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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 14 January 2015 r1 14January2015 Meeting Minutes Chairman Barbourcalled the meeting to order at 4:00and welcomed all.Introductions were made by each;the meeting’sattendance sheetisattached.TheNew Hanover County (NHC) Port,Waterway&Beach Commission (PWBC)approvedtheDecembermeeting minutes (emailed 12December2014).The current PWBC fund balance was noted at ~$3631.98 following abalance reduction(~ $750.00)for participation inthe North Carolina Beach Inlet and Waterway Association’s(NCBIWA)2015 Local Governments’ Meeting scheduled at theNC Aquarium in Pine Knoll Shores on Monday and Tuesday, March 16 and 17.The following is http://www.ncbiwa.org/15LocGovtRegister.pdf. registration information The NC Water Resources Congress (NCWRC) is also scheduling its annual Washington DC trip thth for March 9–11. Those interested inparticipating should contact John Sutherland, Executive Director of the NCWRCat. jds4504@aol.com Current Business NHC’s Kure Beach (KB) CSDR Project Authorization Following federal reviews and comments, the permitting process is back with the NC Division of Coastal Management (NCDCM). The NCDCM Major Permit and US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) General Permit (GP) 291 should be issued in the next few weeks. Kure Beach representative Bloszinsky asked if any permit stipulations were extremely onerous.Staff noted that oncethe permit isreceived;NHC, KB and Carolina Beach (CB) staff will meet to review the permit’s nuances. NHC’s Wrightsville Beach (WB) CSDR Project Authorization On 20 January 2015, staff will request NHC’s Board of Commissioner’s approvalto beginNHC permittingofthe WB CSDR project. The permitting approach will follow that of CB and KB exactly mirroring the USACEprojectattributes. Mason Inlet Relocation Project (MIRP) The requested USACE permit modification and US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) reconsultation effortscontinue.An NCDCM permit minor modification has been drafted and provided to NCDCM staff for preliminary consideration. Thismodification would ease the engineering corridor maintenance trigger potentially increasing the timebetween maintenance events without jeopardizing infrastructureand/or inlet function. Shallow Draft Inlet (SDI) Permitting The shallow draft inlet stakeholders(Shallotte, LockwoodsFolly, Carolina Beach, New Topsail andBogue)are reviewing and commenting on thedraft NCDCM application and supplemental documents. Staff anticipates the NCDCM application submittal within the next few weeks. CB Councilman Shuttleworth asked the anticipatedpermitissuance date. Staff portends NCDCM permit issuance in late spring or summer subsequent to federalresource agencyreviews and comments. Carolina Beach Reauthorization The South Atlantic Division (SAD) and the Wilmington District (SAW) provided suggested guidance language and a proposed study process (limited re-evaluation report, LRR) to USACE Headquarters (HQ) on 16 December 2014. CB Town Manager Cramer and Councilman Shuttleworth asked if a copy of the proposed guidance and study were available. Staff noted SAW allowed a review of the transmittal but a copy was not allowed. Asked of any noted challenges, staff shared that required economic modeling of the project template could be a significant cost and time consumingrequirement; but, that SAW Engineering wasinvestigating a potentialexpedited modeling approach. Results of the expedited modeling potentials as well as SAW’s anticipatedLRRscope, fee and schedule havebeen requested. The local alternative a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) is undergoing internal review. Staff is targeting 16 February for taking the RFQ request to the BOC. The RFQ is structured toward firms/teams competent in economic and environmental evaluations through an assessment/presentation structure emulating the USACE process.CB Councilman Shuttleworth noted the time that has passed since the Water Resources Reform Development Act (WRRDA 2014) and thechallenges remaining. NHC’s CB/KB CSDR Project Authorizations An NCDCM permit minor modification has been drafted and provided to NCDCM staff for preliminary consideration. The permitminor modificationhas beendrafted requesting flexibility intheborrow source applicability between the CB Inlet and the offshore Area B borrowsources. The modification would potentially provide future contracting and volume management flexibility. 2015 Staff requested CB and KB representatives to consider,in their FY16 municipal budgeting, a line item forCB Inlet maintenance dredging at approximately $22,840fromCB and$5,710from KB. Staff requested the beach communities to become more ardent in beach front sand fencing and sprigging especially following CSDR events. Each beach community asked if the ROT could pay for such sand fencing efforts, staff did not have a definitive answer but suggested other available ROT funds be considered before the sand fund. Town Mgr. Cramer asked if the requirement could be a contracting line item. PWBCdiscussions leadto a limited recollection of dredging contractors installing sand fencing. Town Mgr. Owens noted the PCA’s calls such actions as ongoing non-federal maintenance efforts. Staff noted thatthe 2015 Shoreline Mapping Programscoping was complete and the intention is to bring the project requestbefore the BOC on 16 February. As information only, Staff noted prominent FY16 coastal infrastructure funding needs (NC General Assembly) the PWBC may wish to be cognizant of.Based on federal funds currently held by SAW, preliminary SAW estimates for WB’s LRR and if the state completestheir historical match of federal dollars; the following state funds would be required for FY 16 efforts. CB CSDR, ~$670K KB CSDR, ~$650K WB LRR, ~$ 81K CB LRR, ~$ 81K The PWBC generally discussed the NC State Ports Authority suggesting an update by the Executive Director would be interesting.Chairman Barbour asked if there were any suggestions forotherspecial presentations or invitedguests. Mr. Lovingproposedinviting Congressman Rouzer; and the PWBC supported the idea.The PWBC recommended including Congressman Rouzer’s local staff in the PWBC email distributions. Chairman Barbour briefly recapped the last Carolina Beach Inlet Association (CBIA) meeting where Spencer Rogers with Sea Grant spoke regarding groins and jetties. The Chair updated the PWBC of the efforts by the Onslow Bay ArtificialReef Association for improving offshore reefs near CB, WB and Figure 8. Public Comment None The meeting was adjourned at ~4:55.