[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 33 (Thursday, February 20, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10037-10039]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-02830]
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DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS
[EISX-029-15-VHA-1734563688]
Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for
the Proposed Relocation of the Veteran Affairs Medical Center in San
Antonio, Texas
AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs.
ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is issuing this Notice
of Intent (NOI) to solicit comment and advise the public, agencies, and
stakeholders that an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) will be
prepared for a new approximately 1,600,000 gross square foot
replacement for the existing Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans
Hospital, located at 7400 Merton Minter Boulevard in San Antonio,
Texas. The Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans Hospital is a Veterans
Affairs Medical Center (VAMC), providing health care services to
approximately 140,000 Veterans directly and in support of the Kerrville
Texas VAMC. Persons or agencies who may be interested in or affected by
the proposed project are encouraged to comment on the information in
this NOI. All comments received in response to this NOI will be
considered and any information presented herein, including the
preliminary purpose and need, preliminary alternatives and identified
impacts, may be revised in consideration of the comments.
DATES: Scoping comments must be received on or before April 7, 2025. VA
anticipates releasing the Draft EIS for a 45-day public review and
comment period in late 2025 or early 2026.
ADDRESSES: Comments must be submitted through www.regulations.gov.
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Except as provided below, comments received before the close of the
comment period will be available at www.regulations.gov for public
viewing, inspection, or copying, including any personally identifiable
or confidential business information that is included in a comment. We
post the comments received before the close of the comment period on
www.regulations.gov as soon as possible after they have been received.
VA will not post on Regulations.gov public comments that make threats
to individuals or institutions or suggest that the commenter will take
actions to harm an individual. VA encourages individuals not to submit
duplicative comments; however, we will post comments from multiple
unique commenters even if the content is identical or nearly identical
to other comments. Any public comment received after the comment
period's closing date is considered late and will not be considered in
any final action.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Bruce Mack, Environmental
Engineer, Office of Construction and Facilities Management (003C2),
Department of Veterans Affairs, at [email protected] or (224) 817-
2374. (This is not a toll-free telephone number.) Please reference
``San Antonio VAMC EIS'' in the subject of your correspondence. In
addition, the publicly accessible website provides further project
information:https://www.cfm.va.gov/environmental/index.asp.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Regulatory Framework
VA is preparing the EIS in accordance with the requirements of the
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended (42 United
States Code [U.S.C.] 4321, et seq.), Council on Environmental Quality
(CEQ) regulations implementing NEPA (40 Code of Federal Regulations
[CFR] part 1500-1508), VA's NEPA Implementing Regulations (38 CFR part
26).
VA may elect to use the NEPA process to consider impacts to
historic properties traditionally addressed through 54 U.S.C. 306108 of
the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) and its implementing
regulations codified in 36 CFR part 800 (collectively ``Section 106'').
This process, referred to as substitution, is described in 36 CFR
800.8(c) and the NEPA and NHPA: A Handbook for Integrating NEPA and
Section 106 published by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation
and CEQ.
Preliminary Purpose and Need
The preliminary purpose is to provide exceptional health care
services to the growing Veteran population in the South Texas region.
The South Texas region is undergoing a substantial increase in Veteran
population, placing additional demands on already stressed health care
infrastructure. In 2022, the VAMC supported approximately 146,000
Veteran enrollees. By 2033, that number of enrollees is projected to
increase to approximately 188,000 and grow to approximately 202,000 by
2042. This projected Veteran enrollee growth of more than 20% between
2022 and 2033 will drive an increase in demand for Veteran health care
services in the South Texas region.
The proposed action is needed to address critical infrastructure,
functional, and space limitations at the existing VAMC. Built in 1972,
the VAMC has aging infrastructure and space limitations. The
configuration of the existing VAMC does not support modern health care
delivery models, has little room for expansion, and does not have
sufficient parking to accommodate current, much less the projected
future enrollees. These limitations make it challenging to meet modern
health care requirements and the needs of the growing South Texas
Veteran population.
Preliminary Project Alternatives
The existing VAMC is located in a concentration of medical
facilities generally known as the San Antionio medical district. The
location of the current VAMC in the medical district facilitates
collaboration, education, and advancement with other nearby health-care
providers, significantly enhancing the quality of care to Veterans.
Therefore, both alternatives are located within the medical district.
The preliminary alternatives will go through a screening process,
which will be informed by the public and agency input through scoping.
The VA will consider agency and public comments received during the NOI
scoping period. Thus, these preliminary alternatives are subject to
change.
Alterative 1: Relocation of VAMC to Nearby Site
This alternative would replace the existing VAMC by acquiring land,
constructing, and operating a new VAMC at a nearby location within the
San Antonio medical district. The potential location is an
approximately 59 acres undeveloped area. The potential relocation
property is owned by the San Antonio Medical Foundation and is located
east of Floyd Curl Drive, north of Hamilton Wolfe, and south of Fawn
Meadow Circle.
Alternative 2: Redevelopment of Existing VAMC Site
This alternative consists of redeveloping the existing
approximately 32-acre site by demolishing the existing VAMC and
constructing a new VAMC.
No Action Alternative
The No Action Alternative means no relocation or redevelopment of
the existing VAMC would occur. VA would continue to provide services at
the existing VAMC.
Preliminary Summary of Expected Effects
The EIS will evaluate the potential social, economic, and
environmental effects resulting from implementation of the
alternatives. VA seeks input on the relative importance of these area
of concern, suggestions regarding additional environmental impacts that
should be evaluated, and possible mitigation measures to be considered.
