Proposed Port of Entry, Located at Point Roberts, Washington; Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment or Environmental Impact Statement

GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

Public Buildings Service

Proposed Port of Entry, Located at Point Roberts, Washington;

Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment or Environmental Impact

Statement

ACTION: The General Services Administration (GSA) hereby gives notice

it intends to prepare either an Environmental Assessment (EA) or an

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in accordance with the National

Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) for the proposed expansion of

the port of entry located at Point Roberts, Washington. The decision on

whether to prepare an EIS would be made following the completion of

scoping and the Environmental Assessment. The EA would evaluate the

proposed project, expansion of the existing port of entry, the no-

action alternative, and other reasonable alternatives that might be

identified during the scoping process.

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ADDRESS: Scoping will be accomplished by correspondence and through a

public meeting with interested persons, organizations, and Federal,

state, and local agencies. Written comments on the scope of

alternatives and potential impacts should be addressed to the GSA's EIS

subconsultant, ABAM Consulting Engineers, at the following address:

33301 Ninth Avenue South, Federal Way, Washington 98003-6395,

Attention: Carol Beck.

DATES: Written comments should be sent by July 15, 1994. Comments and

suggestions will also be accepted at a public scoping meeting from 5:30

p.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, June 29, 1994 at the Point Roberts

Community Center, 1487 Gulf Road, Point Roberts, WA 98281.

All comments received during the meeting will be made part of the

administrative record for the EA and will be evaluated as part of the

scoping process.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Contact Carol Beck at ABAM Consulting

Engineers, 3301 Ninth Avenue South, Federal Way, Washington 98003-6395,

(206) 241-2040 or Donna M. Meyer at General Services Administration,

(206) 931-7675.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The GSA, assisted by our contractor will

prepare an Environmental Assessment on a proposal to design and

construct a new border station to be located at Point Roberts,

Washington. The scoping process will determine the issues to be

addressed in the EA, identify the potential adverse environmental

issues related to the proposed expansion, and assist to determine

whether an EIS should be prepared. Scoping will be conducted in a

manner consistent with NEPA guidelines. If an EIS is required, GSA will

serve a the lead agency pursuant to Section 1501.5(a) of the Council on

Environmental Quality's Regulations for Implementing the Procedural

Provisions of NEPA (40 CFR 1500-1508).

Scoping

GSA invites interested individuals, organizations, affected tribes

and Federal, state and local agencies and officials to participate in

defining the reasonable alternatives to be evaluated in the EA and in

identifying any adverse social, economical, or environmental issues

related to the alternatives. Scoping comments can be made verbally or

in writing (see DATES and ADDRESS sections above for location and time

of meeting). During scoping, comments should focus on identifying

specific impacts to be evaluated and suggesting alternatives or

mitigation that minimize adverse impacts while achieving similar

objectives. Comments may also identify issues which are not significant

or which have been covered by prior environmental review. Scoping

should be limited to commenting on alternatives and not indicating

preferences. If an EIS is undertaken, there will be an opportunity to

comment on impacts of the selected alternatives upon release of the

draft document.

Additional Information

A project information packet will be available at the public

meeting or can be obtained by contacting the above referenced

personnel. The packet will describe in more detail the proposed

project, alternatives and the EA/EIS process.

Mailing List

If you wish to be placed on the mailing list to receive further

information for this proposal as the EA process develops, contact the

above referenced personnel.

Project Purpose, Historical Background, and Project Description

The project purpose is the design and construction of a new Port of

Entry at the U.S. and Canadian border at Point Roberts, Washington. The

new station would replace the existing station, which is overcrowded

and functionally obsolete. The new facility would be constructed on 3.8

acres of land and would require the acquisition of approximately 3.1

acres of land to accommodate the new facility. The additional acreage

is necessary for maneuverability, reconfiguration and expansion.

The Point Roberts Port of Entry is a unique facility in that it

serves as the single check point for land access to the Point Roberts

Pennisula, which is only connected to the United States mainland

through Canada. On a daily basis, the peninsula is inundated with

Canadian shoppers crossing over into Point Roberts to purchase gasoline

and other commodities in the less expensive U.S. market. In addition,

Point Roberts is a gateway to a popular recreational community.

At completion, the new port facility would provide 19,100 gross

square feet of space, including canopy areas. The new facility would

include a main administration building, an inspection shed, and a

secondary inspection facility. The primary inspection lanes would

increase from two to four; secondary lanes from two to eight; and,

truck inspection lanes from none to two. A total of 53 outside parking

spaces would be provided, 49 automobile and 4 truck.

Alternatives

The EA would consider an action alternative (Federal construction)

and a no-action alternative. Due to the unique requirements for port of

entry's, GSA has found it is impractical to consider leasing an

existing office building to meet these needs. GSA is proposing to

construct the facility at the site of the existing port of entry and to

acquire a parcel of land lying west-southwest of the present station.

The no-action alternative would continue the use of the overcrowded and

obsolete station.

Probable Effects

GSA will evaluate significant environmental, social, and economical

impacts of the alternatives in the EA. Potential impacts include, but

are not limited to, changes in geological and/or soil characteristics;

changes in drainage and absorption patterns; water quality/groundwater

quality; new sources of light or glare; changes to recreational

opportunities; changes to vegetation, wetlands and wildlife habitat;

impacts to local residences and businesses; loss of open space; and,

changes in traffic and circulation patterns. The impacts will be

evaluated both for the construction period and for the life of the

project. Measures to mitigate any identifiable adverse impacts will be

addressed.

Procedures

The EA will be prepared based on the scoping report. After its

publication, GSA will make a decision whether an EIS will be required.

If an EIS is to be prepared, a Draft EIS would be made available for

public and agency review and comment, and a public hearing would be

held. A Final EIS would be prepared following the closing of the

comment period of the Draft.

Dated: June 10, 1994.

L. Jay Pearson,

Regional Administrator (10A).

[FR Doc. 94-15222 Filed 6-22-94; 8:45 am]

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