[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 62 (Wednesday, March 31, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16949-16950]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-7135]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service


Environmental Statements; Notice of Intent: Elkmont Historic 
District, TN

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare a General Management Plan 
Amendment/Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Elkmont Historic 
District in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

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SUMMARY: This notice is being published in accordance with 40 CFR 
1506.6. Pursuant to section 102(2)(c) of the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969, the National Park Service announces the preparation 
of a General Management Plan Amendment/Environmental Impact Statement 
(GMPA/EIS) to analyze alternatives for resolving issues related to the 
Elkmont Historic District. The purpose of the planning initiative for 
which the EIS is being written is to reevaluate the current management 
strategy for the Elkmont Historic District as articulated in the Park's 
General Management Plan (GMP), written in 1982. The public scoping 
process for the EIS has been initiated with issuance of this notice. 
The purpose of the scoping process is to elicit public comment 
regarding the full spectrum of public issues and concerns, including a 
suitable range of alternatives, the nature and extent of potential 
environmental impacts and appropriate mitigation strategies which 
should be addressed in the GMPA/EIS process.

DATES: Beginning on March 8, 2004, public information meetings will be 
conducted in the vicinity of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The 
location, date, and time of the meetings and deadlines for written 
comments will be announced via local and regional media as follows: The 
Knoxville News-Sentinel, Knoxville, Tennessee; The Mountain Press, 
Sevierville, Tennessee; The Daily Times, Maryville, Tennessee; The 
Smoky Mountain Times, Bryson City, North Carolina; The Mountaineer, 
Waynesville, North Carolina; Asheville Citizen Times, Asheville, North 
Carolina and other major newspapers in Raleigh, North Carolina, 
Charlotte, North Carolina, Atlanta, Georgia, and Nashville, Tennessee. 
Announcements will also be placed on the following Web sites: http://www.nps.gov/grsm and http://www.elkmont-gmpa-ea.com/. All interested 
individuals, organizations and agencies are invited to attend these 
meetings to comment orally and/or provide written comments or 
suggestions during the scoping period.

ADDRESSES: Any comments or requests for information should be addressed 
to Elkmont Historic District EIS, Attn: Superintendent, Great Smoky 
Mountains National Park, 107 Park Headquarters Road, Gatlinburg, 
Tennessee 37738.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Superintendent, Great Smoky Mountains 
National Park, 107 Park Headquarters Road, Gatlinburg, TN 37738. 
Telephone: (865) 436-1207 or Fax: (865) 436-1220.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The public is advised that individual names 
and addresses may be included as part of the public record. Names and 
addresses will be available for public review during regular business 
hours. There may be circumstances in which a person prefers to have 
their name and other information withheld from the public record. Any 
person wishing to do this must state this prominently at the beginning 
of any correspondence or comment, and the request will be honored to 
the extent allowable by law. All submissions from organizations or 
businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves as 
representatives or officials of organizations or businesses, will be 
placed on the public record and will be made available for public 
inspection in their entirety.
    There are 74 cottages, outbuildings and a hotel in the Elkmont 
Historic District (District) of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, 
which until December 1992, were under the lease of the Elkmont 
Preservation Committee (EPC). The District is located in Sevier County, 
Tennessee, within the Park and is approximately 7 miles west on Little 
River Road, from the Sugarlands Visitor Center. It is critical that 
Great Smoky Mountains National Park continues the planning process for 
the Elkmont Historic District. With the exception of two buildings 
vacated in late 2001, all of the structures in the District have been 
vacant since 1992. The structures have deteriorated and the Park has 
been forced to expend emergency funding to stabilize the structures.
    Under guidelines described in the National Historic Preservation 
Act (NHPA), the Park has been in consultation with the Tennessee 
Historical Commission (State Historic Preservation Office--SHPO) and 
the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, as well as other 
longstanding stakeholders as Consulting Parties. Many of the issues 
regarding the eventual management of the district are yet unresolved. 
Based upon a decision in its 1982 GMP, the Park had planned to remove 
all of the structures once their leases expired and then allow the area 
to revert to a natural condition. One of the natural communities found 
at Elkmont was identified as a ``montane alluvial forest.'' This 
particular natural community is ranked as ``rare and highly 
threatened.'' In 1994, the Elkmont community was listed on the National 
Register of Historic Places as an historic district, so any action 
affecting it would require consultation with the SHPO. Consequently, 
discussion of any action upholding or diverging from the direction 
provided by the current GMP has generated controversy among the various 
stakeholders and any decision by the Park could further enflame deep 
passions among these stakeholders. Current Elkmont planning effectively 
combines NEPA and NHPA guidelines as a joint process in an effort to 
streamline the overall planning process. As part of the 106 process 
under the NHPA defined in 36 CFR, part 800.8, the Park formed a 
Consulting Parties group that represents various public interest 
groups. This public group was formed to consult and advise the Park on 
issues concerning the eventual management of the District. Public 
expectation and time sensitive concerns will ensure the planning 
process is conducted in a timely manner.
    As part of the evaluation process, a range of reasonable management 
actions will be identified/analyzed in context with agency mission and 
the public interest. The planning effort will result in a defined 
management prescription for Elkmont. This undertaking is in response to 
new information and additional resource knowledge

