Regulated Navigation AreaAir Clearance Restrictions at the Entrance to Lakeside Yacht Club and the Northeast Approach to Burke Lakefront Airport in Cleveland Harbor, OH

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Coast Guard

33 CFR PART 165

[CGD09-97-002]

RIN 2115-AE84

Regulated Navigation Area--Air Clearance Restrictions at the

Entrance to Lakeside Yacht Club and the Northeast Approach to Burke

Lakefront Airport in Cleveland Harbor, OH

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: The Coast Guard proposes to establish a regulated navigation

area at the entrance to the Lakeside Yacht Club in Cleveland Harbor,

Ohio, underneath the northeast approach to the Burke Lakefront Airport,

in order to avoid conflict with the safety parameters for an

instrument-guided aircraft approach slope. The regulation would create

a set of restricted areas, some of which would prohibit docking of

vessels of certain heights, others which would require vessels of

certain heights to obtain clearance from the Airport before entering or

leaving the entrance to the yacht club during times when the instrument

system is in use. Vessels with masts less than 41 feet above the

waterline would not be affected at all, and vessels less than 45 feet

in height would not be required to make any change in their normal

areas of navigation or docking. Vessels with masts between 45 and 95

feet would be subject to a requirement to obtain a routine clearance by

radio or telephone before navigating through the area, and vessels

between 53 and 95 feet would be limited to certain specified areas for

docking. Vessels 95 feet and above, none of which are currently using

the area, would be prohibited from any entry into the area.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before November 5, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Comments and supporting materials may be mailed or delivered

to Lieutenant Lynn Goldhammer, Assistant Chief, Marine Safety Analysis

and Policy Branch, Ninth Coast Guard District, Room 2069, 1240 E. Ninth

Street, Cleveland, Ohio, 44199-2060. Comments may also be telefaxed to

(216) 902-6059. Please reference the name of the proposal and the

docket number [CGD09-97-002] in any communication. If you wish receipt

of your mailed comment to be acknowledged, please include a stamped

self-addressed envelope or postcard for that purpose. Comments and

materials received will be available for public inspection at the above

location from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday except federal

holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lieutenant Lynn Goldhammer, Assistant

Chief, Marine Safety Analysis and Policy Branch, Ninth Coast Guard

District, Room 2069, 1240 E. Ninth Street, Cleveland, Ohio, 44199-2060,

(216) 902-6050.

Request for Comments: The Coast Guard encourages interested persons

to participate in this rulemaking by submitting comments which may

consist of data, views, arguments, or proposals for amendments to the

proposed regulations. The Coast Guard does not currently plan to have a

public hearing. However, consideration will be given to holding a

public hearing if it is requested. Such a request should indicate how a

public hearing would contribute substantial information or views which

cannot be received in written form. If it appears that a public hearing

would substantially contribute to this rulemaking and there is

sufficient time to publish a notice, the Coast Guard will announce such

a hearing by a later notice in the Federal Register. The Coast Guard

will consider all comments received before the closing date indicated

above, and may amend or revoke this proposal in response to such

comments.

Background and Purpose

Burke Lakefront Airport, located next to Cleveland Harbor in

Cleveland, Ohio, proposes to install an instrument-guided approach

system for the northeast approach to the Airport which is important to

maintaining safe and commercially viable airport operations. Under

Federal Aviation Administration flight standards, this instrument-

guided approach, during times when available for use, will require a

more extensive zone of air clearance than the existing visual approach.

The Lakeside Yacht Club is located in Cleveland Outer harbor near the

northeast end of the runway, and the entrance channel leading into the

yacht club docks is immediately adjacent to the end of the runway

(Runway 24R). The configuration of the area between the airport and the

yacht club is depicted in Figure 1.

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[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TP07AU98.017

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The shaded areas in Figure 1 are those areas over water where the

safety parameters of the instrument approach system create relevant

restrictions on the height of vessel structures, in feet, with

clearance levels indicated in both mean sea level (MSL) and height over

high water (applicable mast heights) based on an extreme high water

level of 577 feet MSL. The actual boundaries of the area are defined by

exact geographic coordinates specified in the proposed regulation,

based on calculations from the Federal Aviation Administration.

