Alachua County Commission expands uses for tree mitigation funds, adds Chief of Staff and Commissioner Aide positions

BY JENNIFER CABRERA

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – In two special meetings on July 7, the Alachua County Commission expanded uses for the Tree Mitigation Fund, approved a new Chief of Staff position and a reorganization of Assistant County Manager positions, and voted to expand the Commission’s support staff by an additional Executive Staff Assistant and two aides to be shared by Commissioners.

Tree Mitigation Fund

In the morning meeting, Commissioners discussed the County’s Tree Planting Program and a request to expand the ways the Tree Mitigation Fund can be used.

Following a presentation on the Tree Planting Program and Tree Mitigation Fund Update (click here to see the presentation), Commissioner Anna Prizzia made the following motion:

1. Adopt the staff recommendation for recommended uses of Tree Mitigation Funds, including planting and establishing new high-quality trees; paying for County employees to implement the County’s tree programs; pruning trees impacting County properties; reconfiguring infrastructure to accommodate high-value trees; managing or acquiring easements to protect or expand the tree canopy; engaging in public outreach and education programs about trees and tree care; developing and implementing the County’s Community Forest Management Plan; and paying for professional services that are directly related to County-owned trees and community forest programs.
2. Authorize the Environmental Protection Department Director to approve future updates to allowable expenditures, including additional priorities for planting trees.
3. Adopt a resolution identifying the appropriate use of Tree Mitigation Funds and expanding opportunities to plant, protect, and preserve the most beneficial, highest-value trees.
4. Include cost-share or payment for ecological service programs that support trees and their ecosystem services.
5. Include a review by the Environmental Protection Advisory Committee for programs, as they are developed.
6. Work with the Growth Management Department, Community Support Services, and the Environmental Protection Department to expand or enhance the tree canopy on affordable housing projects, as appropriate.

Commissioner Mary Alford seconded the motion, and it passed 4-0, with Commissioner Charles Chestnut absent.

Community Forest Management Plan

Following an update on the Community Forest Management Plan (included in the presentation linked above), Prizzia made a motion for staff to return with an update including grant deliverables, the tree inventory, and a process for engaging stakeholders for development of the Community Forest Management Plan; she added a request to staff to consider including “citizen science” or a participatory component as the County builds the Urban Forest Management Plan, so the community can participate and use it as an education tool that supports the tree-planting and education program. 

Alford seconded the motion, and it passed 4-0, with Chestnut absent.

Organizational realignment

In the afternoon meeting, the Commission viewed the Annual Report video and then took up the topic of organizational realignment, including a change in the Commission support model, the Chief of Staff position, and a reorganization of Assistant County Manager positions.

Commission services staffing

There are currently only two employees supporting the five Commissioners (an Executive Staff Assistant and an Assistant to the Board), and County Manager Michele Lieberman requested input on two separate but related questions: 

• Does the Board want to move forward with individual aides for each Commissioner?
• How much central office support is needed for the Commission office as a whole?

Lieberman said there was an additional Executive Staff Assistant in the past, and she recommended restoring that position. Board-wide support includes tasks such as public contact coordination, office administration, scheduling, and agenda-related support.

Individual aides could help Commissioners follow up with constituents, prepare for meetings, schedule events, and work on Commissioners’ specific priorities; Lieberman said individual aides would provide relief to the shared staff, “but certain minimum staffing would still need to be in place to support those board-wide-type functions and office oversight.” She estimated that each individual aide would cost about $75,000, and individual aides could replace one of the three recommended board-wide positions.

A third option, the hybrid model, would have an Assistant to the Board, an Executive Staff Assistant, and one or more aides who would report to current staff but would provide support to Commissioners.

Chief of Staff

Lieberman said the Chief of Staff position is “about placing existing work into a more sustainable structure”; the role handles coordination across County departments and with external partners. The Assistant County Manager position is responsible for overseeing specific departments, including budgets, personnel, daily operations, board priorities, project implementation, and cross-department coordination. 

Assistant County Manager reorganization

The proposed structure would include a Chief of Staff and four Assistant County Managers. 

The vacant Chief of Staff position was most recently held by Gina Peebles, who submitted her resignation on May 4, effective July 3. Her title was Assistant County Manager – Chief of Staff.

Heather Akpan’s new title will be Assistant County Manager – Public Safety and Community Operations, Missy Daniels’ title will be Assistant County Manager – Public Services and Community Development, and Tommy Crosby’s title will be Assistant County Manager – Financial and Facilities Resource Management. The person hired to perform the fourth Assistant County Manager role will have the title Assistant County Manager – Public Safety and Community Operations.

Court Services will be renamed to Justice Support Services, which Lieberman said “follows the consultant’s review and report on Court Services. The updated name better reflects the broader function of the office and avoids suggesting that the department is part of the court system itself.”

Lieberman provided an Administrative Order implementing the above changes, which begins a 30-day review period in which the board can raise concerns; if they do not raise concerns within 30 days, the Administrative Order takes effect.

Prizzia said that given the current financial uncertainty because of the homestead exemption constitutional amendment, she supported the hybrid model with two or three aides who would serve the five Commissioners: “I don’t think we all have to have our aides report directly to us, but I think that having people who are working for the Commission that are doing policy research, that are doing constituent services, that are helping to navigate local government for our residents is really critical, especially now in a time when we may have less government, as we continue to have to tighten our belts, as we have to get creative with the services that we provide.”

Chair Ken Cornell said he believes this is the wrong year to add “any layer of government… This year is the wrong year to move to a hybrid model.”

Motion on proposed reorganization

Prizzia made a motion to move forward with the hybrid model with “at least two aides that support the five County Commissioners,” assigned by district. She clarified that her motion was to support having an Assistant to the Board, two Executive Staff Assistants, and two aides, for a total of five support positions. Alford seconded the motion. 

Prizzia added a second part to her motion to approve the new Chief of Staff position; she was also willing to add approval of the Administrative Order, but Lieberman said that would “just happen,” so she didn’t need a motion for that. 

Cornell split the motion into three parts and took separate votes: 

• Adopt the hybrid model with two aides to support the Commission — Passed 3-2, with Cornell and Commissioner Marihelen Wheeler in dissent;
• Approve Lieberman’s recommendation of a “Minimum Central Support Model” with one Assistant to the Board and two Executive Staff Assistants (the aides and Executive Staff Assistants would report to the Assistant to the Board) — Passed 5-0;
• Approve the new Chief of Staff position — Passed 5-0.

New Community Outreach Coordinator

After the votes, Assistant County Manager Heather Akpan introduced Community Outreach Coordinator Jeannie Necessary, who started on July 6.