[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 236 (Friday, December 6, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64721-64727]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-31030]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Record of Decision for the Disposal and Reuse of Naval Training
Center, Orlando, Florida
Summary
The Department of the Navy (Navy), pursuant to Section 102(2)(C) of
the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), 42 U.S.C.
4332(2)(C), and the regulations of the Council on Environmental Quality
that implement NEPA procedures, 40 CFR Parts 1500-1508, hereby
announces its decision to
[[Page 64722]]
dispose of Naval Training Center (NTC) Orlando, Florida.
Navy intends to dispose of the property in a manner that is
consistent with the Naval Training Center Orlando Reuse Plan that was
submitted by the City of Orlando, the Local Redevelopment Authority
(LRA) for the Naval Training Center, described in the Final
Environmental Impact Statement as the preferred alternatives. The Reuse
Plan proposed a mixed use approach of business, educational,
governmental, residential, recreational, retail, warehouse, multimodal
transportation, and open space land uses.
In deciding to dispose of the Naval Training Center in a manner
consistent with the Reuse Plan, Navy has determined that mixed land use
will meet the goals of local economic redevelopment and creation of new
jobs, while also maintaining the City of Orlando's character, limiting
adverse environmental impacts, and ensuring land uses that are
compatible with surrounding properties. This Record Of Decision does
not mandate a specific mix of land uses. Rather, it leaves selection of
the particular means to achieve the mixed use redevelopment to the
acquiring entity and the local zoning authority.
Background
The 1993 Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission
recommended closure of Naval Training Center Orlando. This
recommendation was then approved by President Clinton and accepted by
the One Hundred Third Congress in 1993. With the exception of the Naval
Nuclear Power Training School, operations at the Naval Training Center
ceased on August 30, 1996, and the property has been in caretaker
status since that date. The Naval Nuclear Power Training School will
realign to the Naval Weapons Station at Charleston, South Carolina, by
September 30, 1999.
The Naval Training Center is located in Orange County, Florida,
within the corporate limits of the City of Orlando. The Naval Training
Center properties consist of the Main Base and facilities at three
other sites in Orlando, that are known as the McCoy Annex, Area C, and
the Herndon Annex. The Naval Hospital, which is situated on the Main
Base, was associated with the Naval Training Center.
The Main Base is located 3.5 miles from Orlando's central business
district and has an area of about 1,093 acres. This property includes
about 254 acres in three lakes situated on the property.
The McCoy Annex occupies about 842 acres of land located seven
miles south of the Main Base and adjacent to the Orlando International
Airport. The Annex served as a family housing and community support
area for those serving at the Naval Training Center.
Area C is located one mile southwest of the Main Base and occupies
about 46 acres, including 4.6 acres of Lake Druid. This property served
as a supply complex with warehouses and also provided space for the
Defense Reutilization and Marketing Office and the Naval Training
Center's laundry and dry cleaning plant.
The Herndon Annex is located one mile south of the Main Base and
occupies about 54 acres adjacent to the Orlando Executive Airport. This
Annex provided space for facilities that supported the nearby Naval Air
Warfare Center's Training Systems Division, i.e., the technical
services laboratory and the research laboratory.
Navy has approved the requests of several Federal agencies for
interagency transfers of base closure property at NTC Orlando. Navy
will transfer the Navy Hospital and 44 acres of property at the Main
Base to the Department of Veterans Affairs for use as a medical
facility. Navy will transfer Building 325 and 4 acres of property at
the Main Base to the Department of the Treasury for use by the United
States Customs Service as the National Law Enforcement Communications
Center. Navy will transfer 1.89 acres at the Main Base and 18.1 acres
at the McCoy Annex to the Department of the Army for use by Army
Reserve; and Navy will transfer 16 acres of property and two buildings
at the McCoy Annex to the Departments of the Army and Air Force for use
by the Florida National Guard. The remaining property is surplus to the
needs of the Federal Government and can be conveyed.
