20081042 Ver 1_Other Agency Comments_20081002

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DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY
WILMINGTON DISTRICT, CORPS OF ENGINEERS
P.O. BOX 1890
WiLNUNGTON. NORTH CAROLINA 28402-1890
AATTEEN ON OF: October 1, 2008
Regulatory Division
Action ID No. SAW-2008-01902
Mr. Joseph Boan
Commercial Property Analysts
214 Brazilian Avenue, Suite 200
Palm Beach, Florida 33480
Dear Mr. Boan:
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OCT 2 2008
WTLANDS AND TORM01IR RANCH
Reference your June 27, 2008 application for the Department of the Army (DA)
authorization to discharge fill material into 8.65 acres of wetlands for the construction of access
roads, parking lots and buildings for a commercial development located south of the intersection
of U.S. Highway 17 and N.C. Highway 210, near Surf City, Pender County, North Carolina.
On February 6, 1990, the Department of the Army (DA) and the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) establishing procedures
to determine the type and level of mitigation necessary to comply with Clean Water Act Section
404(b) (1) Guidelines. This MOA provides for first, avoiding impacts to waters and wetlands
through the selection of the least damaging, practical alternative; second, taking appropriate and
practical steps to reduce impacts on waters and wetlands; and finally, compensation for
remaining unavoidable impacts to the extent appropriate and practical. To enable us to process
your application, in compliance with the MOA, we request that you provide the following
additional information:
1. Permits for work within wetlands or other special aquatic sites are available only if the
proposed work is the least environmentally damaging, practicable alternative. Please
provide additional information regarding off-site alternatives and detail the criteria
reviewed and why they were deemed unsuitable for this project. Please compare the
costs and other factors, in detail, of the proposed project to the off site alternatives.
2. Please furnish information regarding upland alternatives.
3. It appears that the entrance road can be shifted south to cross the wetland at the most
narrow location. Also, it appears that the other access road can connect to the entrance
road at a location at or near Road Crossing #2. Road Crossing #2 appears that it could
be shifted north approximately 50 to 100 feet to reduce wetland impacts.
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Please justify the location and configuration of the proposed roads with local
ordinances, rules and/or regulations.
4. Please consider bridging the road crossings and compare the cost of bridging to the
proposed road crossings to describe the feasibility and practicability of the alternative.
Please consider the use of retaining walls to minimize unavoidable impacts. Please
provide justification if you are unable to utilize retaining walls to reduce impacts.
6. Your proposal to have 1.4 parking spaces per 400 square feet of building is greater than
the minimum amount of parking required by the Town of Surf City (1 space per 400
square feet). Please reduce the number of parking spaces to 1 space per 400 square
feet or provide information from the Town of Surf City which requires the amount of
parking spaces that you have proposed.
7. It appears that many of the parking spaces can be re-located in the uplands areas
behind the proposed buildings. Please revise your plans to utilize these upland areas or
provide justification for not utilizing these upland areas.
8. It appears that the storm water ponds located between Wetlands Fill-A4 and BI can be
moved in the upland areas behind Wetlands Fill-B1, hence the parking spaces can be
shifted west to reduce wetland impacts. Please revise your plans to utilize these
uplands or provide justification for not utilizing these upland areas.
9. The buildings labeled as Wetlands Fill-Al and A2 on the attached map would be
located entirely in wetlands. These impacts should be removed from your plans unless
you can justify the impact. Your justification for these impacts should include a
detailed comparison of the revenue expected from these two lots to the costs of the
entire project to demonstrate that the project is not feasible without these two
commercial lots.
10. The MOA requires that appropriate and practicable mitigation will be required for all
unavoidable adverse impacts remaining after all appropriate and practicable
minimization has been employed. You have proposed to preserve the remaining 8.65
acres of wetlands and 1012 linear feet of stream located on-site and the utilization of
the North Carolina Ecosystem Enhancement Program (NCEEP) for the restoration of
8.65 acres of non-riparian wetlands within the Cape Fear River Watershed. Please be
aware that this project is not located in the Cape Fear River Watershed and mitigation
for the proposed impacts should occur in the same hydrologic unit code as the project.
The proposed project is located in the New River Watershed (HUC 03020302). Please
provide a letter from the NCEEP stating that they are willing to accept your payment
for the proposed impacts. Also, please provide a draft copy of the document that you
would use to preserve the remaining wetlands on the property.
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The aforementioned, requested information is essential to the expeditious processing of your
application and should be forwarded to us within two (2) weeks of your receipt of this letter.
Also, you should be aware that State and Federal commenting agencies may recommend design
modifications.
Finally, please be aware that the Corps cannot issue a final permit for your proposed activity
until your project has been determined consistent with the approved state Coastal Zone
Management (CZM) Program. Once you have made this determination, you should submit to
the Corps a statement indicating that your proposed activity complies with, and would be
conducted in a manner that is consistent with, the approved state CZM Program. The Corps will
then forward your determination to the North Carolina Division of Coastal Management with a
request for concurrence or non-concurrence.
If you have questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact me at [phone].
Sincerely,
Ronnie Smith
Regulatory Specialist
Wilmington Regulatory Field Office
Copies Furnished:
Ms. Kim Williams
Land Management Group, LLC
Post Office Box 2522
Wilmington, North Carolina 28402
Mr. Randy Cox
1437 Military Cutoff Road, Suite 201
Wilmington, North Carolina 28403
Mr. Doug Huggett
Division of Coastal Management
N.C. Department of Environment
and Natural Resources
400 Commerce Avenue
Raleigh, North Carolina 28557-3421
Mr. Stephen Rynas
Federal Consistency Coordinator
N.C. Department of Environment
and Natural Resources
400 Commerce Avenue
Morehead City, North Carolina 28557-3421
Ms. Becky Fox
Wetlands Regulatory Section - Region IV
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
1349 Firefly Road
Whittier, North Carolina 28789
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Ms. Cyndi Karoly
D' ision of Water Quality
C. Department of Environment
and Natural Resources
2321 Crabtree Boulevard, Suite 250
Raleigh, North Carolina 27699
Ms. Joanne Steenhuis
Division of Water Quality
N.C. Department of Environment
and Natural Resources
127 Cardinal Drive Extension
Wilmington, North Carolina 28405
Ms. Molly Elwood
N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission
127 Cardinal Drive Extension
Wilmington, North Carolina 28405
Mr. Howard Hall
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Fish and Wildlife Enhancement
Post Office Box 33726
Raleigh, North Carolina 27636