[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 55 (Wednesday, March 23, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14708-14709]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E5-1253]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-4912-N-11]


Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement for the Development of Stillwater Business Park, City of 
Redding, CA

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and 
Development, HUD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: HUD gives notice to the public, agencies, and Indian tribes 
that the City of Redding, CA, has prepared a Draft Environmental Impact 
Statement (DEIS)/ Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the Stillwater 
Business Park project located in Redding, CA. The City of Redding, CA 
has prepared the Draft EIS/EIR under its authority as the responsible 
entity for compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) 
in accordance with 42 U.S.C. 3547(c) and HUD regulations at 24 CFR 58.4 
and under its authority as lead agency in accordance with the 
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The draft EIS/EIS is a 
joint NEPA and CEQA document. The EIR will satisfy requirements of the 
CEQA (Public Resources Code 21000 et seq.) and State CEQ Guidelines (14 
California Code of Regulations 15000 et seq.) that require that all 
state and local government agencies consider the environmental 
consequences of projects over which they have discretionary authority 
before acting on those projects. Because HUD Economic Development 
Initiative (EDI) special project funds would be used, the proposed 
action is also subject to NEPA. EPA, State and Tribal Assistance Grants 
(STAG) will also fund water and wastewater related infrastructure. EPA 
is acting as a cooperating agency for this process. This notice is 
given in accordance with the Council on Environmental Quality 
regulations at 40 CFR parts 1500-1508. All interested federal, state, 
and local agencies, Indian tribes, groups, and the public are invited 
to comment on the draft EIS.

DATES: Comments Due Date: May 9, 2005. Written comments on the Draft 
EIS should be addressed to the individual named below under the

[[Page 14709]]

heading FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
    Public Meeting: A public comment meeting will be held during the 
comment period in order to ensure public participation. The public 
meeting will be held on April 12, 2005, starting at 4 p.m. The public 
meeting will be held at the following location: City of Redding Council 
Chambers, 777 Cypress Ave, Redding, CA 96001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nathan Cherpeski, City of Redding, 777 
Cypress Avenue, Redding, CA 96001, (530) 225-4519. The DEIS is 
available on the Internet and can be viewed or downloaded at: http://ci.redding.ca.us/cm/major_pr/still_buspk.html. Copies of the Draft 
EIS/EIR are also available for review at the following locations: City 
of Redding, Permit Center, 777 Cypress Ave, Redding, CA 96001; Shasta 
County Department of Resource Management, Planning Division, 1855 
Placer Street, Redding, CA 96001; City of Anderson Planning Department, 
1887 Howard Street, Anderson, CA 96007; Shasta County Library, 1855 
Shasta Street, Redding, CA 96001; and Shasta County Library--Anderson 
Branch, 3200 West Center, Anderson, CA 96007.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A Notice of Intent to prepare a draft EIS 
was published May 11, 2004. The proposed action is the development of a 
large parcel business park through the acquisition of land and the 
construction of major infrastructure components and the provision of 
public services and utilities to serve the development. The City of 
Redding is proposing the development of the area east and northeast of 
the Municipal Airport in Redding, California. The proposed action study 
area is located on the Enterprise and Cottonwood, California 7.5-minute 
USGS quadrangles, Township 31 North, Range 4 West, Sections 2, 3, 10, 
14, 15, 22, 23, 26, 34, and 35. The proposed location is classified a 
portion as industrial and a portion as park under the Redding General 
Plan, adopted in 2000. The purpose and need for this project is to 
increase the activity of contributory economic sectors by constructing 
a business park within the city of Redding sphere of influence capable 
of attracting and accommodating diverse business and industrial users.
    Multiple alternatives were identified and discussed via the scoping 
process. After preliminary review, four alternatives were considered 
for full evaluation. They are:
    Alternative 1--Development of a large lot business park capable of 
accommodating a broad range of industries near the Redding Municipal 
airport. This proposal would result in an approximate 687-acre business 
park consisting of 383 acres of developable land for a total of 
4,410,400 sq. ft. of improvements for professional offices and 
industrial users. About 250 acres in the northern portion will be 
preserved as open space to protect the vernal pool and wetland features 
in the area. The proposal includes parcels ranging from 4 acres to more 
than 100 acres. An extensive trail system, for pedestrians and bikes, 
will wind throughout the project and the open space preserve. Part of 
this trail will also serve as a utility access road for a proposed 
115Kv transmission line that runs through the northern open space area 
and then down the east side of the project area. This alternative 
involves two bridge crossings of Stillwater Creek and the construction 
of a backbone road, trunk sewer lines, water lines, traffic 
improvement, and other utilities. This alternative could also have 
impacts on vernal pool features and other jurisdictional waters. A 
portion of the site lies within Critical habitat for vernal pool 
species.
    Alternative 2: (Preferred Alternative): An onsite variation of 
Alternative 1, the overall project is 687 acres with approximately 383 
acres of developable land. The major change for this alternative is 
that it relocates the 115Kv transmission lines away from the open space 
area to the west side of the property near the proposed backbone road. 
A portion of the northern phase will be preserved as open space to 
protect the vernal pool wetland features in the area. The trail system 
was rerouted to protect sensitive open space areas. This alternative 
involves two bridge crossings of Stillwater Creek and the construction 
of a backbone road, trunk sewer lines, water lines, traffic 
improvement, and other utilities. This alternative could also have 
impacts on vernal pool features and other jurisdictional waters. A 
portion of the site lies within Critical habitat for vernal pool 
species.
    Alternative 3: This offsite alternative includes the combination of 
separately owned parcels into a large (approximately 395 developable 
acres) potentially available site northwest of the Redding Municipal 
Airport. It is anticipated that this site could provide parcels ranging 
from 1.5 acres to 100 acres to meet the community's need. Based on 
projections for professional office and industrial users this could 
provide up to 4,499,000 sq. ft. of development. This alternative 
involves one bridge crossing of Clover Creek and the construction of a 
backbone road, sewer lines, water lines, traffic improvement, and other 
utilities. This alternative could also have impacts on vernal pool 
features and other jurisdictional waters. The site lies within the area 
designated as Critical habitat for vernal pool species.
    No Project--No Action. No action would be taken. The land for all 
alternatives zoned for development will likely develop over the next 20 
years in some fashion regardless of this proposal. An approximate 218-
acre portion of Alternative 1 and 2 is designated as Park and would be 
developed in that fashion.
    Actions common to all alternatives include certain traffic, 
electrical transmission lines, water, wastewater, and other utility 
improvements.
    The DEIS/DEIR addresses the following environmental issues: Air 
quality, cultural resources, flood hazard, hydrology, noise, hazardous 
materials, biological resources, traffic, land use, erosion control, 
environmental justice, housing and population, growth inducing effects, 
and secondary and cumulative impacts.
    Questions may be directed to the individual named above under the 
heading FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

    Dated: March 16, 2005.
Nelson R. Bregon,
General Deputy Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and 
Development.
[FR Doc. E5-1253 Filed 3-22-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-27-P