20120732 Ver 2_Application_20150212 (2)

PROJECT NARRATIVE
CAPE LOOKOUT NATIONAL SEASHORE (CALO)
National Park Service Passenger Ferry Facilities at Shell Point Visitor Center
131 Charles Street, Harkers Island, NC 28531
(Visitor Center and Main Parking Lot Face Island Road (SR 1335))
The proposed project will consist of site improvements to the National Park Service
Passenger Ferry Facilities, Shell Point Visitor Center and Administrative Center, to
provide a restroom, sidewalks, bus turn - around, additional parking, a drive from the
Ferry Facility to the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum & Heritage Center, and two
pedestrian trails. The trails will permitted as Project impervious area but will not be
constructed at this time and only 5 of the planned 17 additional parking spaces will be
constructed at this time. The Ferry Facility is located at the east end of Harkers Island
and includes a boat basin, picnic shelters, parking for passenger vehicles and
recreational vehicles. The Core Sound Water Fowl Museum & Heritage Center is
located west of the facility on the west side of Cape Pointe Drive.
The entire Passenger Ferry Facilities has an area of 90 acres covering the Eastern end
of Harkers Island and is owned by the United States Government and managed by The
National Park Service. The 90 acres was originally developed as a residential
subdivision and was subdivided into 48 parcels with approximately 12 acres of public
street rights -of -way in the 1960's. Over a number of years, the Government acquired
the 90 acres and abandoned all of the street rights -of -way. A survey map exhibit
illustrating this is provided on a Project Property Limits, Drawing No. SV1.
Preliminary meetings were held with Ms. Kelly Johnson and it was decided to delineate
a portion of the 90 acres as the Stormwater Permit Property (Property) utilizing a low
density design. The Property was initially planned to be limited to 7 acres but was
expanded to 8.91 acres to provide for a maximum of 12% impervious after deducting
"Pre- 1988" improvements and calculating "Post- 1988" improvements. These
calculations are provided on a survey map exhibit titled Stormwater Permit Property
Limits, Drawing No. SV2, and includes a delineation of the existing wetlands on the
property. On December 15, 2014 the wetlands were delineated by Mr. Tyler Crumbley
of the Wilmington Regional Office of the USACE and surveyed by the project surveyor.
(The delineation Jurisdictional "Tear Sheet" to be provided by Mr. Tyler Crumbley and /or
Christy Folta ( USACE Carteret County area permitting person) during the 404 permitting
process.) Drawing SV2 includes the wetland delineation with a table of bearings and
distances as surveyed and area calculations.)
The original preliminary plan called for the Museum drive to be 16' wide with a
meandering 5' wide trail just South of the existing Fuel Farm. The width of the drive

PROJECT NARRATIVE
CAPE LOOKOUT NATIONAL SEASHORE (CALO)
National Park Service Passenger Ferry Facilities at Shell Point Visitor Center
February 5, 2015
Page 2 of 2
was reduced to 14' and the alignment of the drive and trail was realigned to the South to
avoid and minimize wetland impacts which is illustrated on the Site Geometry Plan
Drawing No. C2 and the previously noted drawing SV2. The proposed permanent
impacts to the wetlands is 0.1 acres.
The Stormwater runoff from the 8.91 acre Project is not collected by a storm drainage
piping system and does not have a discharge point to adjacent ORW Waters. The two
existing facility driveways are provided with culverts. All stormwater is directed to an
existing small basin, drainage swales and low lying areas and infiltrates into the ground
and /or evaporates. The existing basin is connected to the existing road side drainage
Swale on the North side of Island Drive with a 6" plastic pipe to allow stormwater from
the existing basin to "bleed- down" over a period of time after large rain events. Project
impervious areas and proposed improvements will be directed to a series of 5
stormwater basins inter - connected with 12" diameter PVC pipes. The volume of the 5
basins will allow for the storage of a 1.5 inch rainfall and provide for infiltration and /or
evaporation. In addition to the inter - connection basin pipes, the Museum drive will be
provided with a culvert in the existing Cape Point Drive East roadside drainage ditch. A
culvert will also be provided under the Museum drive within the existing wetland area to
provide wetland connectivity for the wetland crossing. The proposed culvert is designed
to be a 24" RCP with invert buried 12" below natural grade.
The Project is being submitted as a Low Density project with less than 12% of
impervious area.