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: Enclaves at Eagles Nest, LLC
Attn: Randy Thibaut
10471 Six Mile Cypress Pkwy, Ste 402
Fort Myers, FL 33966
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States associated with freshwater forested wetlands within the Daughtry Creek watershed of the Caloosahatchee River drainage basin. The project site is west of I-75, south of Bayshore Rd, and north of Donald Rd in Section 30, Township 43 South, Range 25 East, in Fort Myers, Lee County, Florida.
Directions to the site are as follows: From Fort Myers, FL, proceed North on US-41 to Bayshore Rd. Make right on Bayshore Rd and travel approximately 3.5 miles. Property will be located on the right.
APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES: Latitude 26.69871°
Longitude -81.84617°
PROJECT PURPOSE:
Basic: Residential and commercial development
Overall: To construct a commercial and residential development in North Fort Myers, Lee County, Florida.
EXISTING CONDITIONS: The wetland system consists of a 7.27 acre palustrine forested freshwater system of which 5.57 acres are part of an onsite wetland preserve that is in a conservation easement with the South Florida Water Management District. The onsite vegetation consists of Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum), Slash Pine (Pinus elliotti), Melaleuca (Melaleuca quinquenervia), and Brazilian pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius). The preserve area also includes 8.07 acres of upland preserve and 1.21 acres of associated upland buffer. The existing conditions surrounding the project area consists of a developed residential community to the north and south, a developed commercial property to the northwest which was completed as Phase 1 of this project, and undeveloped properties to the east and west.
BACKGROUND: The initial permit was issued on 4 May 2009 to GFY Associates, LLC for a 3 phase project. Phase one of the project for the commercial portion of the property was completed. A Department of Army Permit Transfer request was submitted on 15 April 2014 transferring the permit to Enclaves at Eagles Landing. A modification was issued on 8 July 2014 to extend the permit for two years to complete the remaining phases of the project. A request was submitted to the Corps for a second modification to the permit on 28 March 2016.
PROPOSED WORK: The permitee seeks authorization to mechanically remove existing vegetation and discharge 13,518 cubic yards of clean fill into 2.04 acres of freshwater forested wetlands, impact 2.68 acres by placing 10,389 cubic yards of fill into an existing conservation easement; of which, 1.96 acres of impacts are to upland preserve and 0.72 acres are associated buffer, for the construction of a residential development.
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 applicant will utilize best management practices and install silt fence barriers to prevent soil erosion into the remaining wetlands on the property.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION – The applicant has offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment:
The permitee has proposed to amend the original mitigation plan and possibly purchase mitigation bank credits for the loss of the conservation easement impacts.
CULTURAL RESOURCES:
The project area has been previously surveyed for cultural resources in 2006 (DHR Survey #12968). The field work and reporting meet the standards required by the Florida SHPO and the Corps. No resources were identified and the SHPO issued a concurrence letter in 2006. The project has no potential to effect historic properties. Done
ENDANGERED SPECIES:
The Corps initiated informal consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) through a public notice on 1 May 2006 for the Eastern indigo snake (Drymarchon corais couperi), Red cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis), Wood stork (Mycteria americana), and Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et. seq.). FWS responded with a concurrence letter dated 15 November 2006 which included “may affect, not likely to adversely affect” (MANLAA) determinations for all species considered. The Corps again initiated informal consultation on 24 April 2014 with FWS for the Florida bonneted bat (Eumops floridanus) pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (Act), as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et. seq.). The result of the consultation process was that FWS provided a MANLAA concurrence letter dated 30 June 2014.
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 Fort Myers Permits Section, 1520 Royal Palm Square Blvd, Suite 310, Fort Myers, FL 33919 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, Steven Rabney, in writing at the Fort Myers Permits Section, 1520 Royal Palm Square Blvd, Suite 310, Fort Myers, FL 33919; by electronic mail at steven.j.rabney@usace.army.mil; or, by telephone at (239)800-2180 x0009.
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.