Navy published a Notice of Intent in the Federal Register on August
5, 1994, announcing that Navy would prepare an Environmental Impact
Statement (EIS) that would analyze the impacts of disposal and reuse of
the land, buildings, and infrastructure at the Navy Training Center. A
30-day public scoping period was established, and Navy held a scoping
meeting on August 25, 1994, in the City of Orlando.
On May 12, 1995, Navy distributed a Draft Environmental Impact
Statement (DEIS) to Federal, State, and local agencies, elected
officials, special interest groups, and interested persons. Navy held a
public hearing on June 15, 1995, in the City of Orlando. The forty-five
day public comment period on the DEIS concluded on June 26, 1995.
Federal agencies, Florida State agencies, local governments, and the
general public commented on the DEIS. These comments and Navy's
responses were incorporated in the Final Environmental Impact Statement
(FEIS), which was distributed to the public on August 30, 1996, for a
review period that concluded on September 30, 1996. Navy received two
letters commenting on the FEIS.
Alternatives
NEPA requires Navy to evaluate a reasonable range of alternatives
for disposal and reuse of this Federal property. In the NEPA process,
Navy analyzed the environmental impacts of various proposed land uses
that could result from disposal of the Naval Training Center
properties. Navy also evaluated a ``No Action'' alternative that would
leave the property in caretaker status with Navy maintaining the
physical condition of the property, providing a security force, and
making repairs essential to safety.
As the basis for its analysis, Navy relied upon the reuse and
redevelopment alternatives identified by the Naval Training Center
Reuse Commission which was established by the City of Orlando to plan
future uses of the closing facilities. The Commission analyzed various
redevelopment scenarios and land uses, prepared the Reuse Plan, and
presented it to the Department of the Navy on January 5, 1995.
The Preferred Alternative identified in the FEIS is the City's
proposed Naval Training Center Orlando Reuse Plan. On the Main Base,
this plan would provide pedestrain-oriented and residential uses
surrounded by offices and educational institutions, a business park,
governmental activities, and recreational areas. Additionally, there
would be an extensive lakefront park and open space system that would
connect other parts of the Orlando community with the Naval Training
Center property. The existing nine-hole gold course at Lake Baldwin
would be redeveloped as single family housing.
The McCoy Annex property would be used for housing and, in the area
adjacent to Orlando International Airport, as a multimodal
transportation port with related services. The area along the Bee Line
Expressway at the northern edge of the McCoy Annex would provide space
for retail stores and offices. The Reuse Plan would preserve the
existing nine-hole golf course in the southern section of the property
as well as recreational areas located throughout the Annex.
The property known as Area C would continue to be used for
warehouse facilities and open space. The Herndon Annex property would
be used for
[[Page 64723]]
warehouse facilities serving the adjacent Orlando Executive Airport.
In the NEPA process, Navy considered a second alternative,
designated Alternative 2, which was characterized by high intensity
redevelopment of the Naval Training Center properties. This alternative
would concentrate residential, retail, and office uses near the center
of the Main Base and establish higher density residential use in the
northwestern and eastern sections of the Main Base. In contrast with
the Reuse Plan, the nine-hole golf course adjacent to Lake Baldwin
would be preserved.
Under this second alternative, the northern part of the McCoy Annex
property would be used for retail stores, hotels and offices. The
central and southern parts of the property would be converted for use
as warehouses and industrial facilities. The existing recreational
facilities would be removed, but the nine-hole golf course would be
preserved. The property at Area C would be converted for use as family
residences, and the Herndon Annex property would be used for
warehouses.
Navy also considered a third alternative in the NEPA process,
designated Alternative 3, which proposed low intensity redevelopment of
the Naval Training Center properties. This alternative would provide
low density single family residences in the northwestern and eastern
sections of the Main Base and retail stores, governmental activities,
educational facilities, and a business park in the central and southern
areas. Alternative 3 would preserve the nine-hole golf course adjacent
to Lake Baldwin.
