[External] Request for Additional Information, Mitchell County Schools, Mitchell County (DWR #20220398v3) (2)

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Winston, Joey
From:Eric Romaniszyn <[e-mail]>
Sent:Monday, March 20, 2023 12:05 PM
To:Winston, Joey
Subject:[External] Request for Additional Information, Mitchell County Schools, Mitchell County (DWR #
20220398v3)
Attachments:C401 STORM DRAINAGE PLAN.pdf
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Hi Joey,  
I ran these past the engineer and below are our responses. Please advise if additional details are needed and we’ll get 
those to you asap.  
Thank you.  

Eric 

Eric Romaniszyn 
Senior Scientist 

EnviroScienceInc.com 
“Excellence in Any Environment” 
C. 865‐406‐1281 

From: Winston, Joey <[e-mail]>  
Sent: Friday, March 10, 2023 9:38 AM 
To: Eric Romaniszyn <[e-mail]> 
Subject: Request for Additional Information, Mitchell County Schools, Mitchell County (DWR #20220398v3) 

[EXTERNAL EMAIL ‐ Please use caution] 

Mr. Romaniszyn, 

On February 1, 2022, the Division of Water Resources (Division) received your application requesting a 401 Water 
Quality Certification from the Division for the subject project. The Division has determined that your application is 
incomplete and cannot be processed. The application is on‐hold until all of the following information is received:  

1. The application did not include a discussion of the measures taken to avoid or minimize the proposed impacts to 
wetlands through project design. Please include a narrative of the design choices made with regard to wetland 
impacts, including a discussion of why impacts cannot be further reduced or avoided. [15A NCAC 02H 
.0506(b)(1)] 

Two school entrances were designed to better manage traffic flow and for emergency access. The eastern
access road along Ledger School Road was placed at its current location to meet those requirements and avoid
placing it near the Hwy 226 intersection that would result in additional traffic concerns. The location of this access
road was also designed around the wetland locations to avoid additional impacts.

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The school was designed around a central corridor with classrooms on each side and two stories tall. This
section narrows the school building dimension and creates the smallest footprint possible. The parking lot was
positioned to parallel the front of the school with minimal islands/medians to keep the parking as close to the
school as possible, while providing the NCDOT required staging length for pick-up and drop-off. A 13-foot
retaining wall was designed to minimize wetland and stream buffer impacts.

Moving the campus west would elevate the building and make the bus driveway (north side of building)
steeper. The current design grade is currently at 5-6% which is comfortable for bus operations. Moving west
would also take the top of the slope much closer to adjacent parcels and a preserved vegetative buffer. The
required fire access road also restricts a westward adjustment, as this grading abuts the parcel in the southwest
corner while still allowing flat space between the access road and the building for outdoor play space.

2. The project plans do not include details of the proposed wetland fill. Please provide a detailed plan of the 
proposed wetland impacts, including design considerations for the stability of the fill material to ensure 
additional impacts will not occur. [15A NCAC 02H .0502(a)(9); 15A NCAC 02H .0506(b)(3)] 
The engineer does do not currently have a detail of how this will be completed, but the project has earthwork and 
stabilization specification that will require the Contractor to properly construct a foundation for this fill and stabilize 
the slope.  The Project has also developed construction sequence and erosion control notes on the project plans. 
The engineer can provide these specifications if that will suffice.  

3. The project plans do not include the proposed temporary impact to the stream for utility installation. Please 
include this in project plans. [15A NCAC 02H .0502(a)(9); 15A NCAC 02H .0506(b)(2)] 
The temporary impact would occur under the permanent impact of the culvert at the Ledge School Road access 
drive. I apologize for not explaining that better in the narrative.  Would you still need the plans if the text was 
changed to this?  

“The development will connect to existing municipal water and sewer utilities along Old Ledger Road on the
eastern project boundary. These connections will occur under the new school entrance road and may
require stream crossings (temporary impacts) due to the location of the stream channel, depending on final
site design. If so, the utility lines will be installed “in-the-dry” under the stream bed via open cut coinciding
with installation of the permanent culvert impact (see Attachment B, Impact Map).” 

Pursuant to Title 15A NCAC 02H .0502(c), the applicant shall furnish all of the above requested information for the 
proper consideration of the application. Please provide your response by April 7, 2023. If all of the requested 
information is not received, the Division will be unable to approve the application and it will be denied as incomplete. 
The denial of this project will necessitate reapplication to the Division for approval, including a complete application 
package and appropriate fee. 

Please let me know if you have any questions. 

Regards, 
Joey 

Joey Winston 
Environmental Specialist I, Division of Water Resources 
North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality  
Office: (828) 296‐4685 | Cell: (828) 785‐9171  
[e-mail]  
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