[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 52 (Monday, March 18, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9807-9808]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-05032]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Indian Affairs

[190A2100DD/AAKC001030/A0A501010.999900 253G]


Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Little River Band 
Trust Acquisition and Casino Project, Township of Fruitport, Muskegon 
County, Michigan

AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Affairs, Interior.

ACTION: Reopening of public comment period.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) is reopening the public 
comment period for the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the 
Little River Band Trust Acquisition and Casino Project, Township of 
Fruitport, Muskegon County, Michigan (DEIS).

DATES: BIA will consider all comments submitted or postmarked by April 
17, 2019. Comments submitted to BIA concerning the DEIS prior to this 
announcement do not need to be resubmitted.

ADDRESSES: You may mail or hand-deliver written comments to Mr. Timothy 
LaPointe, Acting Midwest Regional Director, Bureau of Indian Affairs, 
Midwest Region, Norman Pointe II Building, 5600 West American 
Boulevard, Suite 500, Bloomington, MN 55347. Please include your name, 
return address, and the caption: ``DEIS Comments, Little River Band 
Trust Acquisition and Casino Project,'' on the first page of your 
written comments.

[[Page 9808]]


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Scott Doig, Regional Environmental 
Scientist, Division of Environmental, Facilities, Safety and Cultural 
Resource Management (DEFSCRM), Bureau of Indian Affairs, Midwest 
Region, Norman Pointe II Building, 5600 West American Boulevard, Suite 
500, Bloomington, MN 55347; phone: (612) 725-4597; email: 
[email protected]. Information is also available online at 
www.littleriverEIS.com.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: BIA published a notice of availability of 
the DEIS on November 21, 2018. See 83 FR 58783. Public review of the 
DEIS is part of the administrative process for the evaluation of the 
Tribe's application to the BIA for the Federal trust acquisition of 
approximately 60 acres in the Township of Fruitport, Muskegon County, 
Michigan, upon which the Tribe proposes to develop a casino, hotel, 
parking, and other supporting facilities. The BIA held a public meeting 
on the DEIS on December 12, 2018 at Fruitport Middle School, 3113 E 
Pontaluna Road, Fruitport, Michigan 49415.
    Background: The Proposed Project consists of the following 
components: (1) The transfer of an approximately 60-acre property from 
fee to trust status; (2) issuance of a Secretarial Determination by the 
Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) under Section 20 of the Indian 
Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) that gaming on the project site would be 
in the best interest of the Tribe and not detrimental to the 
surrounding community (25 U.S.C. 2719(b)(1)(A)); and (3) development of 
the trust parcel and adjacent land owned by the Tribe, totaling 
approximately 86.5 acres, with a variety of uses including a casino, 
hotel, conference center, parking, and other supporting facilities. At 
full build-out, the proposed casino facility would include 
approximately 149,069 square feet of gaming floor; a hotel with 220 
guest rooms; a 250-seat buffet, as well as a caf[eacute], sports bar, 
food court, and other food and beverage providers; and an approximately 
38,790-square foot convention center. Access to the project site would 
be provided via two driveways: One along Harvey Street and one along 
East Ellis Road. Five service driveways, not for public use, would be 
located on East Ellis Road.
    The following alternatives are considered in the DEIS: (1) Proposed 
Project; (2) Reduced Intensity Alternative; (3) Non-Gaming Alternative; 
(4) Custer Site Alternative, and (5) No Action/No Development. 
Environmental issues addressed in the DEIS include geology and soils, 
water resources, air quality, biological resources, cultural and 
paleontological resources, socioeconomic conditions (including 
environmental justice), transportation and circulation, land use, 
public services, noise, hazardous materials, aesthetics, cumulative 
effects, and indirect and growth-inducing effects.
    Locations where the DEIS is available for review: The DEIS will be 
available for review at the Fruitport Public Library located at 605 
Eclipse Blvd., Fruitport, Michigan 53511, and online at 
www.littleriverEIS.com. To obtain a compact disk copy of the DEIS, 
please provide your name and address in writing to Mr. Scott Doig, 
Bureau of Indian Affairs, Midwest Regional Office. Contact information 
is listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this 
notice. Individual paper copies of the DEIS will be provided only upon 
payment of applicable printing expenses by the requestor for the number 
of copies requested.
    Public comment availability: Comments, including names and 
addresses of respondents, will be available for public review at the 
BIA address shown in the ADDRESSES section, during regular business 
hours, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays. 
Before including your address, phone number, email address, or other 
personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware 
that your entire comment--including your personal identifying 
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask in your comment that your personal identifying information be 
withheld from public review, the BIA cannot guarantee that this will 
occur.
    Authority: This notice is published pursuant to Sec. 1503.1 of the 
Council of Environmental Quality Regulations (40 CFR parts 1500 through 
1508) and Sec. 46.305 of the Department of the Interior Regulations (43 
CFR part 46), implementing the procedural requirements of the NEPA of 
l969, as amended (42 U.S.C. 4371, et seq.), and is in the exercise of 
authority delegated to the Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs by 209 
DM 8.

    Dated: March 8, 2019.
Tara Sweeney,
Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2019-05032 Filed 3-15-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4337-15-P