[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 86 (Monday, May 5, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24438-24439]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-11651]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Navy


Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for 
the Proposed Disposal and Reuse of the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, 
New London, CT

SUMMARY: Pursuant to Council on Environmental Quality regulations (40 
CFR parts 1500-1508) implementing procedural provisions of the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Department of the Navy announces 
its intention to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for 
the proposed disposal and reuse of the Naval Undersea Warfare Center 
(NUWC), New London, Connecticut.
    In 1995, the Congressional Commission on Base Realignment and 
Closure (BRAC) recommended the closure of NUWC New London and its 
subsequent relocation to the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, Newport, 
RI. This recommendation was approved by President Clinton and accepted 
by the One Hundred Fourth Congress in 1995. The BRAC legislation also 
identified the requirements for compliance with NEPA, stating that the 
provisions of NEPA shall apply during the process of property disposal. 
Accordingly, with this notice, the Navy has initiated the process to 
prepare an EIS to evaluate the environmental effects of the disposal 
and likely reuse of this property.
    The proposed action to be considered and evaluated in the EIS is 
the disposal and reuse of the NUWC New London property determined 
surplus to the needs of the federal government. The Center, situated in 
New London county, consists of about 26 acres in the City of New 
London. A portion of the Center, including a pier and the Navy's 
Magnetic Silencing Facility, will be

[[Page 24439]]

transferred to the U.S. Coast Guard. The Navy will continue to operate 
the Magnetic Silencing Facility as a tenant of the Coast Guard. The 
historic Fort Trumbull, and a portion of the land around it, is 
expected to be transferred to the State of Connecticut, Department of 
Environmental Protection, Bureau of Outdoor Recreation under a public 
benefit conveyance for use as an historic state park.
    The NUWC New London Reuse Committee, acting as the Local Reuse 
Authority (LRA), has prepared a reuse plan for the remainder of the 
Center property. The property contains primarily laboratory and office 
space, with very little open space. The property also contains base 
operating support facilities, including training, some housing, shop 
and emergency services space. The reuse plan represents a mixed-use 
redevelopment scenario based on proposed zoning for the site. The NUWC 
LRA has indicated to the Navy that is does not intend to acquire the 
available surplus property and, therefore, the property will be made 
available for development through public sale. The EIS will evaluate 
environmental impacts of the reuse plan, as well as other redevelopment 
scenarios identified through the EIS process. These alternatives 
include a marina/specialty center and a conference center. Navy will 
also evaluate the no action alternative, defined as the retention of 
NUWC New London in a caretaker status. Based on a preliminary 
evaluation conducted by the State Historic Preservation Officer, 
several of the Center's facilities, including Fort Trumbull are 
eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. 
Further evaluation of the Center's buildings and structures will be 
conducted as part of the EIS process.

ADDRESSES: The Navy will hold a public scoping meeting to further 
identify issues to be addressed in the EIS. The meeting will be held on 
Tuesday, May 20, 1997, beginning at 7:30 p.m. at the Radisson Hotel, at 
the Corner of Governor Winthrop Boulevard and Union Street, New London, 
Connecticut. Navy representatives will make a brief presentations, then 
members of the public will be asked to provide comments on potential 
reuses and the EIS process. Agencies and the public are encouraged to 
provide written comments in addition to, or in lieu of, oral comments 
at the scoping meeting. To be most helpful, comments should clearly 
describe specific issues or topics which the EIS should address. 
Written comments must be postmarked by June 15, 1997, and should be 
mailed to Commanding Officer, Northern Division, Naval Facilities 
Engineering Command, Attn: Ms. Tina Deininger (Code 202/TD), 10 
Industrial Highway, MS 82, Lester, PA 19113. All statements, both oral 
and written, will become part of the public record on this action and 
will be given equal consideration.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Additional information concerning this 
notice may be obtained by contacting Ms. Deininger at (610) 595-0761, 
facsimile (610) 595-0778.

    Dated: April 30, 1997.
D.E. Koenig,
LCDR, JAGC, USN, Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 97-11651 Filed 5-2-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3810-FF-M