Parkland Vice Mayor Jared Moskowitz wants to take the city’s green drive another step forward.

At a recent City Commission meeting, Moskowitz proposed a “nominal” environmental assessment fee of $5 per household to raise capital that can be used for protecting the environment. The idea is to raise about $40,000 a year, he said.

“I’m not aware of any other city in the state that is doing something like this,” Moskowitz said. “The assessment fee will offset the environmental impact we have while conducting business. The money can be used for anything from buying hybrid vehicles to preserving native trees.”

Moskowitz said he expected residents to react positively to the proposal. “They have supported all our environmental initiatives and I expect them to do the same this time, too," he said. "This is something that will help the city in the long run.”

Parkland resident Stuart Krantz said he liked the idea of the city taking measures to save the environment. “Jared is trying to do things, but you need a certain amount of money to run a city well," he said. "I have all along held that the city should adopt a millage rate of 5.1. If they had not lowered the millage rate from 4.1 to 3.4, they would have had the money to do this. I guess they are more comfortable doing it this way.”

The City Commission will discuss the proposal once City Attorney Andrew Maurodis drafts an ordinance. If it passes, the impact fee will be the latest in a long list of conservation efforts the city has taken up in the last few months.

Recently, the commission decided to go paperless and at its last meeting, switched to paperless commission agendas. The move has commissioners taking home backup material in memory sticks and reviewing them on computer screens at the meeting.

It is a step in the right direction, Mayor Michael Udine said. “The backup material this week was close to 1,000 pages, and we made many copies," he said. "Besides going green, the city is also saving money.”