Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the Georgia Multi-Modal Passenger Terminal, 20097-20098 [2012-7892]

Agencies

• Federal Transit Administration
• DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 64 (Tuesday, April 3, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20097-20098]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-7892]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration


Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for the 
Georgia Multi-Modal Passenger Terminal

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), United States Department 
of Transportation (USDOT).

ACTION: Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare an Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS).

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SUMMARY: The FTA and the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) 
intend to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for a 
proposed transit terminal project in Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia. 
The EIS will be prepared in accordance with the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA: 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) of 1969 and the regulations 
implementing NEPA set forth in 40 CFR Parts 1500-1508 and 23 CFR Part 
771, as well as provision of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, and 
Efficient Transportation Equity Act--A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU).
    The purpose of this Notice is to:
     Advise the public of FTA serving as the lead Federal 
agency;
     Provide information on the proposed project, purpose and 
need for the project, and alternatives to be considered; and
     Invite public and agency participation in the EIS process.
    The EIS will examine alternatives to provide a facility to serve as 
a destination and transfer point for a variety of regional and local 
transportation services in Downtown Atlanta.

DATES: The date, time, and location for the public scoping meetings are 
as follows:

April 24, 2012

4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

    Georgia Railroad Freight Depot, The Freight Room, 65 Martin Luther 
King Jr. Drive SE., Atlanta, GA 30303.

May 1, 2012

11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

    Georgia State University Student Center, Court Salon, 44 Gilmer 
Street, Atlanta, GA 30302.

May 3, 2012

4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

    Antioch Baptist Church North, 540 Cameron M. Alexander Blvd. NW., 
Atlanta, Georgia, 30318.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the project should be sent to:
    Jonathan Cox, Georgia Department of Transportation, One Georgia 
Center, 600 West Peachtree Street NW., Atlanta, Georgia 30308. 
Telephone: (404) 631-1197. Email: jocox@dot.ga.gov.
    Brian Smart, Federal Transit Administration, 230 Peachtree Street 
NW., Suite 800, Atlanta, GA 30327. Telephone: 404-865-5607. Email: 
brian.smart@dot.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with Section 6002 of SAFETEA-
LU, FTA and GDOT invite comment on the scope of the EIS, specifically 
on the project's purpose and need, the alternatives to be evaluated 
that may address the purpose and need, and the potential impacts of the 
alternatives considered.

1. Scoping

    On April 24, 2012, May 1, 2012, and May 3, 2012, public scoping 
meetings will be held to solicit public comments on the scope of the 
EIS. Oral and written comments will be accepted from the public at the 
scoping meeting. If special services such as translation, including 
sign language, are needed, please contact Jonathan Cox at the number 
listed above.
    A notice of the public scoping briefing will be published in local 
newspapers and on the project Web site (www.georgiap3.com/mmpt). The 
notice will also identify the closing date of the public comment period 
on the scope of the EIS.

2. Description of the Project Area

    The historic hub of Atlanta's freight railroads lies just west of 
the Five Points intersection in Downtown Atlanta. While some lines 
remain active, others have been converted to passenger use by the 
Metropolitan Atlanta Regional Transportation Authority (MARTA) or are 
abandoned. Portions of Atlanta's massive rail yards were decked over 
for large-scale public and private developments, including CNN Center, 
the Georgia World Congress Center, Philips Arena, and the Georgia Dome.
    In-between Five Points and the CNN Center, a portion of the former 
rail yards serve as parking or vacant land. The street grid crosses 
these parcels on viaduct such that the parking and vacant land is 20 
feet or so below ground elevation. This area of parking and vacant land 
is commonly referred to as the ``Gulch.''
    The EIS will focus on an area bounded by Centennial Olympic Park 
Drive to the west, Trinity Avenue to the south, Peachtree Street to the 
east, and Marietta Street to the north. Many blocks in this area are 
surface or structured parking or vacant buildings or lots. A few 
parcels contain office or commercial uses.

