Public Notice Notifications

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SAJ-1995-07597(SP-VEK)

Published Feb. 24, 2020
Expiration date: 3/16/2020
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) and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. §403) as described below:

APPLICANT: Boca Owner, LLC
c/o MSD Real Estate Partners
645 Fifth Avenue, 21st Floor
New York, NY 10022

WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States associated with the Intracoastal Waterway. The project site is located at 501 East Camino Real in Section 29, Township 47 south, Range 43 east, Boca Raton, Palm Beach County, Florida.

Directions to the site are as follows: From I-95 South, take the Yamato Road Exit 48A-B toward Spanish River Blvd/FAU Blvd. Take the Yamato Road Exit 48B on the left. Then, keep left to take the ramp toward Boca Raton. Turn left onto Yamato Rd/FL-794. Turn right onto N Federal Hwy/US-1 S/ FL-5. After approximately 3.8 miles, turn left onto E. Camino Real and continue north on Boca Raton Drive to access the site.

APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES:
Latitude: 26.339883°
Longitude: -80.077428°

PROJECT PURPOSE:

Basic: water access and shoreline stabilization

Overall: Improve water access and provide shoreline stabilization for an existing marina located in the Intracoastal Waterway adjacent to 501 East Camino Real, Boca Raton, FL 33432.

EXISTING CONDITIONS: The existing marina associated with the Boca Raton Resort has 23 multi-purpose wet slips. The property contains a total of 4,399.5 ft2 of dock area, including a 12'x10' fixed platform, a 60'x7' floating dock, an 18'x4' access ramp, a 937 ft2 U-shaped dock, an 85.1’ x 5’ finger pier, (5) 80’ x 5’ finger piers, a 47’ x 5’ finger pier and a 38’ x 5’ finger pier. The property shoreline consists of 295.1 linear feet of unconsolidated shoreline and 1,297.4 linear feet of vertical concrete seawall. The unconsolidated shoreline consists of a vegetated canopy that includes a 337 ft2 area occupied by a single mature black mangrove (Avicennia germinans), cabbage palmetto (Sabal palmetto), and seagrape (Coccoloba uvifera). A survey was requested to assess the existing conditions of submerged aquatic vegetation throughout the project area, but has not yet been submitted by the applicant.

PROPOSED WORK: The applicant seeks authorization to:
• Install a new 295.1 linear feet concrete panel seawall with a 3’ wide cap, (30) 12”x12” concrete batter piles and (30) 12”x12” concrete king piles along unconsolidated shoreline.
• Place 20 yd3 of fill material within an 85 ft2 area located waterward of the MHWL in the Intracoastal Waterway
• Install a 205’x12’ floating dock, a 233’x12’ floating dock, (2) 40’x4’ gangways and a 30’x15’ fixed platform on (49) 12”x12” concrete pilings for the creation of 9 wet slips in addition to the 23 existing wet slips
• Install a 376.5 linear feet concrete panel seawall within 18” of an existing seawall with a 3’ wide cap, (38) 12”x12” concrete batter piles and (38) 12”x12” concrete king piles.
• Repair/replace an existing 12’x10’ platform, a 60’x7’ floating dock and an 18’x4’ ramp within the same footprint
• Install a 920.9 linear feet x 3ft seawall cap overpour and (92) 12”x12” batter piles on an existing seawall.


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:

The seawall installation and repair are proposed to allow for shoreline stabilization and were designed to minimally encroach the waterway. The existing black mangrove cannot be avoided in order to stabilize the shoreline as the canopy interferes with the proposed seawall footprint and the trunk of the tree is within the proposed upland backfill of the seawall. The floating docks are proposed to allow transient mooring at the resort and are proposed outside the existing channel.

COMPENSATORY MITIGATION – The applicant has provided the following explanation why compensatory mitigation should not be required:

Compensatory mitigation should not be required for the one existing black mangrove located in the project footprint. The existing mangrove is landward of the mean high water line and thus rarely provides fish habitat (only at extreme high tides). While the majority of canopy is waterward of the mean high water line, this has no effect on waters of the United States.

CULTURAL RESOURCES: The Corps is aware of historic property/properties within or in close proximity of the permit area. The Corps will initiate consultation with the State Historic Preservation Office and if applicable, those federally recognized tribes with concerns in Florida and the Permit Area, and the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation as applicable pursuant to 33 CFR 325, Appendix C and Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, by separate letter.

ENDANGERED SPECIES:
The Corps has determined the proposed project may affect, but is not likely to adversely affect the West Indian Manatee (Trichechus manatus). Use of The Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, and the State of Florida Effect Determination Key for the Manatee in Florida (the Key) dated April 2013 and the May 2019 Addendum produced the sequential determination of A-B-C-G-H-I-J-K-N-O-P, paragraph 3 “may affect, not likely to adversely affect”. The project has been developed to be consistent with Palm Beach County’s State-approved Manatee Protection Plan (MPP) and the number of proposed slips is below the MPP threshold. The MANLAA determination is also based on the applicant adhering to the “Standard Manatee Conditions for In-Water Work (2011)”. By letters dated 25 April 2013 and 13 May 2019, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) stated that for proposed in-water activities analyzed with the April 2013 version of the Manatee Key and May 2019 Addendum in which the Corps reaches a MANLAA determination with respect to the manatee, the FWS concurs with the Corps determination in accordance with 50 CFR 402.14(b) 1; and no further consultation with the FWS is required.
The Corps has determined the proposed project may affect, but is not likely to adversely affect Loggerhead (Caretta caretta), Green (Chelonia mydas), and Kemp’s Ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) sea turtles, Smalltooth sawfish (Pristis pectinata) and Johnson’s seagrass (Halophila johnsonii). The Corps will evaluate the proposed work utilizing National Marine Fisheries Service’s Jacksonville District’s Programmatic Biological Opinion (JAXBO) dated 20 November 2017.

ESSENTIAL FISH HABITAT (EFH): This notice initiates consultation with the National Marine Fisheries Service on EFH as required by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 1996.The proposal would impact approximately 0.26 acres of submerged aquatic habitat utilized by various life stages of penaeid shrimp complex, reef fish, stone crab, spiny lobster, migratory/pelagic fish, and snapper/grouper complex. Our initial determination is that the proposed action would not have a substantial adverse impact on EFH or Federally managed fisheries in the South Atlantic Region. Our final determination relative to project impacts and the need for mitigation measures is dependent upon the receipt of a submerged aquatic resource survey and is subject to review by and coordination with the National Marine Fisheries Service.

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 not been verified by Corps personnel.

AUTHORIZATION FROM OTHER AGENCIES: Water Quality Certification will 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 Palm Beach Gardens Section, 4400 PGA Boulevard, Suite 500, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410 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, Virginia King, in writing at the Palm Beach Gardens Permits Section, 4400 PGA Boulevard, Suite 500, Palm Beach Gardens, FL, 33410; by electronic mail at Virginia.E.King@usace.army.mil ; or, by telephone at (561) 472-3515.

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.

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.