01-09-2015 City of Edgewater E104 d N.Riverside Drive
Edgewater,FL 32132
T Meeting Minutes
Eco-Tourism Sub Committee
Friday,January 9,2015 3:30 PM Council Chambers
1. CALL TO ORDER
Samantha Bishop, Economic Development Coordinator called the Workshop to order at 4:03 p.m.,
and had everyone introduce themselves.
Attendees:
Councilwoman Christine Power
Councilman Dan Blazi
Tracey Barlow, City Manager
Jack Corder, Leisure Services Director
Jeff Berner; Economic Development board member, and Ecotourism Subcommittee Chair
Steve Harrell, Economic Development board, Ecotourism Subcommittee member
Laura Henning, Chief of Interpretations, Canaveral National Seashore
Warren Reynolds, Kayak Guide, Marine Discovery Center
Marilyn Sullivan, Edgewater Rotary Chambers and Kayak Guide, Marine Discovery Center
Erick Halleus, New Smyrna Yacht Club
Anna Caulfield, New Smyrna Yacht Club
2. NEW BUSINESS
a. Creating partnerships with local paddling clubs and businesses to promote paddling trails and
events
Mrs. Bishop introduced Liz Sparks, State Paddling Trail Coordinator, State of Florida, Greenways
and Trails Office of the Division of Recreation and Parks to make a presentation.
Mrs. Sparks gave a presentation on establishing and promoting paddling trails. During the
presentation, she discussed reasons to establish trails; the low economic costs of paddling;
increasing conservation stewardship; ecotourism bench marks; the States outdoor recreation plan;
the State's paddling Info-gram; the importance of connecting revenue increases with conservation to
make it work; ecotourism bringing in 38.3 billion dollars in direct consumer spending annually, and
330,000 jobs; peoples big interest in wildlife; Florida's binding trails; kayak fishing; providing links
to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWQ, and being able to download a
fishing license on your cell phone; kayaking being a sport for all ages; the majority of people only
being interested in doing short trails; reviewed some of the area's paddling trails; discussed people
wanting to have a destination when they go out on trips; and stressed the importance of safety and
describing trail conditions.
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Eco-Tourism Sub Committee Meeting Minutes January 9,2015
She discussed the 1500 mile circumventable trail that goes around Florida; reviewed some of the
stops along the trail; and stated that most campsites along the trail are 15 to 20 miles apart.
She also discussed the importance of monitoring high and low tides and the effect on kayaking;
providing tidal website links; building safety into programs from the very beginning; various safety
considerations; the importance of determining who you are trying to appeal to; laying out a trail and
obtaining experienced paddlers feedback; ADA compliance considerations; ramp designs, keeping it
simple, and less is better in kayaking, establishing campsite permit requirements along paddling
trails; checking and clearing designated trails on an annual basis; the lengthy sign permitting
process along Florida's waterways; map specifications; variances in individual map reading
capabilities, and making sure there are area descriptions on paddling trail maps; capturing routes
on handheld GPS devices; drinking water and shower locations; annotating points of interests on
trail maps; providing a paddling checklist; the availability of kayak buyers guides; showing diversity
in kayaking photos; getting kids connected with nature; the time children spend on digital media; the
important safety aspects of a paddler letting others know their paddling schedule; weather and
paddling; making sure paddlers know to respect wildlife; kayak storage facilities; bathrooms and
safe parking at launch sites; putting carpeting or Astroturf at kayak launch sites; available grants;
promoting local businesses; the importance of getting paddlers feedback on draft paddling trail
maps; promoting and marketing techniques for when an organization opens a paddling launch site;
and the importance of joining the Blueway Community. Mrs. Bishop stated that Edgewater just
joined the Florida paddling Trail Association.
Mrs. Sparks discussed bringing attention to paddling trails; holding paddling events and festivals;
putting trail links on website maps; relating a cleanup project to a paddling launch site kick off, or to
a paddling event; people using trail campsites more in the cooler months; and reviewed the
Greenway Trails Office website.
The group discussed using paddling trails in conjunction with other types of trails; the difficulty of
putting informational signs in Florida's waterways; obtaining grants to support paddling initiatives;
putting hyperlinks to paddling and boating rules and safety tips on maps and website pages; putting
a level of difficulty for the trails on paddling maps; as a whole paddlers are contentious about
keeping the environment clean; getting local paddling groups to adopt a trail; paddling and local
area school involvement; college environmental clubs and groups; scheduling future meetings; and
looking at who else needs to be part of the group.
After the presentation the group reviewed a paddling trail map that was provided by the Greenways
and Trails Office.
3. ADJOURN
There being no further business to discuss, the meeting adjourned at 5:03 p.m.
Minutes submitted by:
Mitch Honaker, Deputy City Clerk
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