[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 195 (Friday, October 8, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54875-54876]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-26388]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Navy


Public Hearing for the Draft Environmental Impact Statement 
(DEIS) for the Disposal and Reuse of Naval Station (NAVSTA) Brooklyn, 
NY

AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DOD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Navy has prepared and filed with the 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency a DEIS for the disposal and reuse 
of NAVSTA Brooklyn, New York, New York. Public hearings will be held 
for the purpose of receiving oral and written comments on the DEIS. 
Federal, state and local agencies, and interested individuals are 
invited to be present or represented at the hearings.

DATES AND ADDRESSES: The public hearing will be held on October 21, 
1999 at 7:00 p.m. in Brooklyn Borough Hall, 209 Joralemon Street, 
Brooklyn, New York 11201.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Robert Ostermueller, telephone 
(610) 595-0759.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to Section 102(2)(C) of the 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as implemented by the 
Council on Environmental Quality Regulations (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508), 
the Department of the Navy has prepared and filed with the U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency a DEIS for the disposal and reuse of 
NAVSTA Brooklyn, New York, New York.
    A Notice of Intent for this DEIS was published in the Federal 
Register on January 31, 1997. A public scoping meeting was held in 
Brooklyn, New York, on February 13, 1997.
    The proposed action is the disposal of Navy property for subsequent 
reuse and redevelopment, in accordance with the Defense Base Closure 
and Realignment Act of 1990, as amended, and the 1988 Defense 
Secretary's Commission recommendation that NAVSTA Brooklyn be closed 
and its functions be relocated to the new NAVSTA New York on Staten 
Island. Approximately 23.8 acres of land are available for disposal and 
are the focus of this DEIS. Naval Station Brooklyn was operationally 
closed on May 1, 1993 and approximately 5.0 acres of the total 28.8 
acres of land have been transferred to the Department of Justice.
    With respect to the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act and 
its 1994 amendment, the City of New York has reached an agreement with 
the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to enable HELP 
Homeless Service Corporation develop transitional housing and support 
services at the Manhattan Children's Psychiatric Center on Wards 
Island, instead of the NAVSTA Brooklyn site. In March 1996, the New 
York City Mayor's Office of Planning and Community Relations, acting as 
the local reuse authority (LRA), adopted a proposed reuse plan titled 
Redevelopment Plan for Naval Station Brooklyn, New York. This plan is 
presented as the preferred reuse alternative that, along with its 
alternatives, is analyzed in the DEIS.
    The DEIS evaluates four reuse alternatives: the Reuse Plan 
(Preferred Alternative), the Residential Alternative, the Museum 
Alternative, and the As-of-Right Alternative. A fifth alternative, the 
No Action Alternative, assumes no disposal of property and retention of 
the property by the U.S. Navy in caretaker status.
    The Reuse Plan Alternative, prepared by the LRA, capitalizes on 
NAVSTA Brooklyn's assets in terms of its industrial facilities and 
proximity to the rest of the Brooklyn Navy Yard, and seeks to minimize 
any impacts on the historic campus of the hospital. No new construction 
is proposed; rather, the plan calls for the reuse, for industrial or 
commercial activity, of buildings used by the Navy for such purposes, 
and the adaptive reuse of residential and hospital facilities for 
community institutional purposes.
    Potential impacts evaluated in the DEIS include, but are not 
limited to: Land use, socioeconomics, community facilities/services, 
transportation, air quality, noise, infrastructure, cultural resources, 
natural resources, petroleum and hazardous substances. Issue analysis 
includes an evaluation of the direct, indirect, short-term, and 
cumulative impacts; and irreversible and irretrievable commitment of 
resources associated with the proposed action.
    No decision on the proposed action will be made until the NEPA 
process has been completed and the Secretary of the Navy, or a 
designated representative, releases the Record of Decision.
    The DEIS has been distributed to various federal, state, and local 
agencies, elected officials, and special interest groups and public 
libraries. The

[[Page 54876]]

DEIS is also available for public review at the following libraries:

--Brooklyn Public Library, Central Library, Grand Army Plaza, Brooklyn, 
New York.
--Brooklyn Public Library, Williamsburg Branch, 240 Division Avenue, 
Brooklyn, New York.

    Navy will conduct one public hearing to receive oral and written 
comments concerning the DEIS. A brief presentation will precede a 
request for public information and comments. Navy representatives will 
be available at the hearing to receive information and comments from 
agencies and the public regarding issues of concern. Federal, state, 
and local agencies, and interested parties are invited and urged to be 
present or represented at the hearing. Those who intend to speak will 
be asked to submit a speaker card (available at the door). Oral 
comments will be heard and transcribed by a stenographer.
    To assure accuracy of the record, all statements should be 
submitted in writing. All statements, both oral and written, will 
become part of the public record in the study. Equal weight will be 
given to both oral and written comments. In the interest of available 
time, each speaker will be asked to limit oral comments to three 
minutes. Longer comments should be summarized at the public hearing and 
submitted in writing either at the hearing or mailed to Commanding 
Officer, Northern Division, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Code 
202, 10 Industrial Highway, Lester, Pennsylvania 19113, (Attn. Mr. 
Robert Ostermueller, telephone (610) 595-0759, facsimile (610) 595-
0778). Written comments are requested not later than Monday, November 
15, 1999.

    Dated: October 4, 1999.
Nieva K. Van Leer,
Lieutenant, Judge Advocate General's Corps, U.S. Naval Reserve, 
Alternate Federal Register Liaison Officer.
[FR Doc. 99-26388 Filed 10-7-99; 8:45 am]
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