CONFIDENTIAL ROUGHLY EDITED REALTIME FILE
Compliments of HRICART.com

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This file was created in real time by a Human Realtime Captioner for the purpose of communication access. It is not a certified legal transcript and may not be entirely verbatim. It is intended for use by the consumer only as notes of the proceedings. A consumer should check with the presenter for any clarification of the presentation.

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8287-BIS-DOI-NPS-Public Meeting for Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve 
(BIS-Department of Interior (DOI))
9/19/22  6:30 PM

CONFIDENTIAL ROUGHLY EDITED REALTIME FILE
Compliments of HRICART.com

***************************************
This file was created in real time by a Certified Realtime Captioner for the purpose of communication access. It is not a certified legal transcript and may not be entirely verbatim. It is intended for use by the consumer only as notes of the proceedings. A consumer should check with the presenter for any clarification of the presentation.

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ROUGH EDITED COPY

8287-BIS-DOI-NPS-PUBLIC MEETING FFOR TIMUCUAN ECOLOGICAL AND HISTORIC PRESERVE
(BIS-Department of Interior (DOI))
SEPTEMBER 19, 2022

REMOTE CART CAPTIONING
PROVIDED BY:
HARDEMAN REALTIME, INC.
and GRAHAM INTERPRETING, INC.

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This is being provided in a rough-draft format. Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) is provided in order to facilitate communication accessibility and may not be a totally verbatim record of the proceedings. 
 
