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: Mr. Cuong Nguyen
PCB Hotel, LLC
1848 Commercial Drive
Harvey, Louisiana 70058
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States
associated with West Bay. The project site is located on Back Beach Road in Section
32, Township 3 South, Range 15 West, Panama City Beach, Bay County, Florida.
Directions to the site are as follows: From Panama City, travel west on US Highway 98
over the Hathaway Bridge to Panama City Beach, veering right to continue on US
Highway 98 approximately 1,500 feet. The project site is on the south side of US
Highway 98 West and adjacent to the Express Lane convenience store. The project is
located in Section 32, Township 3 South, Range 15 West, Bay County, Florida.
APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES:
Latitude 30.188066°
Longitude -85.769137°
PROJECT PURPOSE:
Basic: Commercial development.
Overall: To construct a hotel to serve the east end of Panama City Beach (PCB) in the
vicinity of the proposed PCB Sports Complex in Bay County, Florida.
EXISTING CONDITIONS: The wetland system consists of freshwater system. The
onsite vegetation consists of Panicum sp., Carex sp., Fimbristylis sp., and
Rhynchospora sp. Hydric soil indicators are low chroma color, mucky texture in the top
2”. Hydrology indicators include saturation/inundation, drainage patterns in wetlands,
water marks, and a positive FAC-neutral test. Within the area identified as upland, all
vegetation has been cleared and fill material introduced. No hydric soil or hydrology
indicators were observed. The existing area surrounding the project area consists of a
road to the north and commercial entities to the west, east and south.
PROPOSED WORK: On 11 April 2005, the Corps authorized 1.1 acres of impact to
jurisdictional wetlands for commercial development. Work started but was not
completed. The permit expired on 11 April 2010.
The applicant seeks authorization to impact 0.19 acre of a previously permitted area,
0.1 acre of ditch area within the right-of-way of Back Beach Road and 0.71 acre of afterthe-
fact fill associated with the construction of a hotel, parking, and stormwater
management facilities. Erosion and sedimentation controls are proposed.
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 proposed project impacts wetlands that have been previously impacted and are
completely surrounded by development.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION – The applicant has offered the following
compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic
environment:
Previous mitigation required 5 acres of offsite wetland enhancement. The mitigation
area was placed into a conservation easement. The enhancement work was not
completed.
The applicant proposes to replace the previous permittee-responsible mitigation to the
use of mitigation bank credits to offset the 0.52 functional units of the previous permit.
The previous conservation easement including 5 acres would remain intact.
Additionally, the applicant is proposing to offset the additional loss of 0.32 functional
units with the use of mitigation bank credits. As such, the applicant is proposing to
purchase a total of 0.84 forested wetland credits from the Breakfast Point Mitigation
Bank to offset wetland impacts associated with the project.
CULTURAL RESOURCES: The Corps has determined the permit area has been
extensively modified by previous work and there is little likelihood a historic property
may be affected.
ENDANGERED SPECIES: The Corps has determined the proposal would have no
effect on any listed threatened or endangered species or designated critical habitat.
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
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 Panama City
Permit Section, 1002 West 23rd Street, Suite 350, Panama City, Florida 32405 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,
Mrs. Lisa S. Lovvorn, in writing at the Panama City Permits Section, 1002 West 23rd
Street, Suite 350, Panama City, Florida 32405; by electronic mail at
lisa.s.lovvorn@usace.army.mil; by facsimile transmission at (850) 872-0231; or, by
telephone at (850)763-0717, extension 27.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: After reviewing all available information pertaining to the
completed work, the Department of the Army has not recommended legal action at this
time. Final determination regarding legal action will be made after review of the project
through the permit procedure.
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 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.