The following is a message I just recieved from Scott Shine......
Take a few minutes to read and then pick one or all three of the E-mail address and send them your comments. The Meeting starts tomorrow at 9AM! The bird people have used automated e-mail systems to gather over 400 pro-closure e-mails. Because they are trying to sneak it by we did not know of this till now. We only have one agianst further lost access. Dont wait, send it tonight!!!!


----- Original Message -----
From: Scott Shine
To: jim.farr@dep.state.fl.us
Cc: michael.sole@dep.state.fl.us ; ken.haddad@myfwc.com
Sent: Wednesday, December 09, 2009 5:26 PM
Subject: Hugenout Memorial Park Amendments

Jim:

It has just come to my attention that there is a serious and aggressive effort underway by Audubon of Florida to add new restrictions to the lease with the City of Jacksonville, and access to state lands contained in Huguenot Memorial Park. Specifically, to restrict vehicle and pedestrian access to the northern section of the park adjacent to Ft. George Inlet. This includes "wet sand" and "dry sand" areas. Upland areas are already protected as Critical Wildlife Areas by FWC.

I would urge the staff and members of the ARC to support the City of Jacksonville's proposal for amendments. I would also ask that the ARC remove any contingencies on the lease, as the city has acted in good faith and worked to protect critical wildlife and comply with state and federal law.

Most important is that the ARC not act on Audubon's proposal to close access. The city and public advocates have not had time to react to this proposal - many of us cannot attend the meeting at this short notice. I know the evidence in favor of the City of Jacksonville's position is abundant, clear and compelling. What's more, access to these areas is protected under Florida Statutes 161.58, the Florida Constitution under X s 11, The Public Trust Doctrine and Customary Use Doctrine as recently upheld in Trepanier vs. County of Volusia. The city has worked successfully with FWC to execute on the management plan and wildlife is unquestionably being well-protected.

Jacksonville is firmly in compliance with all state and federal laws regarding protection of listed shorebirds and other wildlife. The city has been a good steward of the environment and responsible for improving habitat at Huguenot and increasing shorebird levels to unprecedented numbers. Again, I would ask that the staff recommend against these restrictions proposed by Audubon and advocate for the position of the City of Jacksonville.

F. Scott Shine

3490 Richmond Park Dr. E
Jacksonville, Florida 32224
(904) 343-8325

City of Jacksonville Huguenot Park Advisory Board
City of Jacksonville Huguenot Park Shore Bird Management Team
City of Jacksonville Ethics Commissioner
Florida Fish and Wildlife Volunteer Safety Instructor

Paul has done a good job informing a lot of us of this concern. What will it take to get this to the next level? How come we aren't organized?

I'm a web design/developer and I'm ready to start setting up some site for us to congregate around. Maybe even some auto-emailer forms for our politicians to receive emails from concerned kiteboarders/surfers....? We should set up a meeting somewhere/sometime to start organizing. What do you guys think?

I know I am for it. call me.

the following is a letter I sent out to the reps on the e-mail that Scott sent.