The EIS will describe and evaluate the potential impacts from
construction and operations under each alternative on the following
resources: Aesthetics, Air Quality, Historic and Cultural Resources,
Geology and Soils, Floodplains and Wetlands, Hydrology and Water
Quality, Noise, Land Use, Community Services, Solid Water and Hazardous
Materials, Transportation and Parking, Utilities, Wildlife and Habitat,
Socioeconomics and Environmental Justice, and Cumulative Impacts. The
alternatives being considered have the potential to produce the
following effects.
Air Quality. The alternatives have the potential to impact air
quality. The EIS will model air emissions for criteria pollutants and
greenhouse gas emissions. The EIS will estimate the potential emissions
and compare them against existing de minimis levels and applicable
standards.
Transportation and Parking. The alternatives have the potential to
impact transportation in the area, during both construction and
operations. The EIS will incorporate the results of a detailed
transportation and parking study analyzing both alternatives.
Historic and Cultural Resources. The EIS will evaluate the
potential for impacts to historic and cultural resources at both
locations. VA will prepare documentation to comply with the NHPA.
Hydrology and Water Quality. The alternatives have the potential to
impact water resources and alter site hydrology.
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The EIS will incorporate the results of a detailed hydrology study
evaluating both locations.
Noise. Construction of the alternatives would result in a temporary
increase in noise levels at and adjacent to the alternatives. The EIS
will incorporate the results of a detailed noise study.
The level of review identified for the EIS will be commensurate
with the anticipated impacts of each resource from the alternatives and
will be governed by the statutory or regulatory requirements pertaining
to those resources. The analyses and evaluations conducted for the EIS
will identify the potential for impacts, whether the anticipated
impacts would be adverse, and any appropriate environmental mitigation
measures. The resources identified for detailed impact analysis in the
EIS may be revised in response to public comments.
Anticipated Permits (and Other Authorizations)
Federal, State, and local agency permits, and other authorizations,
are anticipated to be needed for the proposed action. VA will undertake
necessary consultations with other government agencies and consulting
parties pursuant to NHPA, Endangered Species Act, Clean Water Act, and
other applicable environmental laws. Consultation will include, but
will not be limited to: Federal, State, and local agencies; the Texas
Historical Commission; and Federally-recognized Indian tribes with a
geographical and/or cultural connection to the area.
Schedule for the Decision-Making Process
The project schedule for the decision-making process will comply
with 40 CFR 1501.10(b)(2) (https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-40/part-1501#p-1501.10(b)(2)), which requires an EIS to be completed within 2
years (from the date of publication of this NOI) to the date of
issuance of the record of decision. The Draft EIS is anticipated to be
issued in late 2025/early 2026. A public comment period will follow the
publication of the Draft EIS. The Final EIS and record of decision are
anticipated to be issued in late 2026/early 2027.
Scoping and Public Review
VA invites Federal, State, Tribal, and local entities; non-profit
organizations; businesses; interested parties; and the public to
comment on the proposed scope and content of the EIS. VA will consider
all scoping comments in developing the EIS. VA will hold two public
scoping meetings in March 2025. The meetings will be held on Tuesday,
March 11, 2025, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and on Wednesday March 12,
2025, from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Both meetings will be held in the
Building 5 Auditorium at the Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans Hospital
(7400 Merton Minter Boulevard in San Antonio, Texas). The scoping
meeting will provide an opportunity to learn about the project and
provide input on the environmental analysis process. During the scoping
meeting, VA will provide an overview of the project and details
regarding the EIS and NEPA process. VA will post the scoping
presentation and other project information on the publicly accessible
website, https://www.cfm.va.gov/environmental/index.asp. VA will post
meeting directions/instructions at the VAMC and on the project website.
Comments must be received by the end of the scoping period, which is
April 7, 2025.
Request for Identification of Potential Alternatives, Information, and
Analyses Relative to the Proposed Action
To ensure that a full range of issues related to the proposed
action are addressed and all potential issues are identified, VA
requests comments and suggestions on potential alternatives and
impacts, and the identification of any relevant information, studies,
or analyses of any kind concerning impacts affecting the quality of the
human environment. Specifically, agencies and the public are asked to
identify and submit potential alternatives for consideration and any
information, such as anticipated significant issues or environmental
impacts and analyses relevant to the proposed action. Submitted
comments will be considered by VA in developing the Draft EIS. Any
information presented herein, including the preliminary purpose and
need, preliminary range of alternatives and identification of potential
impacts may be revised after consideration of the comments. The purpose
of this notice is to bring relevant comments, information, and analyses
to the VA's attention, as early in the process as possible, to enable
VA to make maximum use of this information in decision making.
Cooperating and Participating Agencies
There are no cooperating agencies to the EIS as defined by CEQ
regulations, however VA has, and will continue to, communicate with
local, State, Federal and Tribal stakeholders as part of the EIS
process.
Signing Authority
Douglas A. Collins, Secretary of Veterans Affairs, approved and
signed this document on February 12, 2025 and authorized the
undersigned to sign and submit the document to the Office of the
Federal Register for publication electronically as an official document
of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Jeffrey M. Martin,
Assistant Director, Office of Regulation Policy & Management, Office of
General Counsel, Department of Veterans Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2025-02830 Filed 2-19-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8320-01-P