Illustration 1 is an approximate guide to how those coordinates and

areas will fall over the area when those coordinates are mapped on to a

nautical chart by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The Airport proposal raises two questions: (1) What restriction on

vessel heights would be required to avoid conflict with the approach

slope safety parameters? (2) How can those parameters be protected

without undue restriction on vessel navigation and the operation of the

yacht club?

Clearance Requirements

Under the current plan for an instrument-guided approach being

considered by Burke Lakefront Airport and the Federal Aviation

Administration, the center line of the approach path comes down along

the northwest side of the Lakeside yacht Club entrance channel. This

creates the need for an air clearance area which becomes lower as the

approach nears the southwest end of the channel. In addition to the

main clearance area directly under the main approach path, there is a

slanted clearance area to the side of the main approach path which

accounts for the skewing of the air clearance areas over the south end

of the channel. This air clearance area extends down to as low as 618

feet above mean sea level (MSL) at the south end of the entrance

channel. The main part of the channel used by vessels to transit in and

out of the Lakeside Yacht Club docks (which normally bear to the east

side of the entrance along the south extension of the jetty, where

there is the best water depth) is covered by an air clearance area

ranging from 622 to 640 feet above MSL. Although there are no

measurable tides on the Great Lakes, water levels vary according to

yearly climate, season, and weather. Water levels tend to run highest

during the summer. In addition, they are subject to short-term

increases due to wind, storm surge, and seiches. Therefore, safety

parameters should be based on the highest recorded levels. The long-

term monthly average level (1860 through 1990) for Cleveland is 572.2

feet MSL, but levels have reached a monthly average high of 573.9 feet

MSL (July 1996) and an all-time hourly high of 576.3 feet MSL (in

February 1987). Rounding up this all-time hourly high, which reflects

the variations which can be created by storm conditions, suggests 577

MSL as the safe figure for high water to be subtracted from the mean

sea level air clearance. This is the basis for the ``applicable mast

heights'' assigned to the various restricted areas marked on Figure 1.

One of these restricted areas, area no. 1, which applies to vessels

with heights as low as 41 feet, in fact covers an area of shallow and

obstructed water outside of the normal route in and out of the club,

and therefore does not actually affect the normal navigation of any

sailboats as long as they avoid accidentally wandering into that area.

The relevant limit, at which some boats become affected, is therefore

the limit of 45 feet within restricted area no. 2.

Yacht Club Operations

The yacht club currently accommodates a number of sailboats with

mast heights ranging from 45 to 65 feet above the water line, including

sailboats belonging to members of the Club and others visiting the

Club, which would be affected by these restrictions. There is

sufficient available room for docking vessels with masts as high as 95

feet in Club facilities located further away from the end of the runway

than the entrance channel, without intruding into the glide slope

safety parameters. The primary problem, therefore, is to avoid a

conflict during the time that sailboats with masts of 45 feet or more

are entering or leaving the entrance channel. In discussions held

between representatives of the yacht club and the Airport, it was

agreed that the interests of both parties could be accommodated by a

system for clearing vessels with high masts for transit with the

traffic control tower. Vessel operators would be advised of the

requirements to obtain clearance by a regulatory notice on the nautical

charts, various warning signs to be provided by the Airport, and notice

to the members of the yacht club. In addition, the airport agreed to

build a permanent fixed marker with a light alongside the entrance

channel, marking the outer corner of restricted area no. 1 in order to

facilitate the safe passage through the preferred half of the channel.

Clearance for transit through areas no. 2 and 3 would be obtained by

telephone or radio call to the Burke Lakefront Air Traffic Control

Tower, with radio calls being made on marine band channel 14. This is

an area wholly within the protection of Cleveland Harbor, with

additional protection from wave action provided by the airport landfill

to the north. It therefore should not be unsafe for vessels to

temporarily hold up outside the entrance to the yacht club on the rare

occasions when clearance is required and cannot be granted. There is

also a fueling dock on the outside of the entrance, within area no. 3,

providing a location where most vessels requiring clearance can

temporarily tie up if necessary. Vessels 63 feet in height and over

would have to obtain clearance further in advance before entering area

no. 3 and the fueling dock location. It is anticipated that times when

a vessel would actually be required to hold up would be rare, because

it is not necessary when aircraft make normal visual approaches, and

the expected time that a vessel would have to hold up is a maximum of

fifteen minutes. In addition, the regulation would provide for advance

group clearances to be provided for the convenience of the yacht club

to accommodate planned events such as regattas on weekends.

