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 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 U.S.C. §403). The purpose of this public notice is to solicit comments from the public regarding the work described below:
If you are interested in receiving additional project drawings associated with this public notice, please send an e-mail to the project manager by electronic mail at catrina.n.frey@usace.army.mil
APPLICANT: Tammy Cook
574 N Canal Dr
Port St. Joe, FL 32456
WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect waters of the United States and navigable waters of the United States associated with Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. The project/review area is located adjacent to 574 N Canal Dr, in 32 Section, 55 Township, 11W Range; at Latitude 30.00337 and Longitude -85.37403; in Port St. Joe, Gulf County, Florida.
EXISTING CONDITIONS: The site consists of a single-family residence with a previously authorized 4 foot by 200 foot access walkway with a 11 foot by 5 foot L-shaped platform totaling approximately 855 square feet, along the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.
PROJECT PURPOSE:
Basic: Improved water access.
Overall: To improve water access at a single-family residence along the Gulf Intracoastal waterway in Gulf County.
PROPOSED WORK: The applicant requests authorization to place a boatlift adjacent to an existing dock and dredge approximately 53.33 cubic yards (480 square feet) to a depth of – 4 feet Mean Low Water (MLW) within the proposed footprint.
AVOIDANCE AND MINIMIZATION: The applicant has provided the following information in support of efforts to avoid and/or minimize impacts to the aquatic environment:
The dredging area was carefully selected to avoid and minimize impacts to aquatic vegetation. The footprint is limited to the smallest area necessary for navigation access.
COMPENSATORY MITIGATION: The applicant has provided the following explanation why compensatory mitigation should not be required:
Because this is small project, it will cause very little disturbance to the environment, and there are not any important aquatic plants or animals in the area. So, we believe extra environmental offsets or mitigation should not be necessary.
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, federally recognized tribes and other interested parties.
The District Engineer’s final eligibility and effect determination will be based upon coordination with the SHPO and/or THPO, as appropriate and required, and with full consideration given to the proposed undertaking’s potential direct and indirect effects on historic properties within the Corps-identified permit area.
ENDANGERED SPECIES: The Corps has performed an initial review of the application, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Information for Planning and Consultation (IPaC), National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) SERO Section 7 Mapper, and the NMFS Critical Habitat Mapper to determine if any threatened, endangered, proposed, or candidate species, as well as the proposed and final designated critical habitat may occur in the vicinity of the proposed project. Based on this initial review, the Corps has made a preliminary determination that the proposed project may affect species and critical habitat listed below. No other ESA-listed species or critical habitat will be affected by the proposed action.
Table #1: ESA-listed species and/or critical habitat potentially present in the action area.
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Species Common Name and/or Critical Habitat Name
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Scientific Name
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Federal Status
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Loggerhead Sea Turtle
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Caretta caretta
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Threatened
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Green Sea Turtle
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Chelonia mydas
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Threatened
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Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtle
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Lepidochelys kempii
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Endangered
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Gulf Sturgeon
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Acipenser oxyrinchus
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Threatened
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Wood Stork
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Mycteria amerciana
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Threatened
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Piping plover
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Charadrius melodus
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Threatened
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West Indian Manatee
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Trichechus manatus
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Threatened
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Eastern Black Rail
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Laterallus jamaicensis jamaicensis
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Endangered
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This notice serves as request to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service for any additional information on whether any listed or proposed to be listed endangered or threatened species or critical habitat may be present in the area which would be affected by the proposed activity.
ESSENTIAL FISH HABITAT: Pursuant to the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 1996, the Corps reviewed the project area, examined information provided by the applicant, and consulted available species information.
This notice initiates the Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) consultation requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act. Our initial determination is that the proposed action may adversely affect EFH and/or fisheries managed by Fishery Management Councils and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). Implementation of the proposed project would indirectly impact approximately 0.01 acres of marsh. The effects of the project are determined to be minimal and temporary. These habitat(s) are utilized by the following species and their various life stages:
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: Based on the coordinates provided by the applicant, the waterward edge of the proposed structure is approximately 25 feet away from the near bottom edge of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway federal channel.
SECTION 408: The applicant may require permission under Section 14 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 (33 USC 408) because the activity, in whole or in part, could alter, occupy, or use a Corps Civil Works project.
WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION: Water Quality Certification may be required from the Florida Department of Environmental Projection.
COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT CONSISTENCY: Coastal Zone Consistency Concurrence is required from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection In Florida, the State approval constitutes compliance with the approved Coastal Zone Management Plan.
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 geographic extent of aquatic resources within the proposed project area that either are, or are presumed to be, within the Corps jurisdiction has not been verified by Corps personnel.
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. A permit will be granted unless its issuance is found to be contrary to the public interest.
COMMENTS: 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 used in the preparation of an Environmental Assessment (EA) and/or an Environmental Impact Statement pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Comments are also used to determine the need for a public hearing and to determine the overall public interest of the proposed activity.
The Jacksonville District will receive written comments on the proposed work, as outlined above, until August 21, 2025. Comments should be submitted electronically via the Regulatory Request System (RRS) at https://rrs.usace.army.mil/rrs or to Catrina Frey at catrina.n.frey@usace.army.mil. Alternatively, you may submit comments in writing to the Commander, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, Attention: Catrina Frey, 4400 PGA Blvd Suite 500 Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410. Please refer to the permit application number in your comments.
Any person may request, in writing, within the comment period specified in this notice, that a public hearing be held to consider the application. Requests for public hearings shall state, with particularity, the reasons for holding a public hearing. Requests for a public hearing will be granted, unless the District Engineer determines that the issues raised are insubstantial or there is otherwise no valid interest to be served by a hearing.
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