April 29, 2002 Resource Manager Of The Year

April 29, 2002

Resource Manager Of The Year

Governor Jeb Bush, the Florida Cabinet, DEP and Nature Conservancy officials, and the DiMaggio family.

Jeff DiMaggio, Park Manager for Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park and Cedar Key Scrub State Reserve, was honored as the Department of Environmental Protection's "2001 Resource Manager of the Year" at the April 23 meeting of Governor Jeb Bush and the Florida Cabinet.

The award, established in 1992, is presented annually to recognize outstanding resource management achievements by a DEP land manager in the protection of state lands. It is based on a review of nominees by a selection committee composed of three major Florida environmental organizations -- Audubon of Florida, the Sierra Club and The Nature Conservancy.

"Under Jeff's management, the rate of scrub rejuvenation in Cedar Key Scrub State Reserve has rapidly increased," said Florida State Parks' Director Wendy Spencer. "Rejuvenation of the scrub will dramatically increase the breeding habitat for the threatened Florida scrub-jay. The population of jays in this region of the state has recently been deemed one of the most critical in the state due to habitat loss."

DiMaggio, a 26-year veteran of the Florida Park Service, began his career as a park ranger at Myakka River State Park. He was promoted to Assistant Park Manager at Delnor-Wiggins Pass in 1982 and came to Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park as Park Manager in 1997. Jeff also manages Cedar Key Scrub State Reserve and Cedar Key Museum State Park with only two full-time staff to assist him.

"Jeff is the perfect combination of a dedicated public servant and conservationist. His exceptional planning and foresight have enabled him to administer timber sales, conduct prescribed burns, monitor scrub-jays, implement a GIS mapping program, and even rehabilitate 41 miles of fence line with a minimal amount of staff and funding," Spencer said.

Waccasassa Bay Preserve State Park is accessible only by water and recreational activities are focused on the water resources of the preserve. The Waccasassa River provides freshwater fishing as well as saltwater fishing. Cedar Key Scrub State Reserve has a variety of trails and picnic facilities. Cedar Key Museum State Park is open 9-5 every day except Tuesday and Wednesday. All three parks are located in the town of Cedar Key.