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: Key Biscayne Yacht Club, Inc
180 Harbor Drive
Key Biscayne, FL 33143
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States associated with Biscayne Bay. The project site is located at 180 Harbor Drive, Key Biscayne, FL 33143.
Directions to the site are as follows: From I-95 South, take exit 1A toward Rickenbacker Causeway/Key Biscayne. Turn onto SW 26th Rd and continue onto Rickenbacker Causeway. Continue onto Crandon Blvd. and turn right onto Harbor Drive. At the traffic circle, take the 1st exit and stay on Harbor Drive. The destination will be on your right.
APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES:
Latitude: 25.698673°
Longitude: -80.169244°
PROJECT PURPOSE:
Basic: The basic project proposes to stabilize the shoreline and improve water access.
Overall: The overall project is to provide shoreline stabilization and improved water access at the existing Key Biscayne Yacht Club.
EXISTING CONDITIONS: The project site consists of a 140-slip (100 wet slips, 40 dry slips) docking facility fronting Biscayne Bay and is located within the Biscayne Bay Aquatic Preserve. The facility has three (3) main docks (North, Central, South), a boat ramp, fueling facilities, various accessory docks, a riprap breakwater, and a canal located on the south end (Hacienda Canal). The onsite vegetation consists of sparse, patchy seagrass throughout and occasional non-federally listed corals along the seawall.
PROPOSED WORK: The applicant seeks authorization to improve water access and stabilize the shoreline by conducting the following activities:
• Repair and replace a 689 linear foot portion of seawall within 18” (wetface to wetface) of the existing seawall;
• Place one bead of riprap at the base of the new seawall (30 cubic yards total);
• Temporarily remove portions of timber dock and associated piles where necessary to accommodate seawall replacement and will be replaced within the same footprint as existing;
• Repair and replace an existing 565 square foot marginal dock;
• Existing slabs will be cut along each side of the launching dock (launching dock to remain) and replaced with 1,740 square foot concrete slabs and a 87 square foot cement bag footer;
• Repair and replace boat ramp retaining walls;
• Replace an existing 1,592 square foot fixed, concrete dock with a new 3,189 square foot floating dock with reconfigured finger piers;
• Replace an existing 1,280 square foot floating dock and associated gangways with a new 3,840 square foot floating dock;
• Maintenance dredging by removing approximately 619 cubic yards of sediment from 9,770 square foot area;
• New dredging by removing approximately 38 cubic yards of sediment from 1,424 square foot area under slip 69 and approximately 16.4 cubic yards of sediment from 876 square foot area under slip 16;
• Relocate 3 slips to the end of the T-head of the Central Dock;
• Three (3) existing finger piers will be removed and relocated within remaining Slips 34 – 38 to allow for widening (approx. 11 feet wide) of those slips;
• Concrete crack and spall repairs to the existing pile caps and slabs of the existing North and Central docks, as necessary, within the same footprint as the existing structures.
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 seawall replacement is necessary for the safety and stability of the uplands and boat ramp repairs are within the same footprint as existing and are required for continued safe access to the water by users. The maintenance dredging is necessary to accommodate continued use of the Hacienda Canal for KBYC’s various youth programs. The majority of the new overwater dock footprint is within an area that lacks any marine resources and consists of only a silty sediment. New impact area anticipated from the South Dock reconfiguration (136 square feet) is minimal and has been reduced to the greatest extent possible. The proposed slip dredging is the minimum necessary to meet DERM’s clearance requirements and is taking place within an active, shallow water slip. Lastly, the proposed slip reallocation and SSL lease area modification results in a decrease in overall SSL lease area within the BBAP. The area to which the slips will be relocated is devoid of any resources and will not result in adverse impacts to navigation, water quality, or habitat.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION – The applicant has offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment:
The applicant has provided the following explanation why compensatory mitigation should not be required:
Mitigation is not currently being proposed for the anticipated new impacts as these impacts are minimal (961.1 SF) and are occurring within an existing, authorized marina. Indirect impacts from overwater dock and slip shading will result in impacts to 468 SF of seagrass with <25% coverage. The remaining 493.1 SF of new impacts to seagrass (up to 30% coverage, primarily <25% coverage) anticipated by the Project will be directly impacted by dredging, however, the dredging is occurring within two (2) previously authorized slips. Dredging is the minimum necessary to achieve the County-recommended clearance requirements for the vessel sizes being moored within those slips. Furthermore, the seagrass documented within these slips holds little to no ecological value as it was observed to be very patchy and covered with sedimentation (refer to the resource survey report provided with the application). These seagrasses are likely not substantial enough to stabilize substrate or provide significant habitat benefits. The anticipated new impacts are expected to be temporary in nature, as water depths are shallow on site and these seagrasses have shown that they will grow back after dredging events (as seen in the initial Hacienda Canal dredging project – FDEP File No. 13- 0081749-010).
A compensatory mitigation plan was paid for on March 25, 2015, for 0.48 acre of off-site, in-kind seagrass mitigation to offset direct impacts to 0.14 acre (6,200 square feet) of seagrass habitat within Hacienda Canal for the initial proposed projects associated with permit SAJ-2010-03327.
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 project is located in waters accessible to manatees, within the manatee consultation area, and within manatee designated critical habitat.
The Corps has determined the proposal may affect, but is not likely to adversely affect the manatee (Trichechus manatus) or its designated critical habitat. The Corps will request initiation of formal consultation with the Fish and Wildlife Service pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act by separate letter.
The Corps has determined the proposed project may affect, but is not likely to adversely affect sea turtles (loggerhead (Caretta caretta), leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), Kemp's ridley (Lepidochelys kempii), hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricate), and green (Chelonia mydas); smalltooth sawfish (Pristis pectinate) or its designated critical habitat. The Corps has determined that the project meets JAXBO therefore no further consultation with National Marine Fisheries Service is required. National Marine Fisheries Service has provided programmatic concurrence pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act for projects that meet the criteria established in JAXBO.
In addition, the project is located within American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) consultation area. While the project is located within the crocodile consultation area, the parcel is not accessible to the crocodile. The species nests in sand, mud, and dead vegetation along the edge of suitable aquatic habitat. The shoreline at the project site is stabilized by a seawall. Therefore, the area could provide foraging habitat; however, it is not expected to provide nesting area for the species. In consideration of the lack of nesting habitat at the site, the Corps has determined that this project would have no effect upon this species.
ESSENTIAL FISH HABITAT (EFH): Our initial determination is that the proposed action would not have a substantial adverse impact on EFH or Federally managed fisheries in the Biscayne Bay. Our initial determination is that the proposed action would not have a substantial adverse impact on EFH or Federally managed fisheries within the Biscayne Bay Cars Sound Sanctuary. 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.
NAVIGATION: The proposed structure is not located in the vicinity of a federal navigation channel.
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.
COMMENTS regarding the potential authorization of the work proposed should be submitted in writing to the attention of the District Engineer through the Antilles-Miami Permits Section, 9900 SW 107th Ave, Suite #203, Miami Fl 33176 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, Madison Pollard, in writing at the Antilles-Miami Permits Section, 9900 SW 107th Ave #203, Miami, FL 33176; by electronic mail at Madison.J.Pollard@usace.army.mil; by telephone at (754) 273-5565.
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.
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: Water Quality Certification may be required from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP). The project is being reviewed under FDEP application no. 13-081749-014-EI.
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.