March 30, 2025 – This letter was sent by Scenic Jacksonville to the Jacksonville City Council after a substitute bill was developed that made significant improvements to the original bill. The bill is being heard on March 31 and April 1 in Council committees: Neighborhoods, Rules, Finance and Land Use and Zoning and, assuming no delays, will be voted on by the full City Council on Tuesday, April 8th.

To:  Members of the Jacksonville City Council 

The substitute bill for 2025-102 from Council Member Joe Carlucci is supported by Scenic Jacksonville, Inc., a non-profit organization whose mission is to preserve, protect and enhance the scenic character and beauty of Jacksonville. The tree canopy in Jacksonville is one of our major concerns.

Importantly, this substitute bill allows some money that is collected by the City for the loss of trees due to the land development process (tree mitigation), and placed into the Tree Protection and Related Expenses Trust Fund (the “Tree Fund”), to be utilized to do the following:

  • hire
    • City Landscape Architects,
    • City Arborists, and
    • City Urban Foresters
  • for the exclusive focus of planning and designing tree planting projects on public property in Duval County utilizing the Tree Fund, and
  • implementing, inspecting and maintaining those trees on public property.

These new City employees must work exclusively on public tree planting projects, and the administrative work that goes along with that, that are funded by the Tree Fund. These staff members would not work on private development plans.

Per existing Code, payment into the Tree Fund is only allowed as an option if there is no room on the development site to plant new trees, and if there is no way to preserve the existing trees. Unfortunately, payment into the Tree Fund means that most trees are being destroyed and not replanted.

Funding available for Council appropriation is roughly $22 Million. Currently, there is only one staff person, the City Arborist, paid for by the Tree Fund. More staff is clearly needed.

The Joe Carlucci substitute bill 2025-102 also does the following:

  • reduces the amount paid into the Tree Fund for the development or redevelopment of affordable and/or workforce housing that utilizes a federal, state or local affordable housing program recognized by the City,
  • reduces the size of tree required for mitigation planting from 4” caliper to 2” caliper,
  • allows mitigation trees to be planted closer than 10’ apart.

Contact:  Nancy Powell, Executive Director, nancy@scenicjax.org, (904) 608-3792