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: Range Water Real Estate
Attention: Michael Oliver
5605 Glenridge Drive NE
Atlanta, Georgia 30342
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States associated with Open Creek, a tidal creek that flows into Pablo Creek. The project site is located on the east side of San Pablo Road one mile north of J. Turner Butler Boulevard.
Directions to the site are as follows: From the intersection with J. Turner Butler Boulevard, drive approximately one mile north on San Pablo Parkway to property east of the Gate gas station.
APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES: Latitude 30.270898°
Longitude –81.439085°
PROJECT PURPOSE:
Basic: The basic project purpose is residential development.
Overall: The overall project purpose is multi-family residential development within the geographical area between Atlantic Boulevard to the north, Pablo Creek to the south of J. Turner Butler Boulevard to the south, Hodges boulevard to the west, and the Intracoastal Waterway to the east, in Jacksonville, Duval County, Florida.
EXISTING CONDITIONS:
a. Project History: In October 2018, a Nationwide Permit 29 was authorized for an area north of this location. The permit expires March 18, 2022; however, to date, work has not commenced. It was reverified July 2019 with the same expiration date. On October 1, 2018, a No Permit Required was provided for an area north of this site for wetland fill in an area with aquatic resources that were determined to be non-jurisdictional and was also documented with an Approved Jurisdictional Determination (AJD) dated August 7, 2017. Additionally, on October 1, 2018, a No Permit Required was provided for an area south of Beach Boulevard on the west side of San Pablo Parkway for wetland fill in an area with aquatic resources that were determined to be non-jurisdictional and was also documented with an Approved Jurisdictional Determination (AJD) dated August 7, 2017.
b. General Conditions: The wetland system consists of a freshwater system adjacent to a tidal system. The project site is undeveloped; however, a gas station o the west is currently under construction. South and east of the project site location is the tidal Open Creek. There is a fringe of marsh between the project site location and the creek.
c. Vegetation: The onsite vegetation has been categorized pursuant to the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) publication Florida Land Use, Cover and Forms Classification System (FLUCFCS) as described below.
(i) Upland Temperate Hardwoods (FLUCFCS 425) 6.3 acres: The vegetation on the property is predominantly an upland hardwood forest. The canopy is dominated by such species as live oak (Quercus virginiana), water oak (Q. nigra), laurel oak (Q. laurifolia), pignut hickory (Carya glabra), and southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora). The canopy also includes scattered longleaf pine (Pinus palustris), slash pine (P. elliottii), southern red cedar (Juniperus silicicola), and cabbage palm (Sabal palmetto). The understory and ground cover vegetation includes such species as saw palmetto (Serenoa repens), bitter gallberry (Ilex glabra), yaupon holly (I. vomitoria), staggerbush (Lyonia ferruginea), tree sparkleberry (Vaccinium arboreum), wild olive (Osmanthus americanus), beauty berry (Callicarpa americana), and bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum).
(ii) Wetland Forested Mixed (FLUCFCS 630) 0.08: The outer perimeters of the property along the western, southern and eastern edges include very small areas of forested wetland. These areas comprise the upper edges of seepage slope wetlands and are vegetated with such species as water oak, loblolly bay (Gordonia lasianthus), fetterbush (Lyonia lucida), and cinnamon fern (Osmunda cinnamomea).
d. Soils: The Soil Survey of City of Jacksonville, Duval County, Florida (U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service 1998) indicates there are two soils on the property as described below.
(i) Lynn Haven fine sand, 0 to 2 percent slopes: The majority of the property is mapped as Lynn Haven fine sand. This is a nearly level to gently sloping, very poorly drained soil that naturally occurs in wetlands. Under normal conditions the seasonal high water table is at or near the ground surface during the rainy season. This soil has surface layer of black colored sand that is 8 to 20 inches thick and a layer for very dark colored, weakly cemented sand known as a spodic horizon starting around 20 to 30 inches below the ground surface.
(ii) Leon fine sand, 0 to 2 percent slopes: The far northwest corner of the property is mapped as Leon fine sand. This is a nearly level, poorly drained soil that naturally occurs in upland pine flatwoods. Under normal conditions the seasonal high water table is at a depth of 6 to 18 inches below the ground surface. This soil has a spodic horizon starting within 30 inches of the ground surface.
PROPOSED WORK: The applicant seeks authorization to discharge fill into 0.08-acre of palustrine forested wetlands adjacent to tidal to construct a multifamily residential apartment complex. The applicant also seeks authorization to temporarily impact 0.07-acre of palustrine forested wetlands to install underground utilities. After the utilities are installed, the impact area would be restored to the adjacent wetland grade and allowed to naturally revegetate.
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 project was designed to avoid and minimize wetland impacts as much as possible. Almost one half of the proposed fill impact was previously authorized for the adjacent Gate gas station. The impacts are required due to the very limited amount of upland and the configuration of the wetland line.”
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION – The applicant has offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment:
“Mitigation would be accomplished through the purchase of credit from a 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 the Wood Stork (Mycteria americana) and eastern indigo snake (Drymarchon corais couperi). The Corps will request U.S. Fish and Wildlife/National Marine Fisheries Service concurrence with this determination pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act. The Corps has determined the project would have no effect on the Red-Cockaded Woodpecker (Picoides borealis) due to lack of appropriate habitat.
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 Open Creek. Our final determination relative to project impacts and the need for mitigation measures is subject to review by and coordination with the National Marine Fisheries Service.
SECTION 408: The applicant will not require permission under Section 14 of the Rivers and Harbors Act (33 USC 408) because the activity, in whole or in part, would not 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 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 Jacksonville Permits Section, 701 San Marco Boulevard, Jacksonville, Florida 32207 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, Terri Mashour, in writing at the Jacksonville Permits Section, 701 San Marco Boulevard, Jacksonville, Florida 32207; by electronic mail at Terri.M.Mashour@usace.army.mil; or, by telephone at (904) 570-4512.
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.
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.