SAJ-2021-03044 (SP-BMC)

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). 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  barbara.m.cory@usace.army.mil

APPLICANT: Central Florida Expressway Authority  

                          C/o Glenn Pressimone

                          4947 ORL Tower Road

            Orlando, FL 32807

WATERWAY AND LOCATION: The project would affect aquatic resources associated with Sawgrass Lake and Lake Needham. The 407.97-acre project review area is located between State Road (SR) 429 in Orange County and US Hwy 27 in Lake County. The review area is bordered to the north by Porter Road, to the east by Avalon Road, to the south by Old YMCA Road, and to the west by US Hwy 27 and Lake Louisa State Park with the approximate center located at latitude 28.436935 and longitude -81.676339, Clermont, Lake County, Florida.

EXISTING CONDITIONS: The 407.97-acre project review area is largely undeveloped and encompasses approximately 75.72 acres of wetlands and 7.35 acres of surface waters. Of the total 407.97-acre project area, 80-percent (324.9- acres) are classified as uplands, 18-percent (75.72-acres) are classified as wetlands, and 2-percent (7.35-acres) are classified as other surface waters (SW) consisting of lake, ponds, and drainage swales. Land uses in the project vicinity are predominantly rural with adjacent properties consisting of pasture and agricultural lands, low density residential, mining areas, golf course, conservation lands, and state park.

According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) Cooperative Land Cover (CLC) classification system, landscape in the project area is comprised of a mosaic of communities including improved pasture, marshes, citrus groves, transportation, tree plantations, prairies and bogs, lakes, upland hardwood forest, freshwater forested wetlands, shrub and brushland, rural and low intensity urban, and freshwater non-forested wetlands. According to the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), soil types found in the project area generally consist of sands (Apopka, Candler, Immokalee, Placid, Pomello, Myakka, and Tavares series), wet sands (Myakka-Myakka and Ona-Ona series), and muck (Oklawaha series).

According to the National Wetlands Inventory (NWI), wetlands in the review area consist of various freshwater palustrine systems (emergent, forested, and scrub-shrub) with ranging hydroperiods (temporarily, seasonally, or semi-permanently flooded). Surface waters within the review area consist of fourteen (14) freshwater ponds, five (5) lakes, and five (5) linear riverine systems. Ponds and lakes are mapped on the NWI as either palustrine or lacustrine based on size, water depth, and presence or absence of an active wave-formed, or bedrock shoreline feature. All lakes, ponds, and four (4) of the riverine systems are permanently flooded with either unconsolidated bottoms or aquatic beds.

PERMITTING HISTORY: The proposed work encompasses two (2) road segments (SR 516-236 and SR 516-237) which are part of a three (3) segment roadway project. Prior to vacancy of the State 404 Program, a third segment (SR 516-238) which extends from the Lake-Orange County line to SR 429 was authorized by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) under File No. ST404_205102-007-SFI-32.   

PROJECT PURPOSE:

Basic:  Transportation

Overall:  Construct a limited access expressway and associated infrastructure to enhance mobility between US Hwy 27 and SR 429, meet increasing transportation demands, and expand regional system linkage/connectivity between Orange and Lake Counties.

PROPOSED WORK:  The applicant seeks authorization to discharge 651,528.75 cubic yards of clean fill material into 69.50 acres of aquatic resources in order to construct two (2) road segments (3.5 miles total) with associated infrastructure for a new 4.4-mile limited access highway (toll road) known as the Lake-Orange Expressway Project between SR 429 and US Hwy 27. Proposed work also includes alignment changes and right‐of‐way modifications for approximately 2.0 miles along US Hwy 27 and 0.15 miles along SR 429.

As proposed, a typical roadway section will consist of a 330-foot-wide right-of-way corridor to initially encompass four (4), 12-foot-wide traffic lanes (two (2) in each direction) and a 106-foot-wide divided median which could accommodate potential future widening to eight (8) lanes. Proposed infrastructure includes (not limited to) traffic signals and lighting, pedestrian and bike trails, bridges, stormwater management systems with seven (7) wet pond control structures, and various safety features. Project construction is expected to begin February 2026 and take approximately three (3) years for completion.

