USACE Responses 8-15-2023.pdf

Smith Site Consultants, PLLC.
NC FIRM # P-2144
August 15, 2023
To: Ms. Katherine Elks
Regulatory Specialist
US ARMY Corps of Engineers
69 Darlington Avenue
Wilmington, NC 28403
Re: SAW-2005-01133 Forest Ridge Commercial — Review Comments
TithSite
COLTANTS, PLLC
Ms. Elks, in response to your initial review comments from July 20t", 2023. Your comments are bulleted below in black
as formatted in your email to Debbie Shirley of S&EC, on the review of SAW-2005-01133. The responses for the
reasoning (listed in red). We have had several recent updates that were brought to our attention by all stakeholders
involved with this project such as Harnett County Planning, the Fire Marshall's office and applicable State Fire Codes,
NC Department of Transportation's input on egress, Harnett Regional Water's minimum design criteria for the water
main and sanitary sewer extensions as well as a few others. Below is a summary of various aspects that affect this
site's layout in conjunction with your review comments — the majority of these criteria are also spelled out on the two
site plans that were a part of this resubmission — see WLM-2 and WLM-2.1. Furthermore, this document lays out why
the interconnectivity and proposed grading of these lots is an imperative safety and accessibility concern, given the
recent input from all reviewing agency stakeholders, while still keeping all proposed wetland impacts for this project
under the 0.5 acre wetlands' disturbance limit for a nationwide permit.
For the proposed construction on the southern side of Melody (Phase 1); / see in the plan notes that
interconnectivity is required. Why isn't it required on the northern side. / see it's a matter of zoning but the county
website shows it all as Commercial RA-20R.
The requirement for additional interconnectivity on the north side's site plan has since been flagged by
reviewers for their requirements to have lots interconnected, due to it being treated as a Major
Subdivision, rather than a Minor Subdivision as we originally were hoping. The interconnectivity also has
been raised as a fire safety requirement on the northern side, whereas the various reviewers feel that the
interconnected layouts of the southern site plan's lots' abides by the fire safety access & traffic
interconnectivity safety requirements of NC Fire Code and NCDOT. As such, the northern area's lots' and
parking have now been updated with additional interconnectivity, which is mandated per North Carolina
Fire Prevention Code requirements (a part of 2018 North Carolina Building State Building Code). When
lots C1, C2 & C3 layouts were drawn initially, our hopes were that those three lots to the north would be
exempt from interconnectivity since there were only three commercial lots (technically a minor subdivision
in nature but with full utilities & a paved street) and that they could be permitted to just have egress/fire
access to the main road shown. The other thought process was that with the original layout of lots' C1-
C3, with their proximity to the public right of way for NC24/87 just to the northeast, that this aspect aloe
would be sufficient for fire safety purposes. But we have since been informed to revise the lots per the
interconnectivity requirements for a major subdivision and to address the requirements of Appendix D —
Fire Apparatus Access Roads of NC's Fire Prevention Code, which requires paved fire access roads (or
in this case the paved aisles of the parking lots) to accommodate the increased interconnectivity and fire
apparatus/EMS vehicles circulation requirements on the northern lots as well. To address this, northern
lots' parking lots have been interconnected with paved access roads that are capable of supporting fire
apparatus (fire trucks). These fire access roads must surround the various commercial buildings on
multiple sides and will be built with flatter grade/slope constraints (10% max). Fire access roads are
required to be a minimum of 20' wide and in some instances 26' depending upon building construction
(parking lots help to accommodate this plus the parking requirements). Furthermore, commercial
buildings are also required to have fire access roads spaced as equally between them where possible.
The code further requires the fire access road to have a proximity to the various commercial buildings of
30' max and be parallel to the building's face. These buildings' orientation on the lots are driven by both
NC Building Code as well as County Unified Development Ordinance's setback requirements from
property lines, which also affects the layout of the parking lots and subsequently the fire safety aspects
such as fire apparatus access roads (staying compliant with NC Fire Prevention Code). The way the
parking lots and aisles are laid out meets the intent of the fire code access requirements. Image below is

Smith Site Consultants, PLLC.
