Record of Decision for Realignment of Naval Training Center Great Lakes, Illinois

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Navy

Record of Decision for Realignment of Naval Training Center Great

Lakes, Illinois

Pursuant to section 102(2) of the National Environmental Policy Act

(NEPA) of 1969 and the Council on Environmental Quality regulations for

implementing NEPA procedures (40 CFR 1500-1508), the Department of the

Navy announces its decision to implement realignment of Naval Training

Center (NTC) Great Lakes, Illinois.

In accordance with the legislative requirements of the Base Closure

and Realignment Act of 1990 (Public Law [P.L.] 101-510), the 1993

Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission (BRAC-93) recommended

the closure of NTC Orlando, Florida and NTC San Diego, California. The

majority of naval training at these bases will be relocated to NTC

Great Lakes, Illinois. In addition, Naval Technical Training Center

(NTTC) Treasure Island, and Combat Systems Technical Schools Command

(CSTC) Mare Island, California, will be closed pursuant to the

recommendations of BRAC-93, with some of the training at these commands

relocated to NTC Great Lakes. Also associated with this section is

relocation of the Navy Recruiting Command (COMNAVCRUITCOM) from

Washington, DC.

A Draft Environmental Impact Statement was prepared for the action

and distributed to Federal, State, and local agencies and to interested

individuals and groups. Public comments and Navy responses to those

comments were incorporated into the Final Environmental Impact

Statement (FEIS) which was distributed to the public for a review

period that ended on October 15, 1994. This review resulted in a single

letter from the Office of the Governor, Illinois State Clearinghouse,

stating that the action is not in conflict with State plans, policies,

and priorities.

The realignment will increase the number of average on-board

service school students by approximately 2,088 between 1993 and 1998.

The number of permanent-party naval personnel necessary to support

service and apprentice school training will increase by approximately

243 over the same period. Twenty-four construction projects are

required to accommodate the realignment at NTC Great Lakes. The

projects include upgrades of existing facilities and new construction

to support new functions and increased number of students and

permanent-party personnel. All associated construction and renovation

projects addressed in the FEIS will occur at NTC Great Lakes, with the

exception of a family housing project. This project will construct 240

family housing units at the Navy-owned Glenview Annex. Another BRAC-93

decision directed closure of Naval Air Station (NAS) Glenview and

allowed for portions of NAS Glenview to be retained by Navy for the

family housing requirements of NTC Great Lakes.

The Defense Base Closure and Realignment Act waived certain aspects

of NEPA such that the environmental analysis need not consider the no-

action alternative (no realignment). Alternative means of accommodating

the mandated BRAC-93 realignment at NTC Great Lakes that were

considered and included the use of existing structures and alternative

sites for construction of new facilities. Sites considered at NTC Great

Lakes for the new facilities/renovations avoided environmentally

sensitive areas, then were selected based on the following functional

considerations: adequacy of existing structures for the proposed uses,

availability of utilities, and proximity of the barracks to existing

and related facilities, such as classrooms and the galley. Glenview

Annex is selected as the most environmentally preferred and

functionally desirable alternative considered for the family housing

project.

Construction of the new facilities will convert less than four

acres of lawn area to impervious buildings and pavement surfaces. There

will be no significant impacts to surface water or wetlands. With

erosion mitigation and through sedimentation control described in the

FEIS in place, any potential for localized decreases in the quality of

stormwater runoff during construction will be minimal and temporary.

There will be no significant impacts to groundwater or potable water

resources as a result of the realignment.

The action will cause no significant impact to ambient noise levels

or air quality. Localized, temporary impacts will occur during

construction and demolition activities. Compliance with State (Title

35, Section 228) and Federal regulations, including National Emission

Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAPS), will be achieved

during removal of asbestos-containing materials. NTC Great Lakes is

located in a non-attainment area for ozone. An applicability analysis

was performed for air pollutant emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOX)

and volatile organic material (VOM) in compliance with the Clean Air

Act Amendments of 1990 and 1993 final rule for determining conformity

of federal actions to State or Federal Implementation Plans (40 CFR

Parts 6, 51, and 93). The analysis included construction-related

emissions, mobile-source emissions, and stationary-source emissions

associated with the realignment. Neither NOX nor VOM emissions

estimates for any year of the action exceeded the de minimis levels of

25 tons per year. Therefore, the action is presumed to conform to the

State Implementation Plan (SIP) and is exempted from any further

requirements of the General Conformity Rule.

