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Public Notice Information

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SWL 2015-00359

Published Aug. 8, 2016
Expiration date: 9/2/2016

TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:  Comments are invited on the work described below.  Please see the Public Involvement section for details on submitting comments.

Point of Contact.  If additional information is desired, please contact the project manager, Jim Ellis, telephone number:  (501) 324-5295, mailing address:  Little Rock District Corps of Engineers, Regulatory Division, PO Box 867, Little Rock, Arkansas  72203-0867, email address:  Jim.D.Ellis@usace.army.mil

Project Information.  Pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S. Code 1344), notice is hereby given that 

                                                 Mr. Boyce Holmes
                                                 
Bullwinkle LLC
                                                 
68 Montague Court
                                                 
Little Rock, Arkansas  72223

has requested authorization for the placement of dredged and fill material in waters of the United States associated with the construction of a 15-acre residential development referred to as LaMarche Gardens, consisting of approximately 55 single-family homes, in west Little Rock, Arkansas.  The proposed project would impact (fill) and relocate approximately 2,814 linear feet of jurisdictional ephemeral streams.  A total of 0.2 acres of waters of the United States would be impacted.  Water flow enters the project area through ephemeral streams that originate in a residential area immediately south of the project property.  The ephemeral streams converge on the northeast corner of the property and flow under LaMarche Drive to the east.  After passing under LaMarche Drive, flows pass through an existing mitigation area located on the east side of LaMarche Drive then north through two unnamed tributaries to the Little Maumelle River and then into the Arkansas River.  The proposed project is located south of Cantrell Road on the west side of LaMarche Drive, in the SW 1/4 of section 24, T. 2 N., R. 14 W., Little Rock, Pulaski County, Arkansas.

The basic purpose of the project is to provide housing for people.  The overall purpose of the project is to meet the demand for single-family homes in the west Little Rock area along Cantrell Road (Highway 10).  The project is not water dependent.

To accomplish the project, the sloped land surface would be graded and leveled.  The grading and leveling would discharge approximately 86 cubic yards of fill material into 1,914 linear feet of jurisdictional ephemeral streams.

The applicant has investigated other alternative project sites in the proximity of Cantrell Road (Highway 10) in the west Little Rock area.  The applicant stated that, due to the rapid growth in west Little Rock, other sites were unavailable or were cost prohibitive due to land cost.  The applicant has altered the layout of the residential development to reduce the amount of ephemeral streams that will be permanently lost.

Compensatory mitigation requirements for impacts to the ephemeral streams will be assessed utilizing the 2011 Little Rock District Stream Method.  The applicant proposes to conduct permittee-responsible on-site compensatory mitigation and purchase stream credits from an approved mitigation bank that services the area.  For the permittee-responsible mitigation, the applicant proposes to relocate approximately 900 linear feet of an ephemeral stream to the north side of the property.  The new channel would be constructed to meander and would measure 1,031 feet in length and vary in width, as defined by the ordinary high water mark, from 1 foot on the western reach to 14 feet on the eastern reach and include in-stream features (riprap check dams) every 50 feet.  Riparian buffers will be constructed on each side of the stream channel and will vary in width from 4 feet to 20 feet in width.  The riparian buffers are limited in width due to the meandering of the stream and the applicant’s proposal to develop 15 lots immediately adjacent to the stream.  The stream and riparian buffers will be perpetually preserved with a deed restriction.  The property owners association will be required to maintain the mitigation area.

Typical best management practices such as silt fencing and other construction methods will be used to mitigate impacts to water quality and other resources.

The project location, general plan for the proposed work and stream locations are shown on the enclosed sheets, 1 through 5.  Sheet Nos. 4 and 5 denote the approximate location of the jurisdictional ephemeral streams on the property and details of the proposed in-stream features and riparian buffers of the relocated ephemeral stream on the north side of the property.

Water Quality Certification.  By copy of this public notice, the applicant is requesting water quality certification from the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) in accordance with Section 401(a)(1) of the Clean Water Act.  Upon completion of the comment period and a public hearing, if held, a determination relative to water quality certification will be made.  Evidence of this water quality certification or waiver of the right to certify must be submitted prior to the issuance of a Corps of Engineers permit.

Cultural Resources.  A Corps staff archeologist will review topographic maps, the National Register of Historic Places, and other data on reported sites in the area.  The District Engineer invites responses to this public notice from Native American Nations or tribal governments; Federal, State, and local agencies; historical and archeological societies; and other parties likely to have knowledge of or concerns with historic properties in the area.

Endangered Species.  Our preliminary determination is that the proposed activity will not affect listed Endangered Species or their critical habitat.  A copy of this notice is being furnished to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and appropriate state agencies and constitutes a request to those agencies for information on whether any listed or proposed‑to‑be‑listed endangered or threatened species may be present in the area which would be affected by the proposed activity.

FloodplainWe are providing copies of this notice to appropriate floodplain officials in accordance with 44 CFR Part 60 (Floodplain Management Regulations Criteria for Land Management and Use) and Executive Order 11988 on Floodplain Management.

Section 404(b)(1) Guidelines.  The evaluation of activities to be authorized under this permit, which involves the discharge of dredged, or fill material will include application of guidelines promulgated by the Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency, under authority of Section 404(b) of the Clean Water Act.  These guidelines are contained in 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 230.

Public Involvement.  Any interested party is invited to submit to the above-listed POC written comments or objections relative to the proposed work on or before September 2, 2016.  Substantive comments, both favorable and unfavorable, will be accepted and made a part of the record and will receive full consideration in determining whether this work would be in the public interest.  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 benefit, 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 the cumulative effects thereof; among those are conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, historic 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.

The Corps of Engineers 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 of Engineers to determine whether to issue, modify, condition or deny a permit for this proposal.  To make this decision, comments are used to assess impacts on 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 and/or an Environmental Impact Statement pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act.  Comments are also used to determine the need for a public hearing and to determine the overall public interest of the proposed activity.

Any person may request in writing within the comment period specified in this notice that a public hearing be held to consider this application.  Requests for public hearings shall state, with particularity, the reasons for holding a public hearing.  The District Engineer will determine if the issues raised are substantial and whether a hearing is needed for making a decision.

NOTE:  The mailing list for this Public Notice is arranged by state and county(s) where the project is located, and includes any addressees who have asked to receive copies of all public notices.  Please discard notices that are not of interest to you.  If you have no need for any of these notices, please advise us so that your name can be removed from the mailing list.

Enclosures

Approximate Coordinates of Project Center

Latitude:  34.79416                   Longitude:  -92.45537

UTM Zone:  15        North:  3850351.5              East:  549822.2