Under this third proposal, the McCoy Annex property would continue
to be used primarily as a residential area. The northern part of the
property would be converted for use as hotels, offices, and retail
stores. Some sections in the center of the Annex would be redeveloped
for use as warehouses and industrial facilities. The existing
recreational areas would be used as open space, and the golf course in
the southern section would also be preserved.
The Area C property would be redeveloped in Alternative 3 for use
as single family residences. At Herndon Annex, the warehouse located in
the southern section of the property would be used as a commercial
warehouse, but the other buildings would be demolished to permit
construction of recreational facilities including athletic fields and
courts.
Environmental Impacts
Navy analyzed the potential impacts of the three redevelopment
alternatives for their effects on earth resources, air resources,
noise, water resources, hazardous materials and wastes, biological
systems (including terrestrial systems), aquatic systems, threatened
and endangered species, socioeconomic resources (including economic
activity), transportation, community facilities and services, and
historical and archaeological resources. This Record Of Decision
focuses on the impacts that would likely result from implementing the
Naval Training Center Orlando Reuse Plan proposed by the City of
Orlando.
No significant impacts to earth resources would result from
implementation of the Reuse Plan. Most of the topography and soils at
the Naval Training Center properties have been altered as a result of
previous construction activities.
The potential impacts on air quality were analyzed by applying
Federal Ambient Air Quality Standards (40 CFR Part 50) and Florida
Ambient Air Quality Standards (Fla. Admin. Code R. 62-272.100). The
Reuse Plan would not adversely affect regional air quality, because the
kinds of activities that would be conducted after implementation of the
Reuse Plan would be similar to those that had occurred on the military
properties.
Construction activities associated with the Reuse Plan, however,
would generate intermittent localized air quality impacts on all of the
Navy properties, and the Reuse Plan's proposed redevelopment would also
cause impacts from both stationary and mobile sources. The long term
impact on air quality that would arise out of stationary sources
depends upon the nature and extent of activities conducted on the
property. Florida's Department of Environmental Protection (Florida
DEP) has jurisdiction over these emission sources, and it will be
necessary for each source to comply with Florida DEP's regulations
government stationary source emissions. See Fla. Admin. Code Ch. 17-292
and 62-213.
The impact on air quality arising out of mobile source emissions
would result from activities associated with people commuting to and
from facilities and traffic associated with the warehouse facilities.
The redevelopment proposed in the City's Reuse Plan would increase
traffic in the vicinity of the Main Base, with a resultant slight
increase in carbon monoxide levels at some congested intersections and
roadway links. It is not likely, however, that these small increases in
concentrations of carbon monoxide would result in any violation of
applicable standards.
In a recent ambient air quality study of heavily traveled
intersections in Orlando, including that of Colonial Drive and
Interstate Highway 4 near the Main Base, the University of Central
Florida found that ambient air concentrations of carbon monoxide were
well below applicable standards. Similarly, data collected from air
quality monitoring stations in downtown Orlando revealed that the
concentrations of carbon monoxide do not even approach these standards.
Additionally, the geometry of intersections and turning movements as
well as the timing of traffic lights could be applied in a way that
would mitigate emissions that may exceed Federal or State Ambient Air
Quality Standards at particular locations.
Section 176(c) of the Clear Air Act, 42 U.S.C. 7506(C), as amended,
requires that before major Federal actions may be undertaken in
nonattainment or maintenance areas, the Federal agency must demonstrate
conformity with air pollutant emissions policies and controls in the
relevant State Implementation Plan. The General Conformity Rule (40 CFR
Part 93), however, has been interpreted by the United States
Environmental Protection Agency. (EPA) to exclude maintenance areas
that were so designated before enactment of the Clean Air Act
Amendments of 1990, Public Law 101-549. See 85 FR 63238, November 30,
1993. Since Orange County was designated as a maintenance area in 1987,
the requirements of the General Conformity Rule do not apply to Federal
actions within the county.
