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, Lisa Boyle,
telephone number: (501) 340-1385, mailing address: Little Rock District Corps of Engineers,
Regulatory Division, PO Box 867, Little Rock, Arkansas 72203-0867, email address: Lisa.A.Boyle@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. Brandon Huffman
Panther Branch LLC
P.O. Box 242840
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 an
approximately 300-unit apartment complex.
The proposed project is located in unnamed tributaries to Rock Creek, associated
wetlands, and one open water pond, in the NW 1/4 of section 6, T. 1 N., R. 13 W.,
Little Rock, Pulaski County, Arkansas.
The
basic purpose of the project is to provide housing. The overall purpose of the project is a
residential development including approximately 300 apartment units in the West
Little Rock area. The project is not
water dependent.
The
proposed apartment buildings are approximately 262 feet wide and 462 feet long
and four stories high. They will contain
approximately 300 units, 597 parking spaces, with an additional 70 parking
spaces in a parking garage. Also
incorporated into the complex would be a dog park, two courtyards, a green
recycling center, an athletic club, a pool with cabanas, outdoor grills, and a
bike repair station associated with a bike sharing program. Impacts to waters of the United States
include the fill of approximately 0.19 acres of wetlands, 0.52 acres of open
water, and 535 linear feet of ephemeral stream.
Approximately 300 linear feet of ephemeral stream (“ephemeral stream D”)
will be piped via a 48-inch-diameter pipe.
Please see the enclosed figures for more information.
Currently
the site is a mixture of forest and open pasture, with a small commercial
business. An approximately 0.52-acre
pond is present onsite. An ephemeral
stream flows from the southeast corner of the site to the pond and continues
until it enters wetland B, which has been partially filled with trash. The stream leaves the wetland area and flows
north and under Chenal Parkway into Rock Creek.
A portion of the property lies within the 100-year floodplain of Rock
Creek.
The
surrounding area is moderately to heavily developed with a mixture of single
and multi-family residences and commercial properties.
The
applicant’s report indicates that impacts to waters of the United States were
avoided via careful site selection. An
alternative site would have resulted in impacts to approximately 900 linear
feet of perennial stream. Several
configurations for the proposed site were compared, though impacts were nearly
identical due to most of the jurisdictional waters being centrally located on
the site. Impacts to waters of the
United States will be mitigated at a mitigation bank that services the area.
The
location and general plan for the proposed work are shown on the enclosed
sheets.
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.
Floodplain. We 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 April 18, 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: 34.754°N Longitude: -92.44°W
UTM Zone: 15 North: 3845987 East: 551166