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-2022-00123 (SP-JMB)

USACE - REGULATORY
Published April 25, 2022
Expiration date: 5/25/2022

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:  Osceola County Transit and Transportation
                       Steven Kane
                       1 Courthouse Square, Suite 3100
                       Kissimmee, Florida 34741

WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States associated with Lake Tohopekaliga (HUC 030901010400). The project site is located along Neptune Road, extending from Partin Settlement Road to East Irlo Bronson Memorial Highway, Osceola County, Florida, in Sections 25 and 36, Township 25 South, Range 29 East, Sections 30, 31 and 32, Township 25 South, Range 30 East, and Sections 3, 4, 5 and 6, Township 26 South, Range 30 East.

Directions to the site are as follows: Take SR 528 West to State Road 417. Take Exit 16 towards Tampa. Merge onto State Road 417 south. Take exit 12 for the Florida's Turnpike and follow signs for Miami (Turnpike south). Take Exit 244 toward US-192 / US 441 / Kissimmee / St Cloud. Use the left 2 lanes to turn left onto US-192 E/US-441 S. Travel 1.2 miles east on US-192 E/US-441 S to intersection of Neptune Road and US-192 E. Arrive at project corridor.

APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES: Latitude 28.260836°
                                                                         Longitude -81.337850°

PROJECT PURPOSE:

Basic: Public roadway improvements.

Overall: The overall project purpose is to improve public roadway capacity and safety through expansion of Neptune Road from Partin Settlement Road to US 192 in Osceola County, Florida.

EXISTING CONDITIONS: The Neptune Road project corridor (Figure 1) is situated along the existing Neptune Road and extends from Partin Settlement Road eastward to US 192. Most of the Project is within unincorporated Osceola County, but the easternmost portion is within the City of St. Cloud. A variety of land uses including agricultural, residential, commercial, park, and institutional occur along the Project corridor, but the general trend is development of mostly detached single-family residential developments of a suburban character.

The wetlands located along the proposed corridor consists of a seventeen (17) freshwater systems including mixed wetland hardwoods (FLUCCS 617), wetland forested mixed (FLUCCS 630), scrub-shrub wetland (FLUCCS 632), and freshwater marsh (FLUCCS 641), further described below.

Mixed wetland hardwoods - Dominated by red maple, Chinese tallow, buttonbush, Brazilian pepper, elderberry, Carolina willow, Peruvian primrose willow, maidencane, duck potato, soft rush, cattail, Virginia chain fern, and pennywort.

Wetland forested mixed - Dominated by cypress, red maple, hackberry, laurel oak, sweetbay, Cabbage palm, buttonbush, Brazilian pepper, elderberry, Carolina willow, marsh fern, maidencane, soft rush, Virginia chain fern, duck potato, and multiple sedge species.

Scrub-shrub wetland - Dominated by elderberry, Carolina willow, Peruvian primrose willow, red maple, Chinese tallow, Brazilian pepper, maidencane, duck potato, and soft rush.

Freshwater marsh - Dominated by soft rush, Elliott’s rush, beaksedge, smartweed, Virginia broomsedge, torpedograss, maidencane, white-topped rush, and duck potato.

PROPOSED WORK: The applicant seeks authorization to directly impact 1.78 acres of wetland, and 0.32 acre of surface waters (roadside ditches and water control canals) to improve the existing two-lane roadway, proposing expansion to four lanes with surface water management ponds and a dedicated sidewalk for pedestrian safety.

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:

“As the Project proposes the expansion of capacity of an existing roadway corridor, alternatives are limited. There is no practical alternative to construction in wetlands as the Project is the widening of a roadway, and measures have been taken wherever possible to minimize harm to wetlands along the Project corridor.

Preliminary studies of the Project corridor identified four potential build alternatives. The primary distinctions were the location of the ROW expansion – either to the north or to the south. The preferred alternative was acquisition of additional ROW to the north side of the roadway. This alternative reduced direct impacts to wetlands by approximately 21 percent, as well as reducing surface water impacts by 26 percent. This alternative results in less impact to existing and future residential parcels.

Avoidance and minimization of potential wetland and surface water impacts were incorporated in the development of the proposed build alternative alignments, where possible. Most of the Project has been designed to occur within existing ROW, which reduces impacts to adjacent wetlands and surface waters. This plan represents the applicant’s best effort to avoid and minimize impacts to wetlands and surface waters.”

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

“To offset unavoidable impacts to wetlands, the Applicant is proposing compensatory mitigation credit purchase from an approved mitigation bank.”

CULTURAL RESOURCES:

The Corps is aware of recorded historic resources within or adjacent to the permit area and is evaluating the undertaking for effects to historic properties as required under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. This public notice serves to inform the public of the proposed undertaking and invites comments including those from local, State, and Federal government Agencies with respect to historic resources. Our final determination relative to historic resource impacts may be subject to additional coordination with the State Historic Preservation Officer, those federally recognized tribes with concerns in Florida and the Permit Area, and other interested parties.

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). The Corps will request U.S. Fish and Wildlife concurrence with this determination pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act.