It is not likely that the land uses proposed for the Main Base,
Area C, and the Herndon Annex would result in significant new sources
of noise. Construction noise during redevelopment, however, would
affect communities adjacent to all of the Naval Training Center
properties. This potential impact would be limited to areas near the
active construction projects during working hours.
At the McCoy Annex property, however, implementation of the Reuse
Plan would result in an increase in environmental noise. As the point
of convergence for air, rail and truck traffic, redevelopment there
would generate localize noise. It is likely, however, that noise from
aircraft at the adjacent Orlando International Airport would diminish
the perception of noise from rail and truck activity at the multimodal
facility.
[[Page 64724]]
Implementation of the Reuse Plan would not result in any
significant impacts on surface waters. All new construction and any
alteration of land must conform to the treatment and runoff control
requirements of the local stormwater management districts and the
Orlando Urban Storm Water Management Manual (OUSWMM). Additionally,
under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA), 33 U.S.C. 1251,
et seq., any source of new discharges of wastewater would be required
to comply with the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System's
(NPDES) program as well as state and local wastewater discharge
regulations. See Fla. Admin. Code Ch. 62-4, 62-320, 62-312, and 62-600.
As a result, the acquiring entity would be required to introduce
stormwater controls during the construction phase of any redevelopment.
The type and amount of hazardous waste that would result from
implementation of the Reuse Plan depends upon the nature and extent of
future activities at the Naval Training Center properties. Industrial
or commercial facilities that may produce regular quantities of
hazardous waste must, of course, register with Florida's Department of
Environmental Protection in accordance with the Resource Conservation
and Recovery Act (RCRA), 42 U.S.C. 6901, et. seq., and Florida DEP
regulations governing identification of hazardous waste. Fla. Admin.
Code Ch. 62-730. Additionally, these industries and commercial
activities would be responsible for obtaining the necessary permits and
establishing the required hazardous waste management facilities and
procedures.
The terrestrial systems found on the Navy properties include both
undeveloped areas and urban lands. The undeveloped areas contain native
vegetation in the form of trees and groundcover. The urban lands are
areas dominated by buildings and ornamental landscaping. Under the
Reuse Plan, an isolated 3.6 acre pine forest located in an undeveloped
area at the Main Base would be eliminated. This action would not,
however, have a significant impact on regional natural habitats,
because the area is so small.
The City's proposed redevelopment of the McCoy Annex property may
disturb up to 76.9 acres of undeveloped land but the plan would
preserve 13.6 acres of land that has not been developed. While the
City's Reuse Plan would not have a significant impact on the
terrestrial systems of the Area C property, it may disturb 10.5 acres
of undeveloped land at Herndon Annex.
The aquatic systems on the Navy properties include both wetlands
and open water systems. Wetlands are areas that are saturated
frequently enough to support certain types of vegetation that thrive in
saturated soil, e.g., swamps and wet prairies. Open water systems are
lakes and reservoirs. Under the Reuse Plan for the Main Base, up to 3.0
acres of wetlands and open water may be eliminated or disturbed by the
redevelopment of office, educational, and residential structures,
leaving 17.1 acres of wetlands undisturbed. These wetlands and 254
acres of open water in the three lakes on the Main Base would be
designated as a lakefront park and preserved.
At the McCoy Annex property, the City's proposed redevelopment may
alter up to 48.7 acres of the total 80.2 acres of wetlands located
there, but 31.5 acres of cypress wetlands would be preserved. At area
C, the wetlands and open water systems would be preserved. At Herndon
Annex, the construction of warehouse facilities could eliminate up to
4.4 acres of wetlands.
The City will have an opportunity to reduce the impact of
redevelopment on wetlands when it engages in final site planning, which
will include conformance with the conservation element of the City of
Orlando's Growth Management Plan (GMP). Furthermore, the acquiring
entity will be required to obtain permits from the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers under Section 404 of FWPCA, 33 U.S.C. 1344, and must comply
with Florida DEP's wetlands regulations, Fla. Admin. Code Ch. 17-301,
17-302 and 17-312, as well as regulations of the St. Johns River Water
Management District and the South Florida Water Management District.