Given the agreement between the two relevant parties, the airport's

commitment to provide the warning sign, lighted channel marker, and

clearance procedures, and the limited number of larger sailboats which

may be affected by the clearance requirement, the Coast Guard views

this proposal as a reasonable and safe solution as long as both parties

maintain their existing commitment to cooperate in making the clearance

system work. In order to be able to assure the Federal Aviation

Administration that conflict will be avoided, and to insure the safety

of both vessels and aircraft, the Coast Guard proposes to promulgate

this vessel clearance requirement as a regulated navigation area. In

order to be assured that this solution is both safe and fair, the Coast

Guard specifically requests comments on the safety and practicality of

the proposed regulation, from the point of view of both vessel and

airport operations.

Drafting Information

The drafter of this regulation is Commander Eric Reeves, Chief,

Marine Safety Analysis and Policy Branch, Ninth Coast Guard District.

Environment

The Coast Guard has considered the environmental impact of this

regulation and concluded that, under Figure 2-1, paragraph (34)(g) of

Coast Guard Commandant Instruction M16475.1C, it is categorically

excluded from further environmental documentation, and has so certified

in the docket file.

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Federalism

This action has been analyzed in accordance with the principles and

criteria contained in Executive Order 12612, and it has been determined

that this regulation does not have sufficient federalism implications

to warrant the preparation of a Federalism Assessment.

Regulatory Evaluation

This regulation is considered to be nonsignificant under Executive

Order 12866 on Regulatory Planning and Review and nonsignificant under

Department of Transportation regulatory policies and procedures (44 FR

11034 of February 26, 1979).

Small Entities

The economic impact of this regulation is expected to be so minimal

that a full regulatory evaluation is unnecessary. Since the impact of

this regulation is expected to be minimal, the Coast Guard certifies

that, if adopted, it will not have a significant economic impact on a

substantial number of small entities.

Collection of Information

This regulation will impose no collection of information

requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.

List of Subjects in 33 CFR Part 165

Harbors, Marine Safety, Navigation (water), Security measures,

Vessels, Waterways.

Regulations: In consideration of the foregoing, the Coast Guard

proposes to amend Subpart C of Part 165 of title 33, Code of Federal

Regulations as follows:

1. The authority citation for Part 165 continues to read as

follows:

Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1231; 50 U.S.C. 191; 33 CFR 1.05-1(g),

6.04-6, and 160.5; and 49 CFR 1.46.

2. A new section is added to read as follows:

Sec. 165.906 Lakeside Yacht Club in Cleveland Harbor, Cleveland,

Ohio--regulated navigation areas.

(a) Restricted Areas. The following are areas inside Cleveland

Harbor which are subject to navigational restrictions based on the

height of masts or other structures specified in paragraph (b) of this

section. All of these areas are inside the ``Lakeside Yacht Club

entrance channel,'' defined as the water area between the Lakeside

Yacht Club jetties and the Burke Lakefront Airport landfill, or inside

the ``Lakeside Yacht Club docks,'' defined as the docking area inside

the Lakeside Yacht Club jetties and immediately adjacent to Lakeside

Yacht Club.

(1) Restricted area no. 1. Restricted area no. 1 is the water area

on the southwest end of the Lakeside Yacht Club entrance channel which

is southwest of a line running 328 deg. T and northwest of a line

running 232 deg. T from a point 41 deg.31'28.00'' N, 81 deg.40'02.60''

W, which point is marked by a fixed flashing yellow light.

(2) Restricted area no. 2. Restricted area no. 2 is the water area

of the Lakeside Yacht Club entrance channel which is outside restricted

area no. 1 and the entrance to the Yacht Club docking area, and

southwest of a line running 328 deg. T from the intersection of

81 deg.39'58.47'' W and a reference line running between point A at

41 deg.31'33.45'' N, 81 deg.39'47.45'' W and point B at

41 deg.31'19.67'' N, 81 deg.40'19.17'' W.