3. Purpose and Need

    The Atlanta region lacks a transportation hub that provides a 
central facility and transfer point for its variety of existing and 
future inter-city, regional and local modal services. At the same time, 
the Gulch creates a large void in the downtown that physically and 
psychologically isolates surrounding destinations and districts from 
one another.
    The purpose of the Georgia Multi-modal Passenger Terminal is to 
establish a multimodal hub to enhance regional mobility and 
connectivity among existing and proposed transit systems; to establish 
new connections between downtown neighborhoods; and to provide the 
opportunity to fill the Gulch, which will create an activity center and 
link existing and planned residential, employment and entertainment 
destinations in and near Downtown Atlanta.
    The EIS will evaluate alternatives that address the following 
project goals:
    (1) Provide a facility to serve as a destination and transfer point 
for a variety of regional and local transportation services;
    (2) Improve passenger and freight connectivity in and within 
downtown Atlanta; and
    (3) Attract new or renewed investment in a transit-centered 
environment.

4. Alternatives

    FTA and GDOT will consider all reasonable alternatives to provide a 
multi-modal passenger terminal, and potentially related development 
that meet the purpose and need defined above. The alternatives 
considered will include at least a No Build Alternative

[[Page 20098]]

and one Build Alternative. The No Build Alternative consists of the 
transportation system expected to be in place in the project design 
year if the proposed project were not built. It includes all other 
projects currently in the Regional Transportation Plan and the Atlanta 
Regional Commission's Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for the 
planning horizon. The Build alternatives will involve construction of a 
new multi-modal transit terminal and contributing features and 
amenities within the Gulch. Preliminary alternatives will be presented 
to the public during the scoping process for the EIS, and the public 
will have the opportunity to comment on the alternatives. The EIS will 
consider all reasonable alternatives that meet the project purpose and 
need and are considered prudent options by the project sponsors, 
agencies, and the public during the scoping process.

5. Probable Effects

    The EIS will consider in detail the potential environmental effects 
of the alternatives under consideration based on the current scoping 
efforts. The Draft EIS (DEIS) and Final EIS (FEIS) will summarize the 
results of coordination with federal, state, and local agencies and the 
public at large; present the appropriate federal, state, and local 
regulations and policies; inventory and compile previous studies 
pertinent to the project; describe the methodology used to assess 
impacts; identify and describe the affected environment; analyze and 
document the construction-related (short-term) and operational (long-
term) environmental consequences (direct, indirect, and cumulative) of 
the project alternatives; and identify opportunities and measures that 
mitigate any identified adverse impacts. The specific scope of analysis 
and study areas used to undertake the analysis in the EIS will be 
established during the public and agency scoping process.

6. FTA Procedures

    The EIS is being prepared in accordance with the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as amended, and implemented by 
the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations (40 CFR parts 
1500 to 1508) and FHWA environmental impact regulations (49 CFR part 
622, 23 CFR Part 771, and 23 CFR part 774) and Section 6002 of the 
Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act--A 
Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) of 2005. This EIS will also comply with 
requirements of Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act 
of 1966, as amended, Section 4(f) of the U.S. Department of 
Transportation Act of 1966, the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments, 
Executive Order 12898 (Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice 
in Minority and Low-Income Populations), Executive Order 11990 
(Protection of Wetlands), and other applicable federal laws, rules, and 
regulations. This EIS will also satisfy environmental review 
requirements of the Georgia Environmental Policy Act (GEPA).
    Regulations implementing NEPA, as well as provisions of SAFETEA-LU, 
call for enhanced agency and public involvement in the EIS process. An 
invitation to all Federal and non-Federal agencies and Native American 
tribes that may have an interest in the proposed project will be 
extended. In the event that an agency or tribe is not invited and would 
like to participate, please contact Jonathan Cox at the contact 
information listed above. A Coordination Plan and Public Involvement 
Plan have been developed summarizing how the public and agencies will 
be engaged in the process. The plans will be posted to the project Web 
site (www.dot.ga.gov/MMPT). The public coordination and outreach 
efforts will include public meetings, open houses, a project Web site, 
stakeholder advisory and work groups, and public hearings.
    The project sponsor may identify a locally preferred alternative in 
the DEIS when made available for public and agency comments. Public 
hearings on the DEIS will be held in Fulton County. On the basis of the 
DEIS and the public and agency comments received, the Project Sponsor 
will identify the locally preferred alternative in the FEIS. The FEIS 
will serve as the basis for federal and state environmental findings 
and determinations needed to conclude the environmental review process.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Program Number 20.205, 
Highway Planning and Construction. The regulations implementing 
Executive Order 12372 regarding intergovernmental consultation on 
Federal programs and activities apply to this program.)

    Issued on: March 27, 2012.
Yvette G. Taylor,
 Regional Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2012-7892 Filed 4-2-12; 8:45 am]
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