The stringent requirements of these laws should provide adequate
mitigation for the loss of wetlands.
There are no threatened or endangered species listed under the
Endangered Species Act of 1973, 16 U.S.C. 1531, et seq., that have been
observed on or are likely to occur on the Naval Training Center
properties. One State-designated threatened plant species, the
threadroot orchid, and one State-designated endangered plant species,
the yellow fringeless orchid, may be found in wetland areas on the Main
Base, McCoy Annex, and Herndon Annex. Thus, the dredging or filling of
wetlands could have impacts on these species.
Southeastern American kestrels, a State-designated threatened
species, were observed during a visit to Area C. Accordingly, before
clearing potential nesting trees on the Area C property, the acquiring
entity would be required to conduct a survey for the kestrels and
implement mitigation mandated by the Orlando Growth Management Plan,
Title XI, Fla. Stat. Chapter 163, Part II, and the Florida Game and
Freshwater Fish Commission's regulations. Because it forages in urban
land and open space areas, it is likely that the southeastern American
kestrel will benefit from the proposed redevelopment. Other State-
listed species of special concern such as the gopher tortoise may also
be affected by redevelopment.
The City's Reuse Plan would have a long term positive impact on
economic activity, income, and employment in the Orlando region. The
number of persons residing at the Main Base would decrease, but the
number residing at the McCoy Annex property would remain essentially
unchanged compared with the number of residents there before the Base
was closed. The City's Reuse Plan would not cause any significant
adverse impacts on utilities or community facilities and services.
If the employment goals set forth in the Reuse Plan were realized,
both the Main Base and the McCoy Annex property would become employment
centers for the Orlando region. By the year 2015, direct employment
there would amount to more than 15,500, and total employment, including
direct and indirect, would reach 30,040 persons.
The traffic associated with redevelopment of the Main Base under
the Reuse Plan would increase from 49,800 trips per day to 85,400 trips
per day by the year 2010. These trips would be distributed to the local
roadway network and would increase daily traffic volumes from the
northern and southern approaches by about 7 percent and from the
eastern approach by 16 percent, resulting in an average traffic
increase of 9 percent.
At the McCoy Annex property, traffic would decrease from 55,000
trips per day to 26,200 trips per day under the Reuse Plan. The City's
plan would not significantly change traffic levels at the Area C and
Herndon Annex properties, because the proposed reuses are similar to
the historical Navy uses of those properties. It is not likely that the
Reuse Plan would have an adverse impact on other modes of
transportation in the Orlando region.
Through its Trip Allocation Program, the City of Orlando could
mitigate the impacts of increased traffic by limiting the allowable
number of average daily trip ends for particular traffic performance
districts. Such limitations could achieve and maintain acceptable
levels of service on local roadways by linking future development to
road capacity. For example, if the allocation
[[Page 64725]]
of trip ends for a traffic performance district became encumbered,
development in that district could be deferred until adequate road
capacity was available.
To address the potential for increased traffic on neighborhood
streets, the City's Reuse Plan also provides a Neighborhood Traffic
Mitigation Policy. This policy requires the imposition of traffic
mitigation measures that would reduce speeds and volumes on
neighborhood streets if the average daily traffic on Merritt Park
Drive, Ibis Drive, Falcon Drive, Chelsea Street, or Plaza Terrace were
to exceed by 10 percent the volume of traffic projected for the year
2010.
The residential housing proposed for the Main Base would introduce
about 1,301 new students to the Orange County public school system by
the year 2015. This increase would create the need for an additional 47
teachers in the Orange County public schools. The Reuse Plan also sets
aside 4 acres to permit an expansion of Winter Park High School, which
is located adjacent to the Main Base Property, and 8 acres for
construction of an elementary school at the Main Base.
At the McCoy Annex property, Navy families contributed 759 students
to the Orange County public school system. Reuse of this housing by
private sector families would contribute about 630 children to local
public schools, or 129 less than when the Naval Training Center was
active. The Area C and Herndon Annex properties would not contain
residential units under the Reuse Plan and, therefore, would not have
an impact on Orange County's educational resources.
