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: Mahesh Shah
ARHAM Partners, LLC
504 Parkwood Drive
Lynn Haven, Florida 32444
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States associated with an unnamed tributary to Goose Bayou. The project site is located at 2627 Highway 77, in Section 28, Township 3 south, Range 14 west, Panama City, Bay County, Florida.
Directions to the site are as follows: From U.S Highway 98 in Panama City turn north on Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard (SR 77) proceed north for 1.45 miles the project site will be on the west side of the road.
APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES: Latitude 30.19596°
Longitude -85.65103°
PROJECT PURPOSE:
Basic: Commercial development
Overall: To construct a hotel on State Road 77 between East 23rd Street and North Bay in Bay County, Florida.
EXISTING CONDITIONS: The wetland system consists of a freshwater system. The onsite vegetation consists of slash pine (Pinus elliottii), sweetbay (Magnolia virginiana), wax myrtle (Morella cerifera), black titi (Cliftonia monophylla) and red maple (Acer rubrum). The existing area surrounding the project site consists of a mixture of commercial and industrial projects as well as vacant land.
PROPOSED WORK: The applicant seeks authorization to build a commercial hotel and amenities resulting in filling of 0.95 acres of freshwater wetlands.
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 is the least damaging alternative of the sites that were considered for this project. The applicant was looking for a 2-3 acre site on Highway 77, south of North Bay and north of 23rd Street to target the Lynn Haven market, zoned commercial.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION – The applicant has offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment:
To offset the direct and secondary impacts associated with the proposed project, the applicant is proposing to purchase 0.45 forested wetland credits from the Breakfast Point Mitigation Bank.
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 (MANLAA) the eastern indigo snake (Drymarchon corais couperi) based on a programmatic consultation with the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the use of Standard Protection Measures for the Eastern Indigo Snake. Programmatic consultation with the FWS for the wood stork (Mycteria americana) also resulted in a determination of MANLAA. For red cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis), and Panama City crayfish (Procambarus econfinae) a determination of MANLAA was made and the Corps will request FWS concurrence with this determination pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act.
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 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 Permits Section, 415 Richard Jackson Boulevard, Suite 411, Panama City Beach, Florida 32407 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, Lisa Lovvorn, in writing at the Panama City Permits Section, 415 Richard Jackson Boulevard, Suite 411, Panama City Beach, Florida 32407; by electronic mail at Lisa.S.Lovvorn@usace.army.mil; or, by telephone at (850)285-9533.
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.