The Corps has determined the proposal would have no effect on the Florida Bonneted Bat (Eumops floridanus), Red-cockaded Woodpecker (Picoides borealis), Florida Grasshopper Sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum floridanus), Everglades Snail Kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis plumbeus), Florida Scrub Jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens), Audubon's Crested Caracara (Caracara cheriway), Wood Stork (Mycteria americana), or their critical habitat.

Florida Bonneted Bat: The proposed work occurs within the consultation area for the Florida bonneted bat. The Corps completed an evaluation of the project based upon the Florida Bonneted Bat Consultation Guidelines and incorporated Florida Bonneted Bat Consultation Key (Key); Service Consultation Code: 41420-04EF2000-2014-I-0320-R001 and the results of the formal Florida bonneted bat survey conducted in 2020. Review of the key and survey findings resulted in the following sequential determination: 1a>2a>3b>6b, “no effect”.

Red Cockaded Woodpecker: The proposed work occurs within the consultation area for the woodpecker. Following the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) South Florida Ecological Services Office Species Conservation Guidelines (July 12, 2004) Standard Local Operating Procedures for Endangered Species (SLOPES) guideline, no suitable habitat will be impacted by the proposed work therefore, the Corps determined the proposed project would have “no effect” on the species.

Florida grasshopper sparrow: The proposed work occurs within the consultation area for the Florida grasshopper sparrow. Following the FWS South Florida Ecological Services Office Species Conservation Guidelines (June 15, 2004) Standard Local Operating Procedures for Endangered Species (SLOPES) guideline, no suitable habitat will be impacted by the proposed work therefore, the Corps determined the proposed project would have “no effect” on the species.

Everglade Snail Kite: The proposed work occurs within the consultation area for the snail kite. Following the FWS South Florida Ecological Services Office Species Conservation Guidelines (November 4, 2003) Standard Local Operating Procedures for Endangered Species (SLOPES) guideline, no suitable habitat will be impacted by the proposed work therefore, the Corps determined the proposed project would have “no effect” on the species.

Florida Scrub-Jay: The proposed work occurs within the consultation area for the scrub jay. Following the FWS South Florida Ecological Services Office Species Conservation Guidelines (May 28, 2004) Standard Local Operating Procedures for Endangered Species (SLOPES) guideline, no suitable habitat will be impacted by the proposed work therefore, the Corps determined the proposed project would have “no effect” on the species.

Audubon’s Crested Caracara: The proposed work occurs within the consultation area for the caracara. Following the FWS Species Conservation Guidelines (November 4, 2003) Standard Local Operating Procedures for Endangered Species (SLOPES) guideline, no suitable habitat will be impacted by the proposed work therefore, the Corps determined the proposed project would have “no effect” on the species.

Wood Stork: The Corps completed an evaluation of the project based upon the FWS South Florida Ecological Services Office (SFESO) Programmatic Concurrence Key for the Wood Stork in South Florida (January 2010). Use of the key resulted in the following sequential determination: A>B “no effect” as the project will not impact suitable foraging habitat (SFH). The Corps has determined that the activities authorized under this permit will have “no effect” on the species.

Eastern Indigo Snake: The Corps completed an evaluation of the project based upon the USFWS Eastern Indigo Snake Programmatic Effect Determination Key (2013). Use of the key resulted in the following sequential determination: A>B>C>D>E “not likely to adversely affect”, as the permit will be conditioned such that all gopher tortoise burrows, active or inactive, will be excavated prior to site manipulation in the vicinity of the burrow. If an eastern indigo snake is encountered, the snake must be allowed to vacate the area prior to additional site manipulation in the vicinity. The permit will also be conditioned such that holes, cavities, and snake refugia other than gopher tortoise burrows will be inspected each morning before planned site manipulation of a particular area, and, if occupied by an eastern indigo snake, no work will commence until the snake has vacated the vicinity of proposed work.

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. Our initial determination is that the proposed action would not have a substantial adverse impact on EFH or Federally managed fisheries in the Lake Tohopekaliga basin. The Corps has determined that the proposed action would not have no effect on EFH or Federally managed fisheries within the Lake Tohopekaliga basin and no further coordination is required.

NAVIGATION: The proposed structure would not have no effect on navigation within Waters of the United States.

SECTION 408: The applicant will require permission under Section 14 of the Rivers and Harbors Act (33 USC 408) because the activity, in whole or in part, would alter, occupy, or use a Corps Civil Works project.

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.

COMMENTS regarding the potential authorization of the work proposed should be submitted in writing to the attention of the District Engineer through the Cocoa Permits Section, 400 High Point Drive, Cocoa, Florida 32926 within 30 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, John Baehre, in writing at the Cocoa Permits Section, 400 High Point Drive, Cocoa, Florida 32926, by electronic mail at John.M.Baehre@usace.army.mil or by telephone at (321)504-3771 extension 0013.

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.
an evaluation of the impact of the proposed work on navigation and national security.

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.

WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION: This public notice serves as the notification to the EPA pursuant to section 401(a)(2) of the Clean Water Act. Water Quality Certification may be required from the South Florida Water Management District to address stormwater treatment.

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.