The redevelopment associated with the Reuse Plan would not have a
significant impact on the provision of police and fire protection,
emergency medical services, or health care in the Orlando region.
It is likely that the Reuse Plan would have a beneficial impact on
parks and recreational open space resources in the vicinity of the
Naval Training Center properties. The total recreational space provided
under the Reuse Plan for active recreation and open space is about 500
acres of approximately 19 times the amount of recreational area
recommended by the City's Growth Management Plan. The Orlando Community
and Youth Services Department would manage these properties for both
active and passive recreational activities.
Building 2078 is the only building or site on the Naval Training
Center properties that is eligible for listing on the National Register
of Historic Places. Under the City's Reuse Plan, this building would be
demolished to permit residential development on the property. On July
9, 1996, Navy, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, and the
Florida State Historic Preservation Officer entered into a Memorandum
Of Agreement (MOA) that provided mitigation for the disposal and
demolition of Building 2078. This mitigation, which has been completed,
consisted of recordation that included preparation of sketches, a brief
history, and photographs of the building.
Navy also analyzed the impacts on low-income and minority
populations pursuant to Executive Order 12898, Federal Actions to
Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income
Populations, reprinted in 42 U.S.C. 4321 note. There would be no
disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental
effects on minority and low-income populations. All groups would
experience equally any impact related to reuse of the Naval Training
Center properties within the regional population.
Mitigation
Implementation of Navy's decision to dispose of the Naval Training
Center properties does not require Navy to perform any mitigation
measures. Absent statutory authority, Navy cannot impose restrictions
on the future use of this surplus Federal property. Navy will, however,
include appropriate notifications in the deeds for any parcels that are
inhabited by endangered or threatened species protected under State
law, any parcels that contain wetlands, or any parcels that lie within
floodplains protected under Federal and State laws.
Navy's FEIS identified and discussed the actions that would be
necessary to mitigate the impacts associated with reuse and
redevelopment of the Naval Training Center properties. The acquiring
entity, under the direction of Federal, State, and local agencies with
regulatory authority over protected resources, will be responsible for
implementing necessary mitigation measures.
The fact that the Reuse Plan conforms with the City of Orlando's
Growth Management Plan provides additional assurance that sensitive
areas will be protected from development. The GMP amendment process and
the City of Orlando's land development regulations require extensive
review of any proposed development of the Naval Training Center
properties. These procedures ensure that protection will be afforded
during all phases of the land development process, including post-
development monitoring.
Local governments in Florida are also required to adopt
comprehensive plans pursuant to the State Growth Management Act, Title
XI, Fla. Stat. Chapter 163, Part II. After adopting such plans, each
local government must also adopt land development regulations that
implement the comprehensive plan. In addition, all decisions that have
the effect of permitting development must be consistent with the
comprehensive plan. Title XI, Fla. Stat. Sec. 163.316, et seq.
The comprehensive plan must contain eleven elements, each of which
has goals, objectives, and policies that the acquiring entity would be
required to follow when redeveloping the Naval Training Center
properties. The required elements of the comprehensive plan include
future land use, conservation (wetlands and wildlife habitat), traffic
circulation, housing, sanitary sewer, solid waste, potable water,
natural groundwater aquifer recharge, and capital improvements. The
implementing land development regulations would govern subdivisions,
land use, wellfield protection, flooding and drainage, environmentally
sensitive land, signs, traffic flow, public facilities, and other
infrastructure.
Additionally, the County and Municipal Planning and Land
Development Standards, Title XI, Fla. Stat. Sec. 163.316, et seq.,
introduce the land use concept of concurrency. This requirement ensures
that public facilities are adequate and available concurrent with the
impacts of development by requiring local governments to control the
timing of development. Similarly, Rule 9J-5 of the Florida
Administrative Code requires local governments to adopt Level Of
Service (LOS) standards for roads, potable water, sanitary sewers,
solid waste disposal, drainage, parks and recreation, and mass transit.