Construction of the proposed highway will result in direct impacts to 62.72 acres of wetlands (22.80 acres forested and 39.92 acres herbaceous) and 6.78 acres of surface waters with secondary impacts to 11.69 acres of wetlands (1.8 acres forested and 9.89 acres herbaceous).

AVOIDANCE AND MINIMIZATION: The applicant has provided the following information in support of efforts to avoid and/or minimize impacts to the aquatic environment: Measures to avoid and minimize wetland impacts to the greatest extent practicable were considered during the planning and early design phases. Avoidance and minimization of environmental impacts were considered through various studies outlining multiple alternatives for the proposed corridor. Through coordination with agencies and municipalities, additional avoidance and design minimizations were incorporated into the final alignment design.

In order to avoid impacts to the abutting Lake Louisa State Park, a portion of US Hwy 27 will be shifted slightly to the east. From US Hwy 27, the corridor generally follows a northeast direction to avoid impacts to Lakes Adain and Sawgrass. Bridges have been incorporated into the design to further avoid and minimize the discharge of fill in wetlands and associated environmental impacts.

Stormwater management sites were also evaluated on multiple criteria and sited to best minimize wetland habitat impacts, floodplain impacts, and impacts to adjacent residential and commercial properties. Applicable Best Managements Practices (BMPs) such as NPDES protocols and protected species construction standards will be implemented where required to prevent avoidable impacts. Additionally, the design includes incorporation of wildlife connectivity passages with final plans to be based on results of ongoing coordination with wildlife agencies and the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation.

COMPENSATORY MITIGATION: The applicant offered the following compensatory mitigation plan to offset unavoidable functional loss to the aquatic environment: Compensatory mitigation for unavoidable impacts to wetlands will be provided through credits purchased from a federally approved mitigation bank with wetland impacts calculated in terms of functional losses via the Uniform Mitigation Assessment Method (UMAM).

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, federally recognized tribes and other interested parties.

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) Section 7 Mapper, and the NMFS Critical Habitat Mapper to determine if any threatened, endangered, proposed, or candidate species, as well as 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 will have no effect on the crested caracara, Everglade snail kite, eastern black rail, Florida scrub-jay, whooping crane, and monarch butterfly. The Corps has made a preliminary determination that the proposed project may affect but is not likely to adversely (MANLAA) species listed in the table below (Table 1). There is no Designated Critical Habitat within or immediately adjacent to the project area and no other ESA-listed species will be affected by the proposed action. 

Table 1: ESA-listed species potentially present in the action area.

Pursuant to Section 7 ESA, any required consultation with the Service(s) will be conducted in accordance with 50 CFR part 402.

This notice serves as request to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 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. The project is an inland activity and will impact only freshwater (palustrine) wetlands. The Corps has determined the proposal would have no effect on any Essential Fish Habitat (EFH). Therefore, no consultation with the National Marine Fisheries Service on EFH as required by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act 1996 is required.

NAVIGATION: The proposed structure or 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 of 1899 (33 USC 408) because the activity, in whole or in part,   would not alter, occupy, or use a Corps Civil Works project.

WATER QUALITY CERTIFICATION: Water Quality Certification is required from the FDEP or the St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD). The project is being reviewed under SJRWMD application numbers 182683-3 and 182683-2.

COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT CONSISTENCY: Coastal Zone Consistency Concurrence is required from FDEP or SJRWMD. 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. 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.

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 19, 2025. Comments should be submitted electronically via the Regulatory Request System (RRS) at https://rrs.usace.army.mil/rrs or to Barbara M. Cory at barbara.m.cory@usace.army.mil. Alternatively, you may submit comments in writing to the Commander, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, Attention: Barbara M. Cory, Tampa Permits Section, 10117 Princess Palm Ave., Suite 120, Tampa FL 33610. 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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