NC FIRM # P-2144
TithSite
COLTANTS. PLLC
per Harnett's Unified Development Ordinance and corresponds with what is required by Appendix D —
Fire Apparatus Access Roads of NC's Fire Prevention Code for fire apparatus access between buildings
(parking lots & aisles need to be 20' width minimum & have acceptable maneuvering):
Fire Apparatus Access Minimum Specifications
12W Hammerhead
104' diameter
Cul-de-sac
2E' I— Rad,-
Acceptable
Alternative
to 120'
Hammerhem
Thus, the parking lots, interconnected accesses between each lot and the street extension all serve to
meet this minimum fire apparatus access criteria for the site's lots and the proposed uses.
• Please show the stormwater pond outfall locations on the plans
The outfall/outlet locations have been added to the site plans per the reviewer's request.
Related to the first bullet, 1 would like to see further avoidance for the areas proposed for lot fill. One possibility is
to reduce the number of outparcels in that area or utilize the high ground by the road frontage all the way up to
the highway setback and utility easement or do some other creative re -arranging. Please look into further
avoidance and minimization or offer why that would not be practicable.
Further avoidance and minimization would not be practicable because:
1. Fire Safety — NC Fire Prevention Code- NC's Fire Prevention Code's Appendix D - Fire Apparatus
Access Roads requires the fire access roads (or in this case the aisles of the parking lots on the lots) to
accommodate the interconnectivity between lots and around buildings as shown. This allows the fire
apparatus (fire trucks) their necessary circulation requirements on the southern lots due to the overall
depths of these lots being 300+ feet deep typically. To address this, these southern lots' parking lots have
been interconnected with paved access roads that are capable of supporting fire apparatus (fire trucks)
and typically furthest from the main access road for the subdivision. As such, these fire access roads
surround the various commercial buildings on multiple sides (as required by fire code) and are to be built
with flatter grade/slope constraints (10% max) — the site's current grading can not support this
slope/grade constraint. Fire access roads are required to be a minimum of 20' wide and in some
instances 26' depending upon building construction (parking lots help to accommodate this plus the
parking requirements). The fire code further requires the fire access road to have a proximity to the
various commercial buildings of 30' max and to be parallel to the building's face. These buildings'
orientation on the lots are driven by both NC Building Code as well as Harnett County's Unified
Development Ordinance's building setback requirements from property lines, which also affects the layout
of the parking lots and subsequently the fire safety aspects such as fire apparatus access roads. The way
the parking lots and aisles are laid out meets the intent of the fire code access requirements. Image
below is per Harnett's Unified Development Ordinance and corresponds with what is required by
Appendix D — Fire Apparatus Access Roads of NC's Fire Prevention Code for fire apparatus access
between buildings (parking lots & aisles need to be 20' width minimum & have acceptable maneuvering):

TithSite
Smith Site Consultants, PLLC. LTANTS. PLLC
NC FIRM # P-2144
Fire Apparatus Access Minimum Specifications
2. Traffic Safety with Driveway Entrance Access & Lot Interconnectivity - NCDOT's Driveway Access
Manual - stipulates that driveways to access developments such as this should be kept to a minimum and
spaced at least 600' apart along highways that generate higher traffic volumes. Therefore, the lots are
required to tie into the access street as shown and have their own interconnectivity between parcels per
Harnett's Unified Development ordinance. See the notes below.
3. Setbacks & Easements- Harnett UDO - Harnett County will not permit the buildings to be any closer
than 50' from the right of way due to setback requirements. And Harnett Regional Water does not permit
placement of any permanent structures (other than parking) within their water and sewer easements. This
means that any buildings must be placed outside of the utility easements shown as well as 50' from the
right of way of NC24/87.