These public facilities and services must meet concurrency requirements
before development orders may be issued. Finally, the capital
improvements element of the comprehensive plan must set forth a
financially feasible plan (on a five-year schedule) that demonstrates
the local government's ability to achieve and maintain adopted LOS
standards.
Comments Received on the FEIS
Navy received comments from the United States Environmental
Protection Agency and one State agency. These comments did not raise
new issues
[[Page 64726]]
concerning potential problems with implementation of the Reuse Plan or
purpose mitigation measures other than those addressed in the FEIS.
Although acknowledging that the potential for undetected
radiological materials on the Navy properties is unlikely, EPA
suggested the Navy coordinate the closure process with Florida's Office
of Radiation Control. Navy is coordinating the closure of NTC Orlando
with this State agency.
Florida's Department of Transportation (DOT) expressed interest in
participating in the formulation and adoption of transportation
components of the City's Reuse Plan. The existing concurrency
requirements of the State Growth Management Act, Title XI, Fla. Stat.
Chapter 163, Part II, and the City of Orlando's Concurrency Management
Ordinance (Chapter 59, Part 3, Section 59.308) will ensure the Florida
DOT is involved in future phases of redevelopment of the Naval Training
Center properties.
Regulations Governing the Disposal Decision
Since the proposed action contemplates a disposal action under the
Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act of 1990 (DBCRA), Public Law
101-510, 10 U.S.C. 2687 note, selection of the City of Orlando's Reuse
Plan as the preferred alternative was based upon the environmental
analysis in the FEIS and application of the standards set forth in
DBCRA, the Federal Property Management Regulations (FPMR), 41 CFR Part
101-47, and the Department of Defense Rule on Revitalizing Base Closure
Communities and Community Assistance (DoD Rule), 32 CFR Parts 90 and
91.
Section 101-47.303-1 of the FPMR requires that the disposal of
Federal property benefit the Federal government and constitute the
highest and best use of the property. Section 101-47.4909 of the FPMR
defines the ``highest and best use'' as that use to which a property
can be put that produces the highest monetary return from the property,
promotes its maximum value, or serves a public or institutional
purpose. The ``highest and best use'' determination must be based upon
the property's economic potential, qualitative values inherent in the
property, and utilization factors affecting land use such as zoning,
physical characteristics, other private and public uses in the
vicinity, neighboring improvements, utility services, access, roads,
location, and environmental and historical considerations.
After Federal property has been conveyed to non-Federal entities,
the property is subject to local land use regulations, including zoning
and subdivision regulations and building codes. Unless expressly
authorized by statute, the disposing Federal agency cannot restrict the
future use of surplus Government property. As a result, the local
community exercises substantial control over future use of the
property. For this reason, local land use plans and zoning affect
determination of the highest and best use of surplus Government
property.
The DBCRA directed the Administrator of the General Services
Administration (GSA) to delegate to the Secretary of Defense authority
to transfer and dispose of base closure property. section 2905(b) of
DBCRA directs the Secretary of Defense to exercise this authority in
accordance with GSA's property disposal regulations, set forth at
Sections 101-47.1 through 101-47.8 of the FPMR. By letter dated
December 20, 1991, the Secretary of Defense delegated the authority to
transfer and dispose of base closure property closed under DBCRA to the
Secretaries of the Military Departments. Under this delegation of
authority, the Secretary of the Navy must follow FPMR procedures for
screening and disposing of real property when implementing base
closures. Only where Congress has expressly provided additional
authority for disposing of base closure property, e.g., the economic
development conveyance authority established in 1993 by Section
2905(b)(4) of DBCRA, may Navy apply disposal procedures other than the
FPMR's prescriptions.
