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: Joshua Kerrigan
Yacht Management South Florida, Inc.
3001 W State Road 84
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33312
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States associated with the South Fork of New River. The project site is located at 3001 W State Road 84, Section 20, Township 50 South, Range 42 East, Fort Lauderdale, Broward County, Florida.
Directions to the site are as follows: Take I-95 South from Palm Beach Gardens, to exit 25 and merge on to FL-84 West/ Marina Mile Boulevard, Right onto Marina Road and then left into the parking lot.
APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES:
Latitude: 26.0859°
Longitude: -80.1837°
PROJECT PURPOSE:
Basic: Improve shoreline stability and water access
Overall: Improve shoreline stability and water access at an existing commercial marina at 3001 W State Road 84 in Fort Lauderdale, Broward County.
EXISTING CONDITIONS: The project is located at an existing 47 slip marina along the South Fork New River. The facility is used for the mooring, sale and repair of
recreational vessels without fueling facilities, with a sewage pumpout and without liveaboards.
PROPOSED WORK: The applicant seeks authorization to improve shoreline stability and water access at an existing 47 slip (22 wet; 25 dry) commercial marina through the replacement of an existing seawall and dock, dredging, and construction of an upland cut travel lift basin. No new slips are proposed. Specifically, the project entails the:
1) Installation of 194.2 linear feet of a concrete panel seawall with a 3-foot concrete cap;
2) Replacement of 194.9 linear feet of concrete panel seawall, 18 inches waterward of the existing seawall with a 3-foot concrete cap, requiring the placement of approximately 292.4 cubic yards of backfill;
2) Installation of forty (40) concrete 12-inch king piles and forty (40) concrete 12- inch batter piles;
3) Replacement of an 840 square foot wood dock with nineteen (19) 12-inch wood dock pilings;
4) Installation of two (2) 1,600 sq. ft. travel lift piers (600 sq. ft. overwater);
5) Maintenance dredging of 11,385 sq. ft. (3,355 cubic yards) to -8.0 feet mean low water; and
6) Upland excavation of 2,485 sq. ft. (1,100 cubic yards) to -8.0 feet mean low water.
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:
A benthic resource survey was not conducted but no seagrass or corals are anticipated to be present within the Project area due to the low salinity levels in the area.
Furthermore, prior to construction activities, turbidity control devices will be installed in a manner to contain disturbed sediments within the limits of construction of the Project.
Standard manatee conditions for in-water work and sea turtle and smalltooth sawfish construction conditions will also be implemented during project construction.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION – The applicant has offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment:
The applicant has stated that no compensatory mitigation should be required because the project does not directly or indirectly impact hardbottom, seagrasses, or other aquatic resources.
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 Corps has determined the proposed project may affect, but not likely to adversely affect the threatened West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus) and would not adversely modify its designated critical habitat. Use of The Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, and the State of Florida Effect Determination Key for the Manatee in Florida, (the Key) dated April 2013 and May 2019 Addendum, results in the following sequential determination: A-B-C-G-N-O-P, paragraph 1 “may affect, not likely to adversely affect.” Applicant will adhere to the “Manatee construction conditions.” Therefore, no further coordination pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is necessary.
The Corps has determined that the project may affect but is not likely to adversely affect swimming sea turtles [green (Chelonia mydas), Kemp’s Ridley (Lepidochelys kempii), and Loggerhead (Caretta caretta)]; and smalltooth sawfish (Pristis pectinata) and Giant Manta Ray (Manta birostris). Smalltooth sawfish, and swimming sea turtles may be affected by being unable to use an area for forage or refuge habitat due to potential avoidance of construction activities caused by the installation of the seawall. Since these species are motile and likely to leave the area during construction, the risk of injury from this type of construction activity is minimal. The Corps will request National Marine Fisheries Service's concurrence with this determination pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act by separate letter.
ESSENTIAL FISH HABITAT (EFH): This notice initiates consultation on EFH as required by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1996. The proposal would fill approximately 13,870 square feet of submerged lands, which are utilized by various life stages of penaeid shrimp complex, reef fish, stone crab, spiny lobster, migratory/pelagic fish, and snapper/grouper complex. Our initial determination is that the proposed action would not have a substantial adverse impact on EFH or Federally managed fisheries within the South Atlantic Region. 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 activity 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 Palm Beach Gardens Permits Section, 4400 PGA Boulevard, Suite 500, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida 33410 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, Patricia Clune, in writing at the Palm Beach Gardens Permits Section, 4400 PGA Boulevard, Suite 500, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida 33410; by electronic mail at Patricia.R.Clune@usace.army.mil or, by telephone at (561)785-3261.
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 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: WQC is required from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP). The project is being reviewed under FDEP application no. 06-0138215-001
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.