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: Kovvan Properties, LLC
8461 Lake Worth Road, Suite 224
Lake Worth, FL 33467
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect aquatic resources associated with the L-8 Drainage Basin. The project site is located at Torreyana Circle, within Section 23, Township 42 south, Range 41 east, Palm Beach Gardens, Palm Beach County, Florida.
Directions to the site are as follows: From Interstate 95, exit onto Northlake Boulevard heading west. Turn left onto Bayhill Drive. Turn right onto Torreyana Circle. Project site is located on the south side of Torreyana Circle.
APPROXIMATE CENTRAL COORDINATES:
Latitude: 26.78609°
Longitude: -80.22872°
PROJECT PURPOSE:
Basic: The basic project purpose is to construct residential homes, as part of Phase 2 for an existing residential community.
Overall: The overall project purpose is to construct a residential home, as part of Phase 2 for an existing residential community Bayhill Estates.
EXISTING CONDITIONS and project history:
A South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) surface water management (SWM) permit (50-01111-S was issued in October 1983 for the overall 983.6 acre Stonewall Estates subdivision (which includes the existing Bayhill Estates). A SFWMD permit (50-01111-S-04) was issued for Phase 1, Plat 3 (both Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the subject property) development in November 2002 for the construction of 34 single family residences, roadways, and SWM system. Bayhill Estates Phase 1, is 81.33 acres Both Phase 1 and Phase 2 are the last undeveloped sections of the overall Stonewall Estates PUD master planned residential community. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) issued a No Permit Required (NPR) letter for Phase 1 in 2022. The Corps completed a Preliminary Jurisdictional Determination (PJD) for the property in 2019 under the Navigable Waters Protection Rule.
The proposed project site for Phase 2 is comprised of vacant, undeveloped land and open surface water that is surrounded by residential development including Ibis Country Club to the east and Royale Palm Beach Acreage to the south and west sides, and the overall Stonewall Estates residential community to the north. The site has been significantly altered over the last several decades. The onsite vegetation consists of earleaf acacia, Melaleuca, Australian pine, and slash pine. The existing surrounding area consists of single-family residences.
PROPOSED WORK: The applicant seeks authorization to discharge fill within 0.88 acres (7,143 cubic yards) of freshwater surface waters to create residential lots for Phase 2 of Bayhill Estates.
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:
Phase 2 consists of approximately 12.43 acres and is located at the western section of the Stonewall Estates subdivision. The current condition of the project site (Phase 2) has been additionally altered over the course of few decades due to adjacent construction activities, construction of drainage features, excavation and fill activities including for the master surface water management system (outfall to Indian Trail Water Control District canals), off road vehicle use, and infestation of exotic and nuisance plant species (ear leaf acacia, Melaleuca, Brazilian pepper, Australian pine).
The proposed area of impact will occur in the man-made surface water management system (NWW3) that was permitted as part of the previously issued ERP by SFWMD. A total of 0.88 acres will be filled behind lots 30, 33 and 34 in order to complete the residential lot boundaries according to the site plan approved by the City of Palm Beach Gardens and the SFWMD ERP modification. A total of 7,1043 cubic yards of fill material will be placed in NWW3 to complete this construction activity.
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:
Compensatory mitigation was addressed into the existing SFWMD permit (50-01111-S-02). Compensatory mitigation included 167.67acres of on-site wetland restoration onsite and 164.61 acres off-site restoration at Grassy Waters Preserve.
The goal of the mitigation plan is to provide compensatory mitigation for the direct impacts to 0.88 acres of surface water, and this will be accomplished according to the permit conditions and standards of the modified SFWMD ERP. No wetlands will be impacted for this project phase (Phase 2) and no additional compensatory mitigation is proposed. A total of 7,143 cubic yards of fill material will be required to complete this construction activity.
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: The Corps has determined the proposed project may affect but is not likely to adversely affect the Wood stork (Mycteria Americana): The proposed project is located within potential foraging areas according to the Resource at Risk report dated November 13, 2024. According to the Habitat Management Guidelines for the Wood Stork in the Southeast Region, written by John C. Ogden, storks feed primarily on small fish between 1-8 inches in length. Successful foraging sites are those where the water is between 2-15 inches deep. Suitable foraging habitat is located in the project footprint; therefore, potential impacts to the threatened Wood stork were evaluated using the South Florida Programmatic Concurrence (Key), dated 18 May 2010. Use of this Key produced the sequential determination A-B-not likely to adversely affect (NLAA), and therefore no further coordination with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife is required.
Florida’s Bonneted Bat (Eumops floridanus): Since the proposed activity is located within the Consultation Area for the Florida bonneted bat, potential impacts to the species were assessed using the Florida Bonneted Bat Consultation Key, 2019. Use of the key resulted in a path of 1A-2B-13b- No effect. Based the lack of roosting or foraging habitat in the project area and limited impacts the Corps has determined that the project will have no effect on the species.
ESSENTIAL FISH HABITAT (EFH): The proposal would impact approximately 0.88 acres of freshwater surface waters. The project area does not contain any EFH , therefore no further consultation pursuant to the Magnuson-Stevens Act is required.
NAVIGATION: The proposed project 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 Blvd, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 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, Jessica Bedsworth, in writing at the Palm Beach Gardens Permits Section, 4400 PGA Blvd, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410; by electronic mail at Jessica.F.Bedsworth@usace.army.mil; by facsimile transmission at (561) 626-6971; or, by telephone at (561)-545-3713.
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 South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD).
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.