As a long time volunteer (over two decades) for the Florida Audubon Society I have some general understanding of bird species. As a patron of the Northeast Florida State Parks and The Jacksonville parks system I have a very specific understanding of the dynamic that shapes the eco systems in and around Huguenot Memorial Park. I have spent over ten thousand hours at this park alone and over the last ten years I have personally witnessed the constant change the area has undergone. The Florida Audubon’s paid representatives and lobby would have you believe that Huguenot Park is the last bastion of critical and endangered wildlife species in North East Florida. They will say that increasing human populations and increased use of the park threaten to destroy a delicate habitat for bird and other species. This is absolutely false. They have made many claims that abandon the science that their own organization was founded on. Right from the start they have told lies and misrepresented the truth to push forward an agenda that would effectively steal the park from the people of Jacksonville and the surrounding area. It’s apparent that the Audubon Society’s goal from the beginning has been to remove the human element from Huguenot Park. By forcing increased restrictions and removing user groups, patrons of the park are being forced to give up the last place where the beach is truly accessible. Fishermen will no longer have access to some of the best surf or channel fishing the area has to offer. Jet ski riders will no longer be able to enjoy launching and riding from the smooth waters on the inlet side of the park. Swimmers, sunbathers and kitesurfers will lose one of the best places to access the ocean in Florida. Already some user groups have lost access they have had for over 30 years. Pet owners are no longer allowed to bring their animals to the park. This policy should be seasonal. All this is because one group of inconsiderate, narrow minded individuals feels the need to impose their will upon the people of our city. Here is a sample of the lies told by the Audubon lobby.
1. A picture was shown at a public meeting of a small child running on the beach with laughing gulls flying ahead of her. We were told that it represented a violation of the International Migratory Bird Act and that the city could face hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines. In fact it was not even close to being a violation and the city was never in any danger of receiving any kind of fine. Read the MBA and you will see why. It was just a scare tactic.
2. At another public meeting the city and its residents were led to believe that Red Knots migrated from Argentina to Huguenot Park and from Huguenot park to the Arctic. In fact studies conducted by the Fish and Wildlife Service, Cornell University and even the Audubon Society itself conclude that the fate of these birds is tied to the horseshoe crab populations in Delaware Bay. In Fact the regional “expert” on Red Knots says that many of the birds winter in south Fl. and do not migrate to South America. One of the Audubon’s own representatives told me that most of the South American birds will travel further north up the Eastern seaboard before making landfall, bypassing North Florida completely.
3. On one of the Audubon’s web pages there is a direct attack on kiteboarders. It states that “kiteboarding kites look like giant predatory hawks or falcons” Having flown many kites at the park I can tell you that this is either an outright lie or a complete disregard for empirical fact. I have had birds sit on my kite while it was in the air and under it while it was on the ground. Gulls and terns actually seem to fly with or completely ignore these kites. I have observed Red Knots feeding undisturbed while flying kites. In fact I have had flocks land less than 50 feet away from airborne kites. By the way the last time a flying predator that size flew was over 60 million years ago. As a more recent (last 10k years) product of genetic selection, birds have no instinctual reaction to kites or to the navy planes or helicopters that fly low over the park every day!
4. The bird lobby says that the American Oyster Catchers that nested in the grass on the “pond” side no longer nest there because of human influence. Since the human use of the park has remained unchanged and in fact has declined this argument seems not to hold water. Through out the years those birds nested in the same place while people and cars passed by. A more likely reason for the disappearance of the Oyster Catchers is the increase in the laughing Gull population.
5. The Audubon representatives have said over and over that Laughing Gulls are not predatory. I personally have watched these birds attack and kill young birds even of their own species.

I have watched the bird populations explode over the past few years. Eight years ago there were no nesting colonies of gulls or terns at the park. I remember when the first few fledgling birds began to show up. And I remember how amazing it was to see flightless birds on the beach. One of the Audubon’s people told me that they left the traditional nesting area, 4.5 miles north, because of storm surge flooding two years in a row. In an attempt to attract more nesting terns the FWC (and I suspect the Audubon Society) conducted a controlled burn in the “critical wildlife management area”. The idea was to remove the vegetation because terns need bare sand to nest. I guess someone forgot to tell the biologists that the first thing to grow back quickly are grasses. Laughing Gulls nest in grasses. Consequently the park (and other bird species) suffer an inundation by these gulls during the summer. With the only natural cover burned away and only grasses covering most of the burned area every last natural predator has left the area. It was not uncommon to see tracks from foxes, raccoons and opossums. Even the occasional bobcat print was seen. Remember that the daily human use of the park was unchanged during that time. These predators had places to hide before the burn. The gull population is huge, and the tern population growing in spite of the human use of the beach and waterways surrounding the park.

The City Of Jacksonville and its park management team have complied with and implemented all necessary wildlife protections. Limited, temporary, seasonal closures for nesting birds has been a proven success

I don’t think any of the yearly 400 thousand park patrons wants to see animals hurt or tormented or the natural environment wrecked. In fact most have been very careful keep Huguenot Park a nice, safe place where a family can still enjoy a day at the beach. But The Audubon and its sneaky policies and truth twisting are creating a mess. I believe I can speak for many of our taxpaying citizens when I say enough is enough! Let the city have its lease.

Paul Beiderwell
Jacksonville Resident and
Huguenot Park Patron

I sent emails to all three people on your list.

Huguenot was where I learned to Kiteboard in 2001.
After 9 years of kiteboarding I would be very sad to see this park access closed on the north end.
Generations of young people will not be able to get the priceless experiences we have had.

Its a real shame if this goes through.
The north end is the cream of Huegenot Park.

