[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 116 (Thursday, June 17, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32493-32495]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-15437]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-6362-1]


Regulatory Reinvention (XL) Pilot Projects

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice; announcement of availability of the proposed final 
project XL agreement for the Atlantic Steel Redevelopment.

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SUMMARY: EPA is requesting comments on a proposed Final Project XL 
Agreement for the Atlantic Steel XL Project. The Final Project 
Agreement is a voluntary agreement developed collaboratively by 
Atlantis 16th, L.L.C., stakeholders, and EPA. Project XL, announced in 
the Federal Register on May 23, 1995 (60 FR 27282), gives regulated 
entities the flexibility to develop alternative strategies that will 
replace or modify specific regulatory requirements on the condition 
that the alternative strategy will produce greater environmental 
benefits. EPA has set a goal of implementing a total of fifty XL 
projects undertaken in full partnership with the states.

DATES: The period for submission of comments ends on July 19, 1999.

ADDRESSES: All comments on the draft Final Project Agreement should be 
sent to: Michelle Glenn, U.S. EPA, Region IV, 61 Forsyth Street, 
Atlanta, GA 30303, or Tim Torma, U.S. EPA, Office of Reinvention 
(1802), 401 M Street, SW, Room 1025WT, Washington, DC 20460. Comments 
may also be faxed to Ms. Glenn at (404) 562-8628 or Mr. Torma at (202) 
401-6637. Comments will also be received via electronic mail sent to: 
[email protected] or [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The proposed Final Project Agreement 
and related documents are available via the Internet at the following 
location: ``http://www.epa.gov/ProjectXL''. The Agreement and related 
documents may also be obtained by contacting: Michelle Glenn, U.S. EPA, 
Region IV, 61 Forsyth Street, Atlanta, GA 30303, or Tim Torma, U.S. 
EPA, Office of Reinvention (1802), 401 M Street, SW, Room 1025WT, 
Washington, DC 20460. In addition, public files on the Project are 
located at EPA's Region IV in Atlanta. Questions to EPA regarding the 
documents can be directed to Michelle Glenn at (404) 562-8674 or Tim 
Torma at (202) 260-5180. To be included on the Atlantic Steel Project 
XL mailing list to receive XL progress reports and other mailings from 
the project sponsor, contact: Brian Leary, CRB Realty Associates, P.O. 
Box 2246, Duluth, GA 30096. Mr. Leary can be reached by telephone at 
(770) 622-7797. For information on all other aspects of Project XL 
contact Christopher Knopes at the following address: Office of 
Reinvention (1802), United States Environmental Protection Agency, Room 
1029, 401 M Street, SW, Washington, DC 20460. Additional information on 
Project XL, other EPA policy documents related to Project XL, regional 
XL contacts, application information, and descriptions of existing XL 
projects and proposals, is available via the Internet at ``http://
www.epa.gov/ProjectXL''.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 
(EPA), with the cooperation of State and local authorities, has 
initiated Project XL to work with interested companies to develop 
innovative approaches for addressing environmental issues. Project XL 
encourages companies and communities to come forward with new 
approaches that have the potential to advance environmental goals more 
effectively and efficiently than have been achieved using traditional 
regulatory tools.
    Atlantis 16th, L.L.C. (hereafter referred to as Jacoby), a 
developer in Atlanta, GA has proposed redevelopment of a 138-acre site 
currently owned by Atlantic Steel near Atlanta's central business 
district. The proposed development is a mix of residential and business 
uses. Project plans include a multi-modal (cars, pedestrians, bicycles, 
transit linkage) bridge that would cross and provide access ramps to I-
75/85 as well as connecting the site to a nearby MARTA (the 
Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority) rapid rail mass transit 
station. Jacoby has worked intensively with representatives of EPA, the 
State of Georgia, the City of Atlanta, other local authorities, and 
public stakeholders to develop a site-specific Project XL Agreement 
that will allow implementation of the redevelopment.

What is the Final Project Agreement?

    The Final Project Agreement spells out the intentions of Jacoby and 
EPA related to development and implementation of this project. Due to 
the complexity of the project and the numerous processes and analyses 
necessary to implement it, EPA and Jacoby adopted a two-phased approach 
to the Project XL Agreement. The Phase 1 Project Agreement was made 
available for public comment on February 24, 1999 and was signed by EPA 
and Jacoby on April 15, 1999. This Final Project XL Agreement 
supersedes the Phase 1 Agreement. The Final Agreement incorporates 
information and agreements from the Phase 1 Agreement to the extent 
they remain current and in effect. EPA and Jacoby do not anticipate 
making substantive changes to aspects of the project which were agreed 
upon in the Phase 1 Agreement. Commentors on the Final Project 
Agreement are encouraged to focus on new information which was not 
included in the Phase 1 Agreement.
    Like all Project XL Agreements, the Final Project Agreement itself 
is not legally binding--legally enforceable commitments described in 
the Agreement will be contained in separate legal documents such as the 
State

[[Page 32494]]

Implementation Plan and approved Remediation Plan.

Why Is Project XL Necessary?

