The Federal Emergency Management Agency and Florida Division of Emergency Management have received the following application for Federal grant funding. Final notice is hereby given of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) consideration to provide funding in the form of Hazard Mitigation Grant Program. Funds will be provided in accordance with Section 404 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, Public Law 93-288, as amended. Under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), federal actions must be reviewed and evaluated for feasible alternatives and for social, economic, historic, environmental, legal, and safety considerations.

Under Executive Order (EO) 11988 and EO 11990 FEMA is required to consider alternatives to and to provide public notice of any proposed actions in or affecting floodplains or wetlands. EO 12898 also requires FEMA to provide the opportunity for public participation in the planning process and to consider potential impacts to minority or low-income populations.

Funding for the proposed project will be conditional upon compliance with all applicable federal, tribal, state and local laws, regulations, floodplain standards, permit requirements and conditions.

Applicant:
City of Tallahassee

Project Title:
HMGP-4399-081-R - City of Tallahassee, Pump Station #12 & Pump Station #22, Utilities Undergrounding

Location of Proposed Work:
The Pump Station #12 project will be located in an existing City of Tallahassee easement between Engineering Way on the FAMU/FSU College of Engineering campus and Orange Avenue. The project will also cross Orange Avenue to the location of the City’s existing Pump Station #12, located at 1901 Orange Avenue W. The Pump Station #22 project will be located on the existing Pump Station #22 site at the southwest corner of the intersection of Miccosukee Road and Riggins Road, as well as the City’s existing electric substation located on the southeast corner of the same intersection.

Proposed Work and Purpose:
The proposed project will provide enhanced protection against power outages by installing redundant underground electrical feeds from existing City electrical substations to existing City sanitary sewer pump stations. The existing power source is overhead electrical lines, which are subject to wind damage, lightning strikes, falling trees, and more during severe weather events. The proposed redundant electrical feeds will ensure that Pump Stations 12 and 22, which are critical to the City’s wastewater collection system, will remain operational during severe weather events by eliminating these hazards. By ensuring that potential damage to these stations has been adequately mitigated, City staff will remain focused on maintaining continuity and operability of the City’s wastewater collection system.

The mitigation activity will provide a level of protection necessary to ensure the safety and well-being of residents, follow all applicable federal, state, and local regulations, as well as established best practices. Completion of this project will increase the resilience of Pump Stations 12 and 22, while ensuring continuity of operations when natural and man-made hazard events cause loss of electric power, as experienced during hurricanes Hermine, Irma, and Michael. Completion of the mitigation activity will greatly reduce the potential for sewer service loss of function as well as the potential for sewer overflow into the environment, which could impact environmental quality and public health.

The total project cost has been estimated at $1.04 million, and the City has applied for FEMA HMGP/Hurricane Michael funding to fund 75% of the total project.

Project Alternatives:
The alternatives to the project that have been and will be considered are 1) the no action alternative and 2) a redundant above-ground electrical feed to each pump station. These alternatives to the proposed project are not viable because under Alternative 1) the pump stations remain vulnerable to power outages, wastewater collection service interruptions, and potential wastewater overflows; and Alternative 2) would not protect against wind damage common during severe weather events and would leave the pump stations vulnerable to power outages; therefore, this alternative is not practicable.

Comment Period:
Comments are solicited from the public; local, state or federal agencies; and other interested parties in order to consider and evaluate the impacts of the proposed project. The comments should be made in writing and addressed to the Florida Division of Emergency Management, Bureau of Mitigation, 2555 Shumard Oak Blvd., Tallahassee, FL 32399-2100. These are due within 30 days of this notice. The State will forward comments to applicable regulatory agencies as needed. Interested persons may submit comments, obtain more detailed information about the proposed action, or request a copy of the findings by contacting:

Charles Hargraves
(850) 891-6035
Manager, Water & Sewer Capital Improvements
City of Tallahassee – Underground Utilities & Public Infrastructure
charles.hargraves@talgov.com

Kayla Born
(850) 273-9289
State Lead Environmental Specialist Florida Division of Emergency Management
Kayla.Born@em.myflorida.com