TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: The Jacksonville District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) has received a complete prospectus proposing the establishment of a mitigation bank pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. §1344) as described below:
APPLICANT: D.R. Horton, Inc.
6200 Lee Vista Boulevard, Suite 400
Orlando, Florida 32822
LOCATION: The proposed project, identified as the 747.91-acre Twin Oaks Mitigation Bank (TOMB), consists of three parcels on the northeast side of Lake Tohopekaliga. The 203.48-acre northern parcel, labeled as Mitigation Area 1, occurs immediately adjacent to the Partin Canal and Kings Highway. Mitigation Area 2 encompasses approximately 282.67 acres and occurs immediately south of the Mitigation Area 1 and is adjacent to the northeastern shore of Lake Tohopekaliga on the west side of Macy Island Road. The 261.15 acre eastern parcel, labeled as Mitigation Area 3, is located adjacent to the northeastern shore of Lake Tohopekaliga on the east side of Macy Island Road. More specifically, the proposed TOMB project is located in Sections 25 and 36, Township 25 south, Range 29 east; Section 31, Township 25 south, Range 30 east; Sections 06-08, 17, 18, Township 26 south, Range 30 east; and Sections 01 and 12, Township 26 south, Range 29 east in Osceola County, near Kissimmee, Florida.
APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES:
Mitigation Area 1
Latitude: 28.274332°N
Longitude: 81.365715°W
Mitigation Area 2
Latitude: 28.250412°N
Longitude: 81.359560°W
Mitigation Area 3
Latitude: 28.239028°N
Longitude: 81.343603°W
PROSPECTUS SUMMARY: Pursuant to 33 CFR 332.8(d)(4), the Corps has posted a full copy of the TOMB prospectus online so that it is available for review by the public. The prospectus may be downloaded from the Regulatory In-Lieu Fee and Bank Information Tracking System (RIBITS) at web address: https://ribits.usace.army.mil .
Once on the RIBITS homepage, select "Jacksonville" from the "ALL DISTRICTS" drop down menu located in the lower left corner of the screen. Once the district filter has been selected, click on the “Existing Banks & ILF Sites” link located in the Navigation box (upper left corner). This will generate a list of projects, scroll down the list and click on the “Twin Oaks MB” link. On this page, click on the "Cyber Repository" link located on the menu bar above the General Information description, then click on the Prospectus Documents folder to access the prospectus associated with the TOMB project.
If you are unable to access the web address, a copy of the prospectus is available upon request to the project manager listed at the end of this public notice.
PROJECT GOALS AND OBJECTIVES: The applicant seeks authorization to restore, enhance, preserve and protect wetlands and uplands, creating conditions similar to those that historically existed on the 747.91-acre property which includes approximately 451.41 acres of wetlands, 26.07 acres of surface waters and 270.43 acres of uplands. The primary ecological goal of the TOMB is to restore, enhance and preserve the existing endemic wetlands and supporting upland vegetative communities, as well as wildlife populations associated with the site. Specific restoration objectives include: (1) elimination of conflicting land uses (cattle grazing, hay production, and sod farming), (2) hydrologic restoration through filling ditches, and the installation of culverts and ditch blocks, (3) herbicidal and/or mechanical control of nuisance/exotic plants and (4) the establishment of a conservation easement over the mitigation bank lands.
ECOLOGICAL SUITABILITY OF THE SITE: A review of available information indicates that the property historically consisted of freshwater marsh, wet prairie, shallow lake and lakeshore. Beginning in the 1880’s, the lake was systematically drained by channelizing and deepening its outfall through a series of ditches and canals. Based on aerial photography from 1944 and other sources, freshwater marshes, and cypress dominated the areas within the TOMB boundaries. In addition to the effects on wetlands, upland areas have also been altered from their historic condition. Based on historic information, the subject property was comprised of a greater amount of pine flatwoods and oak dominated areas. In the first half of the 20th century, or earlier, many of these areas were converted to pastureland or citrus groves.
ESTABLISHMENT AND OPERATION OF THE BANK: The proposed TOMB would be established and operated by D.R. Horton, Inc. as the Sponsor with the assistance of Bio-Tech Consulting, Inc. The property that comprises the TOMB is owned by D.R. Horton, Inc. (Mitigation Area 1 and 2) and Osceola County Board of County Commissioners (Mitigation Area 3) (“Property Owners”). The TOMB is proposed to be established as a single and complete project. Following TOMB successful implementation and attainment of final success criteria, long-term management activities will be implemented in order to ensure the sustainability of TOMB. In addition, the sponsor will provide sufficient financial assurances to ensure construction and long-term management of the proposed TOMB.
PROPOSED SERVICE AREA: The project is located within the Lake Tohopekaliga Basin, identified as Hydrologic Unit Code (HUC 0309010104) which is part of the larger Kissimmee Basin (HUC 03090101). The Applicant proposes a Mitigation Service Area (MSA) that is coincident with the Kissimmee Basin. The TOMB MSA is anticipated to include wetland habitat communities that could reasonably be expected to occur on the TOMB.
NOTE: This public notice is being issued based on information furnished by the applicant. This information has not been verified or evaluated to ensure compliance with laws and regulation governing the regulatory program.
Comments regarding the proposed mitigation bank should be submitted in writing to the District Engineer at the address below within 30 days from the date of this notice.
If you have any questions concerning this proposed project, you may contact Ms. Teresa Frame by electronic mail at Teresa.M.Frame@usace.army.mil, by fax at 904-232-1904, or by telephone at 904-232-1677 or at the following address:
DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY
JACKSONVILLE DISTRICT CORPS OF ENGINEERS
P. O. BOX 4970
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA 32232-0019
IMPACT ON NATURAL RESOURCES: Preliminary review of this application indicates that an Environmental Impact Statement will not be required. Coordination with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Marine Fisheries Services, and other Federal, State, and local agencies, environmental groups, and concerned citizens generally yields pertinent environmental information that is instrumental in determining the impact the proposed action will have on the natural resources of the area. By means of this notice, we are soliciting comments on the potential effects of the project on threatened or endangered species or their habitat
EVALUATION: After the end of the comment period, the district engineer will review all comments received and make an initial determination as to the potential of the proposed project to provide compensatory mitigation for activities authorized by Department of the Army permits. That determination will reflect the national concern for both protection and utilization of important resources. The benefits, which reasonably may be expected to accrue from the proposal, must be balanced against its reasonably foreseeable detriments. Factors relevant to the proposal will be considered including conservation, economics, esthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, historical properties, fish and wildlife values, flood hazards, floodplain values, land use, navigation, shoreline erosion and accretion, recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy needs, safety, food, and fiber production, mineral needs, considerations of property ownership, and in general, the needs and welfare of the people.
The Corps is soliciting comments from the public; Federal, State, and local agencies and officials; Indian Tribes; and other Interested parties in order to consider and evaluate the proposed activity. All comments received will be considered by the Corps during the formulation of the initial determination of potential for the proposed activity.
REQUEST FOR PUBLIC HEARING: Any person may request a public hearing. The request must be submitted in writing to the District Engineer within the designated comment period of the notice and must state the specific reasons for requesting the public hearing.