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	>> Ideas about this planning effort to us.  So a little housekeeping here.  As an attendee here today, you will be in listen-only mode.  You can still communicate your plan and planning process to us by using the Q&A function to the right-hand side of your screen.  We'll turn the Q&A on so you can send us questions anytime during the presentation.  
	To do so, select a feature category tab and ask a question.  Anyone entering today 'will automatically be muted and we can get to the question, answer portion at the end to that.  If we don't respond to your question now, we'll get to that when we have that portion.  
	So let's get started.  What's a Development Concept Plan, or DCP?  I might use those terms interchangeably.  
	This planning concept will have strategies articulated from future design resources and visitor's experience on that site.  More of those in a moment.  
	The park is in the early stages of the process and seeking public input.  And the DCP welcomes ideas and as well as other options
We would like to hear from our visitors, neighbors in the community other partners to get an idea how to create the best experience for visitors and natural resources at Kingsley Plantation.
	I might have mentioned several times the desired conditions, they outline the ability and services that Park Services strive to maintain and achieve.
	Desired conditions also articulate experiences and opportunities that should be for visitors in the park or area.  In this case is Kingsley Plantation.  And the design and future in Kingsley Plantation and the DCP should have the desired conditions.  Some of the desired conditions experiences are on this slide, but to summarize, we want visitors to be able to make a connection to the place and history of the Kingsley Plantation.
	We want you to understand the history and features on the site to tell about the features enslavement at Kingsley.  And we want you to be able to navigate and experience a variety of activities at the site.  
	We have desired conditions for the cultural resources at Kingsley as well.  These are the historic landscape and the many plantations in the era at the site and we want it to be preserved in a manner and function of the Kingsley Plantation era.  
	Obviously, it looks different than it did during the time of operation, but many of those aspects have been maintained.  We want to better highlight the Kingsley Plantation era and appreciate how the landscape looked and functioned.  We have desired conditions from our natural resources as well.  
	The marsh ecosystem is important for the plantation, but also part of the reserve.  We want to maintain and improve the shorelines, providing healthy habitat for birds and plants, and resources at the site, and we have desired conditions for facilities and administration functions and we want them to meet our management and administration needs, as well as, from your vision.  
	Over the next few slides, I will show you pictures of current conditions and initial thoughts of potential changes at the site that might better meet our desired conditions.  
	Please, remember, we're still at the early planning stages and we would like to hear from the public about your ideas for the site.  We have brainstormed ideas for the future of the site.  
	This is a map at the and existing conditions at the Kingsley Plantation.  I want to highlight first of all, the entrance of you, many of you enter the site on.  In the middle of your screen going from the bottom to the middle, it terminates at the rectangular parking lot at the midst and landscape and physically blocks the view sheds from one end of the plantation to the other.  Once visitors exit the cars in the parking lot, there's no good orientation as to what part of the plantation they should go to.
	A lot of small scale features such as picnic tables and other things that are not from the historic era period and diminish the cultural landscape.  
	The maintenance year in the top left corner of the map, and many of you have probably seen that.  It is being rho moved.  That's not part of this plan, but we have relocated that and this will afford us to have a much better use of the space.
	From the next slide, you will see some of the proposed conditions, proposed changes we want to make.  The intent of this sign is to respect the significance and importance of the Kingsley Plantation and remove vehicles and most modern things from the landscape giving cultural experiences that align with the history.  
	We want to adjust the entrance road to the east to allow tour buses and cars to enter from that side and in the side of the most important part of the landscape.  
	You see in the lower portion, marked slave cemetery.  We were able to locate archaeological cemetery on the site, and we wish to mark and memorialize and commemorate that area.  
	We want to move the cars from the center of the landscape over to the area where the main maintenance functions were, and you see it at the top left of your screen.  
	Some of the smaller landscape features like the picnic tables and hedge rows would be removed to provide a better sense of that space as well.
	This is a high level overview, and over the next few slides, we're going to get over to each one of the particular proposed changes in a little more depth practice vehicular circulation I mentioned Palmetto Drive would be closed to the natural traffic and closed for natural conditions.  Right now, two tour buses can pass one another, but we're going to reduce it down to a human scale.  
	The main entrance road rerouted 550 feet east along Fort George Road, turning north to the forest and meets Lengle Road, and vehicles would continue on Lengle Road toward a new parking lot, and it would have visitor and staff parking, bus parking, bike racks and a turnaround loop and bus drop off area.
	The trunks of the current maintenance area would be relocated to the old state barn area, you see in the top photo.  The at the old state barn area, we would look it from the new maintenance road.  The power lines supported the old area, where the visitor contact information would be moved west to the Army Navy lodge with a direct view of site to the parking area.  A bolt would be added to the parking lot and open to remaining lodging visitors.  
	Visitors will exit their vehicles at the new parking lot and immediately have a few of the historic, waterfront landscape, and includes bathrooms, visitor dock and accessible deck.  And a relocated picnic area to the -- on the north side of the lodge connecting to existing restrooms and existing area.
	And Army Navy lodge relocated and would be removed and a new picnic area.  Southwest of the Army Navy lodge with accessible routes to it, also provided.  Existing picnic tables elsewhere on the landscape would be relocated to the new picnic area.
	Circulation around the plantation would be improved by narrowing palmetto and pedestrian scale and rerouting to defining the two slave cabins and accessed through quest Cocina.  And improved accessibility.  The main home is made accessible to the trail to adjacent to the covered walkway.  
	The way finding throughout the site would be provided.  Existing signs we have would be updated and new signs provided at the new slave area and slave cemetery.  The audio tour will continue to be provided.