[[Page 16950]]

unknown at the time the GMP was approved in 1982. National Park Service 
planning is intended to bring logic, natural and cultural resource 
analysis, public involvement, and accountability into its decision-
making. Public participation will ensure the NPS fully understands and 
considers the public's interest as part of the national heritage, 
cultural traditions, and community surroundings.
    Recognizing that the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) 
requires the consideration of a reasonable range of options that will 
address the project purpose and need, the EIS will include a full range 
of alternatives for detailed study. The alternatives will consist of a 
no-action alternative, as well as a variety of action alternatives. 
These alternatives will be developed, screened and subjected to 
detailed analysis in the draft GMPA/EIS based on their ability to 
address the purpose and need, while attempting to avoid known and 
sensitive resources.
    Prior to deciding to enter into the EIS process, the NPS had been 
preparing an environmental assessment (EA) for the Elkmont Historic 
District. Through this EA process, the NPS held numerous public 
meetings and workshops to ascertain public concerns and suggested uses 
for the District. This extensive public input resulted in a high level 
of controversy over the use of the resources. Due to this high level of 
controversy, a sense of urgency regarding the condition of the Elkmont 
structures, and to be better positioned for decision making, the NPS 
elevated the process to a GMPA/EIS level.
    All past public input will be incorporated into the GMPA/EIS 
process and will continue to serve as the basis on which detailed 
alternatives are formulated. It is anticipated that the next set of 
public information meetings will be held on March 8 and 9, 2004, as 
part of the NEPA process to facilitate local, state, and federal agency 
involvement and to inform and to solicit input from the public 
regarding the range of proposed detailed alternatives being carried 
forward into the GMPA/EIS. Private organizations, citizens, and 
interest groups will have an opportunity to provide input into the 
development of the GMPA/EIS and identify issues that should be 
addressed at the public information meetings.
    A comprehensive public participation plan will be undertaken to 
involve the public throughout the project development process. This 
public involvement plan includes the initial set of formal scoping 
public meetings as well as other formats for input at key stages 
throughout the process, including public review of the draft GMPA/EIS. 
The plan will also include dissemination of current information on the 
project Web site, with newsletters, and meetings with the Consulting 
Parties.
    The draft GMPA/EIS will be available for public and agency review 
and comment prior to the second set of public meetings/hearings. Its 
availability will be announced by Federal Register notice, regional and 
local media, Web site, and direct mailings to all those on the formal 
project mailing list developed and maintained throughout the NEPA/
Public Involvement process. At this time, the draft GMPA/EIS is 
anticipated to be available for public review in late 2004.
    To ensure that the full range of issues related to this proposed 
action are identified and taken into account, comments and suggestions 
are invited from all interested parties. Comments and questions 
concerning this notice of proposed action, and when the draft GMPA/EIS 
is available, should be directed to the NPS at the address provided 
under the caption FOR FURTHER INFROMATION CONTACT.

    Dated: January 15, 2004.
Patricia A. Hooks,
Acting Regional Director, Southeast Region.
[FR Doc. 04-7135 Filed 3-30-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-70-P