4. Lot Fill/Gradin_g Gravity Utilities & Access Requirements- These lots must be backfilled in order to
facilitate gravity related site infrastructure such as the sanitary sewer utilities as well as the storm
drainage inlets required to pick up and treat the anticipated runoff from impervious surfaces on the lots.
Furthermore, the lots must be filled and graded such that they offer ADA compliance (American
Disabilities Act — Handicap accessibility) which is regulated at a max threshold slope of 1:20. Current
topography on these two lots varies greatly as reflected by the existing topo contours and thus the lots
must be regraded such that they are accessible from both a serviceability standpoint with the gravity
utilities (sewer & storm drainage) and the American Disabilities Act's accessibility perspective.
5. Economic Feasibility due to Number of Parcels — This development's financial viability is predicated
on providing the number of lots just as they are shown. The parties committed to the purchase of these
lots have stated that they want lots that are 1.0-1.5 acres in size and that these lots must be graded or
backfilled to meet their intended needs. Lots C7 and C8 have been specifically tailored at the purchasers'
requests to accommodate the intended uses while still abiding by all regulatory criteria (including those
set forth by USACE). A quick conceptual estimate has been provided to detail out the costs of the project
and the necessary return on investment — losing two lots or recombining them negates the financial
feasibility of this project. Furthermore, a document entitled "conservation/preservation notes" has been
included to note just how much area will be conserved by showing the remaining areas that will not be
developed and the wetlands that won't be disturbed due to honoring the existing wetlands boundaries.
Whereas, additional concept maps labeled "Alternate Full Build Out Site Plans" (WLM-2A & WLM-2.1A)
for both the northern and southern areas reflect what the developer's desired build out would be if the
nationwide permit threshold were greater than 0.5 acres or if an individual permit were to be pursued. If
the 0.5 acre wetlands disturbance threshold was not the limiting factor for development, this project could
foreseeably increase the number of commercial lots considerably by expanding into those areas that will
not be developed per our proposed layout. The site layout as depicted shows just how much area will be
conserved.

Smith Site Consultants, PLLC.
NC FIRM # P-2144
TithSite
LTANTS, PLLC
The small area surrounded by retaining walls east of the access road doesn't make a lot of sense to me how it
stands now. It looks like it's only purpose is to keep the development below the Nationwide threshold.
That is correct, the retaining wall just east of the main access road and split amongst lots C7 & C8 has
been shown in order to keep the proposed site disturbances to the wetlands below the Nationwide
threshold of 0.5 acres. Again, the backfill on lots C7 & C8 are to accommodate the minimum safety
requirements of NC Fire Prevention Code, NCDOT Driveway Access Manual's requirements and Harnett
County LIDO. The attached documentation shows just how much acreage is being preserved due to
remoteness issues due to being isolated by wetlands.
• Please look into further avoidance and minimization or offer why that would not be practicable. — All items above
have addressed why this would not be practical and the site's design as submitted remains below the 0.5 acre
limit of disturbance for wetlands through the NWP process.
In summary, this site's design as it has been submitted, abides by the 0.5 acre limit of disturbance NWP threshold
required by USACE, while still meeting the public safety requirements of NC Fire Code, those set forth by NCDOT for the
development's traffic safety/egress interconnectivity, the American Disability Act's minimum regulations on accessible
routes, as well as those set forth by the local planning authority's requirements of all lots having interconnectivity from
both a planning standpoint as well as what is required for the access of the local fire department's Fire Apparatus and
EMS vehicles. I would ask you to please consider all points made above, which was done so in an effort for the site meet
the requirements of all approving agencies, while still abiding by the regulatory criteria for permanent wetlands impacts.
This engineer and the developer have gone through extensive measures to try to ensure that all reviewing agencies'
concerns are adequately addressed while still offering a commercial development that can suit the parties that will be
building these businesses. We feel that with this new information affecting the development's layout, that we can find a
way to move forward with USACE and the other agencies involved. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Ken Smith Jr., PE PLS
Smith Site Consultants, PLLC.
NC FIRM # P-2144
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