	The proposed changes and development in Kingsley are all designed to preserving and better restore the cultural resources for the site and giving visitors an opportunity for a series to understand them.  We're hoping that you will improve on these ideas.  
	As I mentioned before, several of the small scale features would be removed.  Thing from palmetto drive -- the bonded rubber mulch pathway replaced with crushed Cocina and several materials will still be used to reduce the amount of dust tracked into the historic structures.  The historic structures and potential landscape will continue to be maintained according to guidance.  
	Determining the location foundations of the seven slave cabins previously moved and the interpreter and contemplative areas will be added to the slave cemetery.
	Now it is time to share your thoughts with us.  We're gathering information now through the 14th.  We'll use your thoughts for the plan this year.  And the draft in spring before it is finalized next year.  
	Implementation of the plan will begin in subsequent years.  We laid out a timeline what we anticipate the time light bulb to look like time wise.  
	We're going to start the question-and-answer session shortly, so if you have not entered any questions, now would be a good time to do so.  I would like to provide what you will see in the website.
	Number 1.  What type of experiences at Kingsley Plantation are most important to you?  
	Are you satisfied with the opportunities present at the site?  
	Are there experiences that should be available, that are currently not?  
	Number 2.  What are the most important physical characteristics of Kingsley Plantation?  
	Number 3.  What changes do you think should occur at Kingsley Plantation to better protect the site's physical characteristics and experiences you wish to have?  
	And finally, what else would you like us to know?  If is there is anything that didn't fit neatly into the previous three questions, please feel free to share that with us as well.  
	These are the big ideas.  And best way to do that is very ow r- awe our online system.  
	Here are the links and the addresses and we'll share them in the chat and put them in the chat.
	>> This is the end of my presentation.  
	>> All right.  Thank you, Steve, very much for that presentation.  We're going to start the question-and-answer session now, and the questions you have sent us will start popping up one at a time in the Q&A window.  
	I am going to make sure that people who are only listening in can hear the questions, so I will read them off for Steve or other folks at the park to answer.  
	Remember, the most effective way for you all to share your ideas to the future of the plantation, to the address on the screen, or more preferably to the online comment section.  
	Today, things that can help you develop those ideas fully, so you can share those with us.  
	We're going to answer as many questions as we can, but for some crazy reason, we run out of time, please remember, there are two more opportunities to meet with park staff and discuss the project in the next couple of weeks, and also note, we'll receive a transcript of all of the questions that are asked tonight.  That will become a part of the project record, and we consult it during the draft plan development.  
	Let me see the questions that have come in.  All right.  Okay.  The first question.  Will the Kingsley descendants have a role in this project?  Steve?
	>> Yes.  We have invited Kingsley descendants the heretic corridor to Pete outside, October 21st.  We want to put their input on how to best pay respect necessary for this area.  
	>>  Does this project a create new way sides and changes in the Visitor's Center?  I will answer that.  The development and concept plan won't specify the specific content of way sides, but it is with the with that and new places around the site.  
	And pretty major change to the Visitor's Center, although still in the Army Navy side, it will move to the opposite side directly associated with where new parking would be in a slightly larger space in the building and different opportunity for views on the water.  From the VC, things have changed from the Kristor (?) Center, and the inside space is still the same building, but everything is preliminary now.  We want to hear from you.  Next question.
	I want to give a plug for the story map that you can access via the ARC GIS link and provides a lot of information as you go through there.  There are prompts to click here and photos, please do that.  It has a slider bar to show what these propose the changes look like and the ground.  
	I think putting the main visitor parking closer to, number one, the restrooms after people have driven out under, oftentimes, that's the first thing people are looking for.  
	Second.  You are close to a staffed interpreter, someone there who can help orient you around the site.  Water is available and sometimes working in an historic site, we have issues with your plumbing and sometimes have to close the restrooms and bring back porta potties, which look awful.  We're going to put a bowl toilet there so you can always count on a restroom at the site.  
	>> All right.  So Steve, I'm not seeing any other -- any new questions at the moment.  
	>> Well, don't worry because we recorded this presentation, so you can view it later, or if you -- if you were not able to attend and watching this already.  Well, thanks for coming.  
	>> I want to stall just a moment in case there's anybody out there still typing or wants to ask a question.
	I will second Steve's comments.  Thank you very much for attending tonight, and I will also thank you in advance for visiting the story link, and it gives a lot of what Steve told you in the presentation tonight and more views about what the park is considering.  
	Also, go to the site and provide your thoughts and comments.  We're very interested in hearing from all of you, especially people who frequent the site and know its conditions now and have ideas on it.  
	I am still not seeing any questions, so maybe Chris or Steve, any final words before we give people back their evening?
	>> No.  Again, I wanted to let people know if you have other questions or would like to talk to us in person, we will be at Fort Caroline at the Visitor's Center, Thursday night October 6th from 6:00 to 8:00, and Saturday morning, October 8th from 10:00 until noon on Kingsley Plantation.  
	Come out and speak us and we would like to hear your ideas, thoughts, suggestions and share those with us, please.  
	>> Yeah.  Chuck.  Am I on?  [Echo].
	>> Yes.  
	>> Thank you everybody.  Remember what was said here.  And just remember, these are your natural park sites and we have the honor and privilege to manage then, but we want to do it in the most respectful way to the Kingsley descendants, and your public input and attending these meetings and getting your feedback is critical for our mission.
	Feel free to step up and ask questions.  There are no difficult questions, and that's what we're here for.  These are your public spaces and natural treasure.  
	Thank you for your involvement, and spread the word for the upcoming virtual meetings and we look forward to this process.
	>> All right.  Thank you, everybody.  We'll call it a little early tonight.  Send in your comments and thoughts.  We appreciate your time.  
[End 3:57 p.m. PST]