In Section 2901 of the National Defense Authorization Act for
Fiscal Year 1994, Public Law 103-160, Congress recognized the economic
hardship occasioned by base closures, the Federal interest in
facilitating economic recovery of base closure communities, and the
need to identify and implement reuse and redevelopment of property at
closing installations. In Section 2903(c) of Public Law 103-160,
Congress directed the Military Departments to consider each base
closure community's economic needs and priorities in the property
disposal process. Under Section 2905(b)(2)(E) of DBCRA, Navy must
consult with local communities before it disposes of base closure
property and must consider local plans developed for reuse and
redevelopment of the surplus Federal property.
The Department of Defense's goal, as set forth in Sec. 90.4 of the
DoD Rule, is to help base closure communities achieve rapid economic
recovery through expeditious reuse and redevelopment of the assets at
closing bases, taking into consideration local market conditions and
locally developed reuse plans. Thus, the Department has adopted a
consultative approach with each community to ensure that property
disposal decisions consider the Local Redevelopment Authority's reuse
plan and encourage job creation. As a part of this cooperative
approach, the base closure community's interests, e.g., reflected in
its zoning for the area, play a significant role in determining the
range of alternatives considered in the environmental analysis for
property disposal. Furthermore, Sec. 91.7(d)(3) of the DoD Rule
provides that the Local Redevelopment Authority's plan generally will
be used as the basis for the proposed disposal action. The Federal
Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949, 40 U.S.C. 484, as
implemented by the FPMR, identifies several mechanisms for disposing of
surplus base closure property: by public benefit conveyance (FPMR Sec.
101-47.303-2); by negotiated sale (FPMR Sec. 101-47.304-8); and by
competitive sale (FPMR Sec. 101-47.304-7). Additionally, in Section
2905(b)(4), the DBCRA established economic development conveyances as a
means of disposing of surplus base closure property. The selection of
any particular method of conveyance merely implements the Federal
agency's decision to dispose of the property. Decisions concerning
whether to undertake a public benefit conveyance or an economic
development conveyance, or to sell property by negotiation or by
competitive bid are committed by law to agency discretion. Selecting a
method of disposal implicates a broad range of factors and rests solely
within the Secretary of the Navy's discretion.
Conclusion
The Reuse Plan proposed by the City of Orlando presents the highest
and best use of the Naval Training Center properties. The City of
Orlando, as the LRA, has determined in its Reuse Plan that the
properties should be used for several purposes, including commercial,
educational, governmental, residential, recreational, retail,
warehousing, multimodal transportation, and open space land uses. The
properties' physical characteristics and past use and the current uses
of adjacent lands make them appropriate for this mixed use
redevelopment.
The Reuse Plan responds to local economic conditions, promotes
rapid economic recovery from the impact of
[[Page 64727]]
the Naval Training Center's closure, and is consistent with President
Clinton's Five-Part Plan for revitalizing base closure communities,
which emphasizes local economic redevelopment of the closing military
facility and creation of new jobs as the means to revitalize these
communities. 32 CFR Parts 90 and 91, 59 FR 16,123 (1994). Under the
direction of Federal, State and local regulatory authorities, the
acquiring entity can mitigate the resultant environmental impacts.
The City's proposed Reuse Plan strikes a reasonable balance between
the redevelopment proposals advanced in Alternatives 2 and 3, in its
impact on the environment, its compatibility with the current uses of
adjacent property, and its use of the existing physical characteristics
of the Naval Training Center properties. Although the ``No Action''
alternative has less potential for causing adverse environmental
impacts, this alternative would not constitute the highest and best use
of the Naval Training Center properties. It would not take advantage of
the properties' physical characteristics and the current uses of
adjacent properties. It is not compatible with the LRA's Reuse Plan. It
would not foster local economic redevelopment of the Naval Training
Center properties and would not create new jobs.
Accordingly, Navy will dispose of Naval Training Center Orlando in
a manner that is consistent with the City of Orlando's Reuse Plan for
the properties.
Dated: November 15, 1996.
William J. Cassidy, Jr.,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Conversion and Redevelopment).
[FR Doc. 96-31030 Filed 12-5-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3810-FF-M