Justin Davis

More lies from the closed minded bird lobby… if you agree with the contents of this letter feel free to send it to the above listed e-mail addresses.

“Huguenot Memorial Park is a remarkable place, beloved by many and essential to a diversity of rare and declining species.”

This is a patently untrue statement. No species are threatened by anything that takes place on Huguenot Parks beaches or surrounding areas.

“Despite the new management plan and the hard work of park staff and volunteers, intense recreational use at the park continues to come at the expense of the park's wildlife.”

….Another untrue statement… In fact the recreational use of the park has rarely been in conflict with any of the parks indigenous wildlife.

“This is a site of hemispheric importance for species like Red Knots”

Also not true. Any 6th grader can find the true information by googling Red Knot. Huguenot Park has little if any real significance to this species. ,

“….is Florida's only Atlantic Coast breeding colony of Royal Terns”

Royal Terns also nest on the sand banks and shoals of Nassau sound in a place appropriately named Bird Island. It is 4.5 miles north of Huguenot Park. Matansas Inlet also hosts these nesting birds ,”… and includes federally-designated critical wintering habitat for threatened Piping Plovers.” Piping Plovers winter in many areas and have been seen feeding in many places along North Florida’s coast line. Its possible to find them anywhere from Ft Clinch in Frenandina to the area known as the little jetty in the St Johns River. Since they don’t nest here they are a non issue in trems of beach access at Huguenot Park.

“Sea turtles nest in this special place”

At last a true statement from the Audubon! In fact park protections for turtle nests have resulted in the highest successful hatchling numbers over the past two years anywhere on the Florida coast! It seems that beach driving and park use has no effect on turtle nests at the park. ,

” …..and declining species like Black Skimmers, Least Terns, Gull-billed Terns, American Oystercatchers and Wilson's Plovers nested here historically as well. “

Black Skimmers have never nested successfully at the park because weather and wave conditions inundate the low areas where they try to nest. Least Terns and Gul-billed Terns continue to successfully nest at the park. In fact the numbers have increased in recent years in spite of the human presence. American Oyster Catchers and Wilson’s Plovers seen to be under more stress due to the well meant but misguided attempt to create larger nesting areas for other tern species by controlled burning. The result was an exponential increase in the Laughing Gull population. These gull are highly opportunistic and extremely predatory. Of course anyone who has seen a city dump or a K-mart Parking lot will recognize these birds. They are everywhere.

“The interior of the peninsula is a state-designated critical wildlife area.” There seems to be no official listing of this area as a CWA. “The surrounding flats and shoals are NOAA-designated Essential Fish Habitat.”

This statement is false NOAA has no such designation for Huguenot Park. All listed species on the NOAA web page require sea grass beads or rocky bottom. None of the areas in question have this kind of habitat. The reference to NOAA comes from a single letter and is not backed by any scientific study of the area.

“The historical volume of beach driving at this park is untenable, for wildlife as well as public health and safety.”

The Florida Audubon has no business in determining what is adequate policy for the park in terms of safety or public health. The huge increase of Laughing Gulls does create a noxious smell and may result in a higher bacteria count in the waters surrounding the park. The beach becomes coated with bird droppings. These gull are by far the greatest contributor.

“By creating a car-free portion of the beach, encompassing the park's "point," you could simplify the management of the park”

This might also increase the cost of park management as it would be necessary to install, maintain an expensive and disgusting eye-sore of a barrier. We have seen this happen every year the necessary temporary barriers in place to protect fledgling birds. Why would you want to try to make and maintain a permanent barrier that wave action will destroy quickly? ,

“provide valuable protections for wildlife and adjacent sovereignty submerged lands, as well as create a remarkable recreational opportunity: a natural area away from vehicular traffic for families to explore and enjoy on foot, and a truly unique viewing opportunity for Floridians to watch and celebrate the amazing wealth of wild Florida that calls this park home. These public trust resources cannot speak for themselves. Thank you for safeguarding their interest, and mine.”

Vehicular traffic continues to be a non-issue. For most of the year September through April park usage is low and no critical wildlife areas suffer from the sparse traffic at the park. During nesting season and when fledgling birds appear on the beach necessary and appropriate restrictions to traffic are in place. In short no further restrictions are needed and attempts to close parts of the beach permanently only serve to disenfranchise park patrons the People of Jacksonville and visitors from other States Please do not vote in favor of any further closures or restrictions.

Thank you for your time.