Applicant: City of Waukee CEMVR-OD-P Joint Public Notice. Iowa Department of Natural Resources

Transcription

1 This purpose of this public notice is to solicit comments on the proposed project. POC: Matthew Zehr, Telephone: r.?'rn ~ PUBLIC OTICE US Army Corps of Engineers Rock Island District Applicant: City of Waukee CEMVR-OD-P Date: March 1, 2018 Expires: March 30, 2018 Section 404 Joint Public otice US Army Corps of Engineers Iowa Department of atural Resources 1. Applicant: City of Waukee c/o Mr. Brad Deets 230 Highway 6 Waukee, IA Project Location. - Section 20, 21, 28, 29, Township 79 orth, Range 26 West - Dallas County, Iowa - Datum AD-83. UTM Zone 15 - orthing , Easting Latitude: , Longitude: Project Description and Purpose. The City of Waukee and the Waukee Community School District are proposing to develop a high school campus and sports complex within the approximately 210 acre site located Yi mile north of Hickman Road between 10th Street (U Avenue) and 4th Street, Waukee, IA. The campus is proposed to include a new high school building, athletic fields, parking lots and ponds. The project also includes the reconstruction of 10th Street west of the site and the creation of new alignments of W Douglas Parkway to the north, 4th Street to the east, 6th Street and W Sunrise Drive south of the proposed school campus. The purpose of the project is to construct a new high school and youth sports complex in Waukee, IA. The project is needed to provide facilities to serve the rapidly expanding student population in the Waukee Community School District and to meet the recreational needs for the community. 4. Avoidance and Minimization Statement. The project has been minimized by designing the campus in a way that impacts 0.9 acres of the 1.01 acres of emergent wetlands and 340 linear feet of the 870 linear feet of perennial stream identified on site. The city has provided an alternatives analysis identifying 8 alternative designs, all of which impact more wetlands and streambed. The site selection was limited to several parcels in the immediate vicinity of Waukee and other potential sites were eliminated from consideration as negotiations with other land owners would have taken an increased amount of time. The city is on an expedited schedule as the school and city have grown exponentially over the last decade. The current campus is expected to exceed capacity by the year The city is proposing to mitigate for the wetland loss by purchasing credits at a nearby mitigation bank. They are in the service area of both Voas Wetland Mitigation Bank and McCorkle Wetland Mitigation Bank.

2 CEMVR-OD-P City of Waukee - Brad Deets Impacts to the perennial stream will be mitigated immediately upstream of the new W Douglas Parkway. The impacted stream is experiencing excessive incision and erosion. Using the Iowa Stream Mitigation Method to determine how many credits are needed for the proposed impact the city has planned to place check dams within the stream and pull the banks back to a more stable slope improving 350 linear feet of stream, as well as, implementing a 50 foot combination of soft and hardwood buffer throughout the mitigation area. 5. Agency Review. The project plans have been submitted to the Iowa Department of atural Resources for state certification of the proposed work in accordance with Section 401 of the Clean Water Act. The certification, if issued, will express the Department's opinion that the proposed activity will comply with Iowa's water quality standards (Chapter 61 IAC). The applicant has also applied for authorization of work in the floodplain pursuant to Chapter 455B of the Iowa Code and other applicable state permits. Written comments concerning possible impacts to waters oflowa should be addressed to: Iowa Department of atural Resources, 502 East 9th Street, Des Moines, Iowa A copy of the comments should be provided to the Corps of Engineers office (see paragraph 11, of this public notice for address). 6. Historical/Archaeological. a. The District Archaeologist consulted with the Iowa I-Sites online geographic information systems archeological site and survey databases (including the HILD data layer) and determined the proposed project area has not been previously surveyed. In addition, the District reviewed "Phase I Cultural Resources Investigation of the Proposed Waukee High School Development Area, Walnut Township, Dallas County, Iowa" dated July Mr. Jared Langseth with Bear Creek Archaeology of Cresco, Iowa completed the report. The report will be coordinated with the Iowa State Historic Preservation Office under a separate cover letter. b. Multiple historic properties were identified within the project area. However, all of the identified historic properties were recommended as not eligible for listing on the ational Register of Historic Places. The District Archaeologist concurred with the recommendations. Therefore, it is the opinion of the District there will be no historic properties affected because "the nature, scope, and magnitude of the work, and/or structures to be permitted are such that there is little likelihood that a historic property exists or may be affected" (33 CFR Part 325, Appendix C.3.b). 7. Endangered Species. District staff has performed a preliminary review of this application for the potential impact on threatened or endangered species pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act as amended. The threatened northern long-eared bat (Myotis septentrionalis ), prairie bush clover (Lespedeza leptostachya) and Western prairie fringed orchid (Platanthera praeclara) are listed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), as occurring in Dallas County, Iowa. The project will not affect dry to mesic or wet prairies or sedge meadows so neither of the plant species will be affected. The project will not require the removal of trees exhibiting suitable habitat and therefore has no potential to impact either bat species. Because of this our preliminary determination is that this project "has no potential to affect federally endangered, threatened or candidate species, or Critical Habitat." Accordingly, our preliminary determination is subject to change should further information become available. 8. Public Interest Review. The decision whether to issue the Corps 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 2

