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. John Haskins
W3774 Western Hills Drive
West Salem, Wisconsin 54669
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States including jurisdictional wetlands adjacent to Saint (St.) George Sound. The project site is located at 1207 East Gulf Beach Drive in Section 29, Township 9 South, Range 6 West, Saint George Island, Franklin County, Florida.
Directions to the site are as follows: Travel east along State Road 98 into Franklin County. Turn left onto County Road 300. Heading south, cross the bridge to St. George Island. Turn left onto Gulf Beach Drive and travel east approximately 1 mile. Turn left on the first road past Russell Way. Travel north to the end of the drive; property is on the right at the bend in the road.
APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES: Latitude: 29.675684°
Longitude: -84.828620°
PROJECT PURPOSE:
Basic: Residential development.
Overall: To construct a single-family residential structure with water access and parking area suitable for multiple vehicles on St. George Island, Franklin County, Florida.
EXISTING CONDITIONS: The subject property is currently undeveloped, and is comprised of 95% palustrine wetlands. The existing area surrounding the project site has been developed with single-family residences and roads. The property is bordered by St. George Sound on the north side, a residential dirt road on the south side, and single-family residences to the east and west.
PROPOSED WORK: The applicant seeks authorization to impact jurisdictional wetlands associated with the placement of 0.318 acre of clean dirt fill and a wooden retaining wall for the purpose of constructing one single-family residence with associated parking area and sewage treatment system. The proposed fill area would be 102.5’ wide x 135’ long and encompass approximately half of the lot.
AVOIDANCE AND MINIMIZATION INFORMATION: The applicant has reduced the proposed acreage of fill in the original project design from 0.58 acre to the currently proposed 0.318 acre. The proposed fill is the minimum required to provide for the residence, parking area and sewage treatment system. The remaining 0.45 acre of wetlands on site would be left undisturbed. The applicant would further minimize impacts to the remaining wetlands on site by installing a retaining wall at the edge of the proposed fill, and by using best management practices (BMPs) such as silt fencing and hay bales during construction.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION: The applicant has offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment: The applicant has proposed to purchase credits from Horseshoe Creek Mitigation Bank. The number of credits that would be purchased is to be determined.
CULTURAL RESOURCES: The Corps 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:
Eastern Indigo snake may utilize the project site. Review of the project in accordance with the Florida Programmatic Concurrence and Key dated January 25, 2010, results in a not likely to adversely affect determination for the Eastern Indigo snake (A-B-C-D-E-NLAA) provided the Standard Protection Measures for the Eastern Indigo Snake (Service 2013) would be used during site preparation and construction.
The Corps utilized the “Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Jacksonville Ecological Services Field Office and State of Florida Effect Determination Key for the Wood Stork in Central and North Peninsular Florida”, dated September 2008. A determination of no effect was concluded for the Wood Stork (A-B-NE) due to the project not occurring in proximity to a nesting colony and no suitable foraging habitat affected.
Determinations will be either: no effect; may affect, not likely to adversely affect; may affect, likely to adversely affect. For multiple species a table may be included that lists each effect determination for each species. If the Corps used a SLOPES agreement in the process of making an effect determination, outline the process followed to come to the effect determination.
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.
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 (Blvd), Suite 411 Panama City Beach, Florida 32407 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. Kelly Bunting, in writing at Panama City Permits Section, 415 Richard Jackson Blvd, Suite 411 Panama City, Florida 32407; by electronic mail at Kelly.A.Bunting@usace.army.mil; or, by telephone at (850) 763-0717, extension 2.
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 certifying authority, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP). The project is being reviewed by the certifying authority.
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.