Public Notice Notifications

The Jacksonville District currently has five categories of public notice notification mailing lists. If you wish to receive email notifications when new public notices are added to this page, please send a request to Regulatory Webmaster.  Each category is described below. Be sure to specify which list(s) you want to be included on.

Florida - This includes all public notices for projects being reviewed for Standard Permits within the State of Florida.

Antilles - This includes all public notices for projects being reviewed for Standard Permits within the Antilles area (this includes Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands).

Tropical Storms & Other Emergencies - These public notices provide information on procedures for emergency permitting requirements due to specific tropical storm events or other emergency situations.

Special Issues - These are public notices that involve the Regulatory program but which are generally not limited to one particular geographic area. These would include public notices for the establishment or modification of Restricted Areas/Danger Zones, re-issuance of General Permits or Nationwide Permits, changes to guidance and policies, etc.

Administrative Penalty - These public notices provide information associated with Administrative Penalties. An Administrative Penalty can be assessed to address violations associated with issued Department of the Army permits.

SAJ-2019-04307(AG-SP)

Published Feb. 19, 2020
Expiration date: 3/11/2020

 

TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:  The Jacksonville District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) has received an application for a Department of the Army permit pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. §1344) as described below:

 

APPLICANT:  RVI Coral Way, LLC

                8500 SW 8th Street, Suite 228

                Miami, FL 33144

 

 

WATERWAY AND LOCATION:  The project would affect waters of the United States associated with the Bird Drive Basin.  The subject property is on the North West corner of SW 22nd Street and SW 144th Avenue, in Section 10, Township 54 South, Range 39 East, Miami-Dade County, Florida.( Folio # 30-4910-003-0410) 

 

Directions to the site are as follows: Exit the Florida Turnpike at Coral Way (SW 24th Street) and head West to SW 144th Avenue, head North on SW 144th Avenue to SW 22nd Street.

 

 

APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES:            Latitude     25.746988

                                                                                    Longitude -80.429393

 

                                                                                                               

PROJECT PURPOSE:

Basic: The basic purpose of this project to create a residential development with twelve (12) single family homes.

Overall:  The overall project purpose is to create a residential development within the Bird Drive Wetlands basin in western Miami–Dade County

 

EXISTING CONDITIONS:  The wetland system consists of a freshwater system.  According to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the soils on-site include Dania muck and Demory sandy clay loam-rock complex. This soil is listed as hydric. The entire site is wet prairie wetlands with understory comprised of sawgrass, muhly grass and other various obligate and facultative wet herbaceous graminoids and small shrubs.  Invasive exotics are present in the understory, mid canopy and overstory, including Australian pine, Brazilian pepper and shoebutton ardisia.  The existing area surrounding the project area consists of residential development and a regional drainage canal east of the site.

 

PROPOSED WORK: The applicant seeks authorization to discharge 7, 744 cubic yards of clean fil into 2.4 acres of freshwater wetlands for the creation of a residential development with 12 single family residences. 

 

AVOIDANCE AND MINIMIZATION INFORMATION – The applicant has provided the following information in support of efforts to avoid and/or minimize impacts to the aquatic environment: 

Based on the quality and size of the onsite wetlands, combined with the anticipated heavy growth in this segment of Miami-Dade County, it is unlikely that a viable wetland preserve would be incorporated into the project, especially based on the anticipated secondary impacts associated with placing a compact preserve within a densely constructed project such as this. The proposed filling will be performed in such a way as to preserve water quality from potential contamination during construction. A small, 2.4 acre wetland exists adjacent to the south of the subject property, however it is currently in the wetland permitting process concurrently with the subject site.

 

COMPENSATORY MITIGATION – The applicant has offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment:

The applicant has proposed to mitigate for unavoidable direct impacts at the Everglades National Park Hole-in-the-Donut Mitigation Project.

 

CULTURAL RESOURCES:  The Corps is not aware of any known historic properties within the permit area.  By copy of this public notice, the Corps is providing information for review.  Our final determination relative to historic resource impacts is subject to review by and coordination with the State Historic Preservation Officer and those federally recognized tribes with concerns in Florida and the Permit Area.

 

ENDANGERED SPECIES:  The Corps has determined the proposed project may affect, but is not likely to adversely affect the, Eastern Indigo Snake (Drymarchon corais couperi), Wood Stork (Mycteria Americana), and have no effect on the Everglades Snail Kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis plumbeus) or its designated critical habitat.  The Corps has programmatic concurrence with these determinations based the 1 August 2017 letter from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the Indigo snake and 18 May 2010 letter for the wood stork.

 

The Corps has determined the proposal may affect the Florida Bonneted Bat (Eumops floridanus).  The project is located within the South Florida Urban Bat Area within Miami- Dade County.  The Corps will request initiation of formal consultation with the Fish and Wildlife Service/National Marine Fisheries Service pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act by separate letter. 

 

ESSENTIAL FISH HABITAT (EFH):  The proposed project would have no impacts on tidally influenced water. Therefore, our initial determination is that the proposed action would have no impact on EFH or Federally managed fisheries.

 

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.  The jurisdictional line [has/has not] been verified by Corps personnel.

 

AUTHORIZATION FROM OTHER AGENCIES:  Water Quality Certification may be required from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and/or one of the state Water Management Districts.

 

COMMENTS regarding the potential authorization of the work proposed should be

submitted in writing to the attention of the District Engineer through the Miami Permits

Section, 9900 Southwest 107th Avenue, Suite 203 Miami, Florida 33176 within 21 days from the date of this notice.

 

The decision whether to issue or deny this permit application will be based on the information received from this public notice and the evaluation of the probable impact to the associated wetlands.  This is based on an analysis of the applicant's avoidance and minimization efforts for the project, as well as the compensatory mitigation proposed.

 

QUESTIONS concerning this application should be directed to the project manager, Albert Gonzalez, in writing at the Miami Permits Section, 9900 SW 107th Avenue, Suite 203, Miami, FL 33176; by electronic mail at albert.gonzalez@usace.army.mil; or, by telephone at (305)779-6055. 

 

IMPACT ON NATURAL RESOURCES: 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.

 

EVALUATION: The decision whether to issue a permit will be based on an evaluation of the probable impact including cumulative impacts of the proposed activity on the public interest. That decision 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. All factors which may be relevant to the proposal will be considered including cumulative impacts thereof; among these are 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. Evaluation of the impact of the activity on the public interest will also include application of the guidelines promulgated by the Administrator, EPA, under authority of Section 404(b) of the Clean Water Act or the criteria established under authority of Section 102(a) of the Marine Protection Research and Sanctuaries Act of 1972.  A permit will be granted unless its issuance is found to be contrary to the public interest.

 

The US Army Corps of Engineers (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 impacts of this proposed activity. Any comments received will be considered by the Corps to determine whether to issue, modify, condition, or deny a permit for this proposal. To make this determination, comments are used to assess impacts to endangered species, historic properties, water quality, general environmental effects, and the other public interest factors listed above. Comments are also used to determine the need for a public hearing and to determine the overall public interest of the proposed activity.

 

COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT CONSISTENCY: In Florida, the State approval constitutes compliance with the approved Coastal Zone Management Plan.  In Puerto Rico, a Coastal Zone Management Consistency Concurrence is required from the Puerto Rico Planning Board.  In the Virgin Islands, the Department of Planning and Natural Resources permit constitutes compliance with the Coastal Zone Management Plan.

 

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.