The action at NTC Great Lakes will not impact any Department of

Defense Installation Restoration Program (IRP) sites. The action will

not violate any conditions of the NTC Great Lakes Waste Management Plan

or the Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasures Plan.

A Remedial Investigation is currently underway at Glenview Annex to

determine the extent of contamination at an IRP site (former fire

fighting training area) where it intersects the eastern portion of the

family housing site. Also, based on a review of historic aerial

photographs as part of the BRAC cleanup plan for the closure of NAS

Glenview, the previous existence of three ordnance magazines and a

trap/skeet range may exist on a portion of the new family housing area.

Contaminated soils that exceed regulatory levels will be remediated

prior to construction in accordance with applicable federal and state

requirements.

The increase in population from the action will be small in

comparison with the existing populations in Lake County and the Chicago

metropolitan area, and will not result in significant impacts to

facilities or services on-base or in the region. The additional

economic activity from the action will result in a net positive effect

on the local economy. The action will not significantly impact existing

land uses at NTC Great Lakes, in the City of North Chicago, or the

Village of Lake Bluff. The action will provide a net increase of 206

new family housing units at the Glenview Annex family housing area

because 34 units of existing family housing will be replaced. The

additional vehicular traffic generated by the action will not be

significant and the cumulative impact is anticipated to be less than

1990 levels.

The action will increase the number of school-aged children by an

estimated 312 students, with an estimated 122 students being dispersed

throughout the local communities as a result of naval personnel living

off-base. The remaining 190 students are expected to reside in the NAS

Glenview family housing. Based on current distribution of naval

personnel living off-base, the 122 additional students will attend

schools in the communities surrounding NTC Great Lakes and the impacts

to individual schools will be minimal. Of the 190 students expected to

reside at NAS Glenview, it is estimated that 38 students will attend

District 225 schools and the remaining 152 students will attend

District 34 schools. District 225 officials consider school capacity to

be sufficient and financial impacts to be negligible. District 34 has

indicated that an additional 152 students would have a negative impact

on district facilities and finances, and could require six to seven new

classrooms. The school district should receive Federal Impact Aid

reimbursement for lost property taxes for each family residing at

Glenview Annex. This will serve to equalize the contribution from

Glenview Annex residents with those of the local community for

education support. Additionally, it is expected that the conversion of

much of the currently non-taxable NAS Glenview property to commercial,

industrial, office, and other taxable property will have a positive

impact on District 34 revenues.

Utilities at NTC Great Lakes and at the NAS Glenview family housing

site have adequate capacity to serve the additional personnel at both

sites. NTC is allowed to discharge up to 10.5 million gallons per day

(mgd) to the local wastewater treatment authority, and the realignment

will bring the total NTC discharge to 2.8 mgd. The wastewater treatment

facility serving Glenview Annex has 180 mgd excess capacity, and will

be able to accommodate the additional 0.2 mgd discharge from the Navy

family housing units. Police and fire protection services are also

adequate to serve the needs of the new facilities. An expansion of the

medical and dental facilities at NTC Great Lakes is programmed to meet

the needs of the additional incoming students and staff population. On-

base community and recreational services and facilities are adequate to

serve the needs of the larger population at both NTC Great Lakes and

the NAS Glenview family housing area.

The action will result in no significant impacts to plant or animal

species listed as threatened or endangered by either federal or state

agencies. Potential impacts to cultural resources at NTC Great Lakes

have been evaluated in compliance with Section 106 of the National

Historic Preservation Act (NHPA). Renovations will be undertaken for

four buildings (Building 4, 177, 178, and 179) in the National Historic

District at NTC Great Lakes. However, only building 4 is a contributing

property of major significance within the historic district. All

modifications to this building will be approved by the Illinois

Historic Preservation Agency (IHPA) during the early phases of project

design. The IHPA has determined that no significant historic,

architectural, or archeological resources are located in the Glenview

Annex project area.

Questions regarding the Draft and Final Environmental Impact

Statement prepared for this action may be directed to: Commanding

Officer, Southern Division, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, North

Charleston, SC 29419-9010 (Attn: Mr. Robert Teague, Code 203RT),

telephone (804) 743-0785, fax (803) 743-0993.

Dated: October 21, 1994.

Elsie L. Munsell,

Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Environment and Safety).

Dated: October 24, 1994.

L.R. McNees,

LCDR, JAGC, USN, Federal Register Liaison Officer.

[FR Doc. 94-26692 Filed 10-27-94; 8:45 am]

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