(3) Restricted area no. 3. Restricted area no. 3 is the water area

of the Lakeside Yacht Club entrance channel which is outside restricted

area no. 1, and southwest of a line running 328 deg. T from point A at

41 deg.31'33.45'' N, 81 deg.39'47.45'' W.

(4) Restricted area no. 4. Restricted area no. 4 is the area inside

the Lakeside Yacht Club docks which is southwest of a line running

328 deg. T from the intersection of 81 deg.39'58.47'' W and a reference

line running between point A at 41 deg.31'33.45'' N, 81 deg.39'47.45''

W, and point B at 41 deg.31'19.67'' N, 81 deg.40'19.17'' W, and

northwest of the same reference line.

(5) Restricted area no. 5. Restricted area no. 5 is the area inside

the Lakeside Yacht Club docks which is outside restricted area 4 and

northwest of a line 183 feet southeast and parallel to a reference line

running between point A at 41 deg.31'33.45'' N, 81 deg.39'47.45'' W and

point B at 41 deg.31'19.67'' N, 81 deg.40'19.17'' W.

(6) Restricted area no. 6. Restricted area no. 6 is the area inside

the Lakeside Yacht Club docks which is outside restricted areas 4 and

5.

(b) Restrictions applicable to vessels of certain heights. Vessels

of certain heights are subject to the following restrictions with

reference to the restricted areas detailed in paragraph (a) of this

section. The height of a vessel is the height above the waterline of

masts, antennas, navigational equipment, or any other structure.

(1) Less than 41 feet. Vessels less than 41 feet in height are not

subject to any restrictions under this section.

(2) 41 to 45 feet. Vessels 41 feet and less than 45 feet in height

may not enter restricted area 1.

(3) 45 to 53 feet. Vessels 45 feet and less than 53 feet in height

may not enter restricted area 1 and must comply with the clearance

procedures prescribed in paragraph (c) of this section when navigating

through restricted area 2.

(4) 53 to 63 feet. Vessels 53 feet and less than 63 feet in height

may not enter restricted area 1, must comply with the clearance

procedures prescribed in paragraph (c) of this section when navigating

through restricted area 2, and may not dock in or enter restricted area

4 at any time.

(5) 63 to 95 feet. Vessels 63 feet and less than 95 feet in height

may not enter restricted area 1, must comply with the clearance

procedures prescribed in paragraph (c) of this section when navigating

through restricted areas 2 or 3, and may not dock in or enter

restricted areas 4 or 5 at any time.

(6) 95 feet or more. Vessel 95 feet or more in height may not enter

any of the restricted areas, areas 1 through 6, at any time.

(c) Clearance procedures. Except during the times specified in

paragraph (d), of this section vessels subject to these procedures must

obtain clearance from the Burke Lakefront Air Traffic Control Tower

before navigating through the restricted area(s), navigate promptly

through the area(s) at a safe and practical speed, and promptly inform

the Burke Lakefront Air Traffic Control Tower after clearing the

restricted area(s), or of any difficulty preventing prompt clearance.

The Burke Lakefront Air Traffic Control Tower may be contacted on

marine radio channel 14, or by telephone at (216) 781-6411. Navigation

at safe and practical speed includes brief stops at the fueling dock

inside restricted area 3 by vessels between 63 and 95 feet in height.

Clearance may also be obtained for longer periods, and for groups of

vessels, for times arranged in advance with Burke Lakefront Airport by

any appropriate means of communication, including prior written

agreement with the Airport.

(d) Suspension of clearance requirements. The clearance procedures

specified in paragraph (c), of this section do not apply during the

following times, during which vessels which would otherwise be required

to obtain clearance may proceed without doing so:

(1) 11:00 p.m. on Friday to 7:00 a.m. on Saturday.

(2) 11:00 p.m. on Saturday to 8:00 a.m. on Sunday.

(3) 12:00 midnight Sunday night to 7:00 a.m. on Monday.

(e) Suspension of Applicability. This section does not apply during

any period in which the Federal Aviation Administration withdraws

approval for operation of an instrument-only

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approach to runway 24 on the northeast end of Burke Lakefront Airport.

Dated: July 14, 1998.

G.S. Cope,

Captain, U.S. Coast Guard Acting Commander, Ninth Coast Guard District.

[FR Doc. 98-21186 Filed 8-6-98; 8:45 am]

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