[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 85 (Monday, May 4, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24570-24571]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-11716]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
Fort Baker Comprehensive Plan, Golden Gate National Recreation
Area, Marin County, California; Notice of Intent To Prepare an
Environmental Impact Statement
SUMMARY: In accordance with section 102(2)(C) of the National
Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), Golden Gate National
Recreation Area is undertaking a conservation planning and impact
analysis process to identify and assess potential impacts of alternate
management concepts for future activities at the Fort Baker area.
Notice is hereby given that the National Park Service will prepare a
draft environmental impact statement and comprehensive plan.
Background
Fort Baker is within the boundary of Golden Gate National
Recreation Area (GGNRA), a unit of the National Park System comprised
of coastal lands in Marin, San Francisco and San Mateo Counties,
California. Fort Baker (just north of the Golden Gate Bridge) is a
historic district on the National Register of Historic Places. It has
over one and one-half miles of San Francisco Bay shoreline, and habitat
for the endangered Mission Blue Butterfly is found on hillsides above
developed portions of the site. More than 170,000 visitors annually use
the Bay Area Discovery Museum (a Fort Baker educational opportunity
created within several rehabilitated historic buildings which were
transferred to the National Park Service in 1986). Portions of the site
still under the jurisdiction of the
[[Page 24571]]
Army, including over 70 acres of land and 50 historic buildings, will
be transferred to the NPS by 2001. Also included in the transfer will
be over 180 acres of San Francisco Bay tidelands.
The conservation planning and impact analysis process will focus
primarily on lands and buildings to be transferred by the Army to the
National Park Service (NPS), with consideration of the site as a whole.
Concepts for the use and development of this site were approved in the
1980 General Management Plan (1980 GMP) for GGNRA, including the use of
historic buildings for a conference center, restoration of a natural
beach and waterfront, and general site improvements to better
accommodate park visitors.
Proposal Alternatives Developed to Date
The proposed activities currently include the following:
Rehabilitation of historic buildings, possible use of non-historic
buildings and potential limited new construction to accommodate an
education and retreat center; restoration of the beach and waterfront
to enhance natural values and improve visitor access; modification of
the marina and boat house to accommodate public uses; protection of
sensitive natural resources; expansion to accommodate the needs of the
existing Bay Area Discovery Museum and the Coast Guard Station; and
improvements to vehicle and pedestrian access and circulation.
Other alternatives currently being evaluated include the following:
for use of the historic buildings--an emphasis on park-partner
programs, residential academy of environmental sciences and arts for
school-aged youth, and general residential uses; for the waterfront--
retaining the bulkhead, protecting the filled former beach with rip-
rap, and including a more urban landscape treatment of the waterfront;
for the marina--retaining the current marina development as a public
facility and converting its use to accommodate only short-term moorings
for park visitors; for the non-historic residences--removal or
retention and rehabilitation to support the use of historic structures;
for the Coast Guard Station and Bay Area Discovery Museum--retaining
them at their current size with no expansion.
Specific outcomes of this conservation planning and impact analysis
process are a comprehensive plan for Fort Baker, including a building
re-use plan, a developed area plan and a waterfront design. The plan
will amend the 1980 GMP. Additional information about Fort Baker can be
found on the Internet at http://www.nps.gov/goga/fortbaker/
fortbaker.htm.
Scoping To Date/Decision Process
A Federal Register notice, published August 19, 1997 to initiate
the scoping process for environmental analysis, indicated no decision
had been made about whether to prepare an Environmental Assessment or
Environmental Impact Statement. Scoping activities were undertaken in
fall 1997. These included tours of Fort Baker, a public workshop, and
planning presentations (including the scoping document and proposed
alternatives) made at GGNRA Advisory Commission meetings in winter
1997-1998. A brochure describing the planning process and preliminary
alternatives and issues was also distributed to the public. Upon
consideration of public responses obtained through this scoping effort,
it has been determined that an Environmental Impact Statement will be
prepared.
All comments received during the initial scoping phase have been
documented and will be considered during EIS preparation. Interested
individuals, organizations and agencies wishing to provide additional
comments or suggestions, or wishing to now be added to the project
mailing list, should respond to: Fort Baker EIS; Attn: Nancy Hornor,
Fort Mason; Golden Gate National Recreation Area; San Francisco, CA
94123. Any new comments must be postmarked no later than thirty (30)
days following publication of this notice (or if via e-mail,
transmitted no later than this date to [email protected]).
Availability of the Draft EIS (DEIS) for review and written comment
will be announced by formal Notice, via local and regional news media,
and direct mailing. At this time the DEIS is anticipated to be
available for public review during summer 1998, and that subsequently a
Final EIS (FEIS) will be completed in fall/winter 1998. To afford an
additional comment opportunity on the DEIS, public meetings will be
held through the GGNRA Advisory Commission (full details on dates and
locations for these sessions may be obtained from the project contact
noted above). Notice of the Record of Decision will be published in the
Federal Register not sooner than thirty (30) days after the FEIS is
distributed. The official responsible for the decision is the Regional
Director, Pacific West Region, National Park Service; the official
responsible for implementation will be the Superintendent, Golden Gate
National Recreation Area. A solicitation, evaluation, and selection
process will follow completion of the above process to select a partner
to implement the selected plan for the historic buildings and possible
other elements of the plan.
Dated: April 15, 1998.
Patricia L. Neubacher,
Acting Regional Director, Pacific West.
[FR Doc. 98-11716 Filed 5-1-98; 8:45 am]
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