3 CEMVR-OD-P City of Waukee - Brad Deets 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, cultural values, 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 production and, in general, the needs and welfare of the people. 9. Who Should Reply. 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 ational 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. These statements should be submitted on or before the expiration date specified at the top of page 1. These statements should bear upon the adequacy of plans and suitability of locations and should, if appropriate, suggest any changes considered desirable. 10. Public Hearing Requests. 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. A request may be denied if substantive reasons for holding a hearing are not provided. 11. Reply to the Corps of Engineers. Comments concerning the Corps permit should be addressed to the District Engineer, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island District, Attn: OD-P (Matt Zehr), Clock Tower Building - Post Office Box 2004, Rock Island, Illinois For additional information call Matt Zehr at or matthew.a.zehr@usace.army.mi l. Attach Plan Mr. Matthew A. Zehr Iowa Permitting Section Regulatory Branch Sheet 1 of 3, Vicinity Map Sheet 2 of 3, Plan Map Sheet 3 of 3, Stream Mitigation Map REQUEST TO POSTMASTERS: Please post this notice conspicuously and continuously until the expiration date specified at the top of page 1. OTICE TO EDITORS: This notice is provided as background information for your use in formatting news stories. This notice is not a contract for classified display advertising. 3

4 .r., I I -,... (!C t. - ' ,,.' 11' + _/ r(,\j"_"" <" of..../,.,"...,.,,,. ~ w ~) ~.1 - <l./titf f~ ' n....., 0 I... '\., i - ). r 21 1 I \ \ t...,\ \IY 6 \ (" "\ ' I t... ", I/' ~. 7 t' '" w A L,,,, _; ""'-, u :... r... I I,' ~~ -.., :;:;:...- -:--- ~--,,.... l!.l l. - - LEGED - PERMIT AREA Sheet 1of3 City of Waukee Vicinity Map 02/ :34am esm C:\pw_wonmrnpw_1e1esm1unr.so:t.Ll'f\ I OVVV.J I ~ r.; nuvr... alll... l.h> mmgauun. un~ ;u.i /. r-., ~ ~,~~a~~ t~ "'Mifl _.. '" ~... '1!'.. ~: I ~"-"---=. -~'"' ---- ~ TOPOGRAPHIC MAP WAUKEE HIGH SCHOOL & YOUTH SPORTS CAMPUS 10TH STREET (U AVE) ORTH OF HICKMA ROA WAUKEE, IOWA I APPROXIMATE DRAWIG SCALE Date: 2/7/18 Prepared By: ESM Checked By: RPB Project ID#: 16W Foth 1 1: Foth Infrastructure & Environment, LLC

5 2. 1- w 0:: I C/) J: l o W SURISE DRIVE WETLAD :34am esm C:\pw_w HICKMA ROAD LEGED - PERMIT AREA '"""'.'.'.'I - REGULATED WETLAD ~2?91 - WETLAD IMPACTS - REGULATED WUS - WUS IMPACTS Sheet 2 of 3 City of Waukee Plan Map PROPOSED WETLAD/WUS IMPACTS WAUKEE HIGH SCHOOL & YOUTH SPORTS CAMPUS 10TH STREET (U AVE) ORTH OF HICKMA ROA WAUKEE, IOWA I APPROXIMATE DRAWIG SCALE 6 f Feet Project ID#: 16W Date: 2f7/18 Prepared By: ESM Checked By: RPB Foth 3 Foth lnfrmtrwct- & En~ LLC e 2015 Foth Infrastructure & Environment, LLC

6 50' WIDE BUFFER -17,155 SQ FT WUS-3 100' IMPROVEMETS 50' WIDE BUFFER -11,855 SQ FT i E-GRADE AD STABILIZE BAKS AS EEDED WUS-2 EW CHAEL 50 FT ] :35a m esm C:\pVi LEGED -WUS BUFFER I ii - SLOPE/DITCH MIX, DISTURBED AREAS ; < z 21 - BUFFER MIX, DISTURBED AREAS - WUS (LIDAR BASED) - WUS EW CHAEL Sheet 1of3 City of Waukee Stream Mitigation Map WUS MITIGATIO SEEDIG COCEPT WAUKEE HIGH SCHOOL & YOUTH SPORTS CAMPUS 10TH STREET (U AVE) ORTH OF HICKMA ROAD WAUKEE, IOWA 0 1 "'"'GSCALE? Feet Project ID#: 16W037.01! APl'ROXIM re Date: 217/18 Prepared By: ESM Foth 5 Checked By: RPB CJ 2015 Fath Infrastructure & Environment, LLC