Malabar Town Council directed Stinnett to work with the county "to negotiate modified permitting requirements that would be amenable to both the town and the county," and try to negotiate with the county on what trees might be able to be spared.

"I think we have an opportunity here if we can just hit the reset button," Stinnett told county commissioners Tuesday.

He said the town and county are close on the plan but Malabar just wants to prevent cutting trees without purpose. "We just wanted involvement," Stinnett added, "and I think we've had that , and I think we're very close to the same page."

Read more: Bicyclists, hikers and residents spar with Brevard over Malabar Scrub trees

But county officials say the EEL property tax referendums were approved by voters in 1990 and again in 2004 primarily to protect Florida scrub jays and other threatened species that require open scrub habitat, not for recreation.

EEL acquired Malabar Scrub Sanctuary in the 1990s — with the help of the state — to preserve scrub jays and other threatened species, with recreation the secondary reason, county officials emphasized. Five scrub jay families live on the sanctuary, or about 25 birds, county officials say. But many more would live there if the thick, tall trees were removed to restore the open sandy habitats the jays prefer. It's worked elsewhere, EEL officials say.

"There are (scrub) jays starting to show up in parts of Fox Lake where they did not exist prior to the restoration," Mike Knight, EEL's program manager, wrote in an email. "The best example of this type of work is the Cruickshank Sanctuary in Rockledge where there were no jays prior to restoration and within 4 years of the restoration the site had 6 new families with over 30 individual birds," he added. "Currently the population is far beyond that and exceeding what would be considered normal carrying capacity."

Under and agreement with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Brevard County would get 80% of the $5.05 per ton of pulpwood/mulchwood sold from cutting down the trees to offset the project's cost. The state would get the rest.

The agreement with FDACS includes cutting three in three areas totaling 1,127 acres: Malabar Scrub, Micco Scrub and Grant Flatwoods.

Knight told commissioners Tuesday that EEL had yet to calculate the projected revenue from the Malabar Scrub tree cutting project but suspected any net profit from the timber sales would be minimal.

The Florida Forest Service estimates revenue generated based on historical sales and other data. "For the Malabar Scrub portion (383 acres) of the referenced sale, 3,078 tons are estimated to be harvested," Caroline Stonecipher, an FDACS, spokeswoman wrote in an email. "At $5.05 per ton, the estimated value is $15,543.90," she said. "The total estimated value for all 1,127 acres included in the sale is $140,188."

But commissioners emphasized Tuesday that the tree removal is about the birds and the habitat, not about the money.

"My primary concern is of the scrub jay population," Tobia said.

Jim Waymer is an environment reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Waymer at 321-261-5903 or jwaymer@floridatoday.com. Or find him on Twitter: @JWayEnviro or on Facebook: www.facebook.com/jim.waymer