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NAO-2004-03304 (04-V0271)/17-V1755

Published Nov. 14, 2017
Expiration date: 12/15/2017
FEDERAL PUBLIC NOTICE

The District Commander has received a joint application for Federal and State permits as described below:

APPLICANT
Harbor Station Communities, LLC
17300 River Ridge Boulevard, Suite 301
Woodbridge, Virginia  22191 

WATERWAY AND LOCATION OF THE PROPOSED WORK: The project site contains unnamed tributaries to Powell’s Creek, Quantico Creek and the Potomac River and is located within the eastern portion of the Cherry Hill Peninsula east of U.S. Route 1 in Prince William County, Virginia.    

PROPOSED WORK AND PURPOSE: The applicant proposes the modification of the existing authorized Potomac Shores (a.k.a. Harbor Station) permit to include additional and revised impacts associated with the redevelopment plans for Landbays 4 and 5 due to final site plan engineering. The project consist of grading and filling associated with the construction of the final phases of the residential development, access roadway connections, retrofitting of two existing open water ponds to serve the project as regional stormwater ponds, and a recreational trail.  Also proposed are revisions to the currently approved mitigation plan and a time extension to complete the work currently authorized. 

The purpose of the proposed modification is the continuation of development within Landbays 4 and 5 of Potomac Shores that will serve the ultimate project goal of providing a resort-residential community and town center based on transit-oriented development principles. The currently authorized Potomac Shores project consist of commercial and residential development, a golf course, schools, a fire and rescue station, a Virginia Railway Express (VRE) station, and trails. Approximately 80% of the Potomac Shores project has been constructed, including the majority of the associated infrastructure.                                                                                                

The proposed project would impact additional jurisdictional wetlands and waters of the U.S. Permanent impacts are to 1.51 acres of palustrine forested (PFO) wetlands, 0.28 acre of palustrine emergent (PEM) wetland, 0.03 acre (891 linear feet) of stream channel and 3.36 acres of palustrine open water (POW).  Temporary impacts are to 0.04 acre of wetlands (0.02 acre of PEM and 0.02 acre of PFO) and 0.10 (197 linear feet) of stream channel.   

To compensate for unavoidable impacts to wetlands and streams, the applicant proposes to mitigate these impacts offsite through the allocation of 0.78 previously purchased un-used bulk sale wetland mitigation credits from the Cedar Run Wetlands Bank and the purchase of 3.16 wetland mitigation credits from an approved mitigation bank, on-site preservation of 2,872 linear feet (296 CCs) of perennial and intermittent stream channels, and the purchase of 3,271 CCs from an approved stream mitigation bank to offset the remaining stream impact and/or the purchase of stream credits from the Virginia Aquatic Resources Trust Fund.   

In addition to the required Department of the Army permit, the applicant must obtain a Virginia Water Protection Permit/401certification from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality assuring that applicable laws and regulations pertaining to water quality are not violated.  Project drawings are attached. 

AUTHORITY: Permits are required pursuant to Sections 401 and 404 of the Clean Water Act (Public Law 95-217) and Title 62.1 of the Code of Virginia. 

FEDERAL EVALUATION OF APPLICATION: 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. The decision will reflect the national concern for both protection and utilization of important resources. The benefits which reasonably may be expected from the proposal must be balanced against its reasonably foreseeable detriments. All of the proposal's relevant factors will be considered, including conservation, economics, aesthetics, general environmental concerns, wetlands, cultural values, fish and wildlife values, flood hazards, flood plain values, land use classification, navigation, shoreline erosion and accretion, recreation, water supply and conservation, water quality, energy needs, safety, food and fiber production, mineral needs, consideration of property ownership and, in general, the needs and welfare of the people. The Environmental Protection Agency's "Guidelines for Specification of Disposal Sites for Dredged or Fill Material" will also be applied (Section 404(b)(1) of the Clean Water Act).   

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 direct, indirect, and cumulative 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. Anyone may request a public hearing to consider this permit application by writing to the District Commander within 30 days of the date of this notice, stating specific reasons for holding the public hearing. The District Commander will then decide if a hearing should be held. 

Preliminary review indicates that: (l) no environmental impact statement will be required; (2) after conducting the NAO ESA Project Review Process, there may be an affect to listed/proposed/candidate species and/or designated/proposed critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and the Official Species List and Species Conclusion Table is attached for review and comment by Fish and Wildlife Service; and (3) based on review of the Virginia Department of Historic Resources’ Data Sharing System6 archeological resources and 5 architectural sites (44PW1009, 44PW1010, 44PW1607, 44PW1608, 44PW1612, 44PW1613 and 076-5842, 076-5135, 076-5097, 076-5131, and 076-5127) are within the permit area.  The project may have an indirect or direct effect on resources (44PW1010 and 44PW1607), or impact historic properties listed, or eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.  Additional information might change any of these findings.   

For compliance with the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as amended for projects located in Tidewater, the applicant must certify that federally licensed or permitted activities affecting Virginia's coastal uses or resources will be conducted in a manner consistent with the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program (VCP) and obtain concurrence from the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), Office of Environmental Impact Review (OEIR). We have not received a certification from the applicant prior to publication of this public notice. It is the applicant’s responsibility to submit a consistency certification to the Office of Environmental Impact Review for concurrence or objection and proof of concurrence must be submitted to the Corps prior to final permit issuance. A template federal consistency certification can be found here:

http://www.deq.virginia.gov/Programs/EnvironmentalImpactReview/FederalConsistencyReviews.aspx#cert.

For more information or to obtain a list of the enforceable policies of the VCP, contact the Department of Environmental Quality, Office of Environmental Impact Review at (804) 698-4330 or e-mail: bettina.sullivan@deq.virginia.gov or john.fisher@deq.virginia.gov 

COMMENT PERIOD: Comments on this project should be in writing and can be sent by either email to theresita.m.crockett-augustine@usace.army.mil or by regular mail,  addressed to the Norfolk District, Corps of Engineers (ATTN: CENAO-WR-R), 18139 Triangle Shopping Center, Suite 213, Dumfries, Virginia 22026 and should be received by the close of business on December 15, 2017.  

PRIVACY & CONFIDENTIALITY: Comments and information, including the identity of the submitter, submitted in response to this Public Notice may be disclosed, reproduced, and distributed at the discretion of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Information that is submitted in connection with this Public Notice cannot be maintained as confidential by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Submissions should not include any information that the submitter seeks to preserve as confidential.  

 

 

 

 

 

If you have any questions about this project or the permit process, please call: Ms. Theresita Crockett-Augustine at 703-221-9736 or email at theresita.m.crockett-augustine@usace.army.mil.