    The project site currently suffers from poor accessibility due to 
the lack of a linkage to and across I-75/85 to midtown and to the 
existing MARTA transit system in Atlanta. Construction of an 
interchange and multi-modal bridge across I-75/85 at 17th Street would 
improve access to the site. The bridge would also serve as a vital 
linkage between the Atlantic Steel redevelopment and the MARTA Arts 
Center station. In addition, construction of the 17th Street bridge was 
one of the City of Atlanta's zoning requirements for the project.
    Jacoby is participating in Project XL for the Atlantic Steel 
redevelopment because neither the 17th Street bridge nor the associated 
I-75/85 access ramps would be able to proceed without the regulatory 
flexibility being allowed by EPA under this Project. Atlanta is 
currently out of compliance with federal air quality conformity 
requirements because it has failed to demonstrate that its 
transportation activities will not exacerbate existing air quality 
problems or create new air quality problems in the region. The Clean 
Air Act (CAA) generally prohibits construction of new transportation 
projects that use federal funds or require federal approval in areas 
where compliance with conformity requirements has lapsed. However, 
projects which are approved as transportation control measures (TCMs) 
in a state's air quality plan can proceed--even during a conformity 
lapse. EPA approves state air quality plans, including TCMs contained 
in the plans.

What Flexibility Is EPA Granting?

    The flexibility Jacoby is seeking through Project XL is to regard 
the entire brownfield redevelopment project, including the 17th Street 
bridge, as a TCM. The flexibility under Project XL is necessary because 
the redevelopment likely would not qualify as a TCM in the traditional 
sense. Under the Clean Air Act, a ``transportation control measure'' 
must actually be a measure--an activity undertaken, a transportation 
project built, a program implemented. There are two components to the 
flexibility.
    (1) The first part of the flexibility is to consider the entire 
Atlantic Steel redevelopment to be a TCM. That is, EPA would view 
Atlantic Steel's location, transit linkage, site design, and other 
transportation elements (e.g., provisions for bicyclists; participation 
in a transportation management association) together as the TCM. Under 
the Clean Air Act, a project must demonstrate an air quality benefit to 
be considered a TCM. The Clean Air Act lists several types of projects 
that can be TCMs but its language does not limit TCMs to the measures 
listed.
    (2) The second aspect of the flexibility sought under Project XL 
concerns use of an innovative approach to measuring the air quality 
benefit of the Atlantic Steel redevelopment. EPA will measure Atlantic 
Steel's air quality benefit relative to an equivalent amount of 
development at other likely sites in the region. This type of 
comparison is available only to this particular redevelopment through 
the Project XL process. The entire Atlantic Steel redevelopment would 
attract new automobile trips and result in new emissions. Therefore, 
redevelopment of the site when considered in isolation would not 
qualify as a TCM in the traditional sense. EPA believes, however, that 
the Atlanta region will continue to grow, and that redevelopment of the 
Atlantic Steel site will produce fewer air pollution emissions than an 
equivalent quantity of development at other likely sites in the region.

Why Is This Flexibility Appropriate?

    EPA believes the flexibility described above is appropriate for 
this project because of the combination of unique elements of the site 
and the redevelopment listed below. In the absence of these elements, 
EPA would be unlikely to approve new transportation projects during a 
conformity lapse.
    (1) The site is a brownfield. An accelerated clean-up of the site 
will occur if this XL Project is implemented. The clean-up and 
redevelopment of the former industrial site aligns with EPA's general 
efforts to encourage clean-up and reuse of urban brownfields. The 
likely alternative would be an underdeveloped, underused industrial 
parcel in the middle of midtown Atlanta.
    (2) The site has a regionally central, urban location. Redeveloping 
this property will result in a shift of growth to midtown Atlanta from 
the outer reaches of the metropolitan area. Because of the site's 
central location, people taking trips to and from the site will be 
driving shorter average distances than those taking trips to and from a 
development on the edge of the city. Shorter driving distances will 
result in fewer emissions.
    (3) The redevelopment plans include a linkage to MARTA. This 
linkage would make it possible for those who work at the site to 
commute without a car and would serve residents of Atlantic Steel as 
well as residents of surrounding neighborhoods. In addition, the 
transit link is valuable for those coming to the site for non-work 
purposes, such as dining, shopping, and entertainment.
    (4) The redevelopment plan incorporates many ``smart growth'' site 
design principles. These principles include features which promote 
pedestrian and transit access rather than exclusive reliance on the 
car. The redevelopment will avoid creating areas that are abandoned and 
unsafe in the evening, hotels and offices will be within walking 
distance of shops and restaurants, shops that serve local needs will be 
within walking distance of both the Atlantic Steel site and the 
adjacent neighborhoods, and wide sidewalks will encourage walking and 
retail use. Jacoby has also responded to the adjacent neighborhood's 
request for public parks, designating public space to central locations 
rather than relegating it to the edge.
    (5) The redevelopment incorporates many elements that could qualify 
as TCMs by themselves. In addition to the linkage to mass transit, the 
redevelopment will participate in a transportation management 
association (TMA). The TMA may participate with the City of Atlanta and 
Jacoby in monitoring the transportation performance of the 
redevelopment by collecting travel-related data annually.
    With the exception of the site's accelerated clean-up, all of these 
elements will have an impact on transportation decisions of people who 
begin and/or end trips in the Atlantic Steel site. The combination of 
the site's location in a central urban area, connection to the existing 
transit system, design that promotes pedestrian access, participation 
in a TMA, and provision of bicycle and pedestrian conveniences are 
expected to work together to reduce growth in auto traffic in the 
Atlanta region. The redevelopment could demonstrate that the 
application of smart growth concepts can make a difference in travel 
patterns, even in Atlanta--where people drive more per capita than any 
other city in the country. Therefore, EPA intends to use regulatory 
flexibility under Project XL to approve the redevelopment and its 
associated transportation projects as a TCM.


[[Page 32495]]


    Dated: May 28, 1999.
Lisa Lund,
Deputy Associate Administrator for Reinvention Programs, Office of 
Reinvention.
[FR Doc. 99-15437 Filed 6-16-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P