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Environmental Notification Form Environmental Notification Form For Office Use Only EEA#: MEPA Analyst: The information requested on this form must be completed in order to submit a document electronically for review under the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act, 301 CMR 11.00. Project Name: North Allston Storm Drain Extension Project Street Address: 500 Soldiers Field Road, Boston Municipality: Boston Watershed: Charles River Universal Transverse Mercator Coordinates Latitude: 71°7'2.867"W UTM Zone 19; easting: 325630; northing: 4692150 Longitude: 42°21'43.475"N Estimated commencement date: Fall 2021 Estimated completion date: Summer/Fall 2023 Project Type: Utility infrastructure Status of project design: 100% complete Proponent: Boston Water and Sewer Commission Street Address: 980 Harrison Avenue Municipality: Roxbury State: MA Zip Code: 02119 Name of Contact Person: Corinne Snowdon Firm/Agency: Epsilon Associates, Inc. Street Address: 3 Mill & Main Place, Suite 250 Municipality: Maynard State: MA Zip Code: 01754 Phone: (978) 897-7100 Fax:(978) 897-0099 E-mail: [email protected] - 1 - Does this project meet or exceed a mandatory EIR threshold (see 301 CMR 11.03)? Yes No If this is an Expanded Environmental Notification Form (ENF) (see 301 CMR 11.05(7)) or a Notice of Project Change (NPC), are you requesting: a Single EIR? (see 301 CMR 11.06(8)) Yes No a Special Review Procedure? (see 301CMR 11.09) Yes No a Waiver of mandatory EIR? (see 301 CMR 11.11) Yes No a Phase I Waiver? (see 301 CMR 11.11) Yes No (Note: Greenhouse Gas Emissions analysis must be included in the Expanded ENF.) Which MEPA review threshold(s) does the project meet or exceed (see 301 CMR 11.03)? 301 CMR 11.03(1)(b)3: Conversion of land held for natural resources purposes in accordance with Article 97 of the Amendments to the Constitution of the Commonwealth to any purpose not in accordance with Article 97. Which State Agency Permits will the project require? Massachusetts State Legislature / Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation: Article 97 Land Disposition; Section 401 Water Quality Certificate; Chapter 91 Waterways License; MWRA 8(M) Permit; Superseding Order of Conditions (if local Order of Conditions is appealed); Massachusetts Historical Commission – Chapter 254 Review; Massachusetts Department of Transportation – Highway Construction Access Permit (for portion of project construction on non-Article 97 property); Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation Construction Access Permit Identify any financial assistance or land transfer from an Agency of the Commonwealth, including the Agency name and the amount of funding or land area in acres: Land Transfer: 0.19 acres will be subject to an easement from MA Department of Conservation and Recreation to Boston Water and Sewer Commission requiring MA State Legislature approval. This new culvert and outfall of NASDEP is the subject of this ENF as it requires Article 97 authorization from the Massachusetts State Legislature, consistent with the provisions of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (“EEA”) Article 97 Land Disposition Policy, for the disposition of new easement rights to BWSC from the Commonwealth for the construction and operation of the outfall. In order to accommodate BWSC’s request, DCR will grant certain easement rights to 0.19 acres to BWSC within the Charles River Reservation. Temporary impacts outside of the easement area will be permitted through a Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation Construction Access Permit. An approximately 0.63-acre (27,500 s.f.) area will be temporarily altered outside of the permanent easement area for construction staging and access as described under Proposed Conditions. - 2 - Summary of Project Size Existing Change Total & Environmental Impacts LAND Total site acreage 0.19 acres New acres of land altered 0.19 acres (temporary)* 0 ac permanent Acres of impervious area 0.11 acres 0 0.11 acres Square feet of new bordering vegetated N/A wetlands alteration Square feet of new other wetland 77 l.f. Inland Bank alteration (temporary in easement area) 1,934 s.f. Land Under Water (permanent) 1,936 s.f.* Riverfront Area (temporary) Acres of new non-water dependent use 0 of tidelands or waterways STRUCTURES Gross square footage N/A N/A N/A Number of housing units N/A N/A N/A Maximum height (feet) N/A N/A N/A TRANSPORTATION Vehicle trips per day N/A N/A N/A Parking spaces N/A N/A N/A WASTEWATER Water Use (Gallons per day) N/A N/A N/A Water withdrawal (GPD) N/A N/A N/A Wastewater generation/treatment N/A N/A N/A (GPD) Length of water mains (miles) N/A N/A N/A Length of sewer mains (miles) N/A N/A N/A * This impact number includes the area identified as requiring a permanent easement for Article 97 purposes. Temporary impacts outside of the easement area will be permitted through a Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation Construction Access Permit. An approximately 0.63-acre (27,500 s.f.) area will be temporarily altered outside of the easement area for construction staging and access as described under Proposed Conditions below. - 3 - Has this project been filed with MEPA before? Yes (EEA # ) No* * Boston Water & Sewer Commission - the proponent of the project and this ENF – has not filed it with MEPA previously. However, multiple submittals by Harvard University under EEA #14069 have included information on a proposed stormwater trunk drain project through the Allston Landing North Development Area as a long- term mitigation measure. Has any project on this site been filed with MEPA before? Yes (EEA # ) No GENERAL PROJECT INFORMATION – all proponents must fill out this section PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The project description should summarize both the project’s direct and indirect impacts (including construction period impacts) in terms of their magnitude, geographic extent, duration and frequency, and reversibility, as applicable. It should also discuss the infrastructure requirements of the project and the capacity of the municipal and/or regional infrastructure to sustain these requirements into the future. Project Background and Overview The Project Proponent, Boston Water and Sewer Commission (“BWSC”) proposes to construct the North Allston Storm Drain Extension Project (“NASDEP” or the “Project”). The proposed modifications to the BWSC stormwater management system will significantly improve its performance by providing much needed additional conveyance capacity. The proposed drainage system will see the upstream portion of the system, on the south side of Western Avenue, disconnected from the Harvard Business School (“HBS”) and Western Avenue portions of the existing system (refer to Attachment A, Figure 3). The upstream neighborhood runoff will be redirected through the Allston Landing North (“ALN”) area (including property owned by Harvard for which BWSC will have Easement Rights). This new stormwater trunk drain system, will collect runoff and convey the upstream neighborhood flows, along with runoff from 500 Soldiers Field Road and the frontage along the west side of Soldiers Field Road (“SFR”), to a new BWSC-owned outfall discharging to the Charles River between 500 Soldiers Field Road and Cambridge Street. Portions of the new culvert and the outfall itself are located within the MA Department of Conservation and Recreation (“DCR”) Charles River Reservation, including the portion of the proposed culvert to be constructed under Soldiers Field Road and access road (“Project Area”). This new culvert and outfall and associated required easement are the subject of this ENF as it requires Article 97 authorization from the Massachusetts State Legislature, consistent with the provisions of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (“EEA”) Article 97 Land Disposition Policy (“Policy”), for the disposition of new easement rights to BWSC from the Commonwealth for both the construction and operation.1 In order to accommodate BWSC’s request, DCR will grant certain 1 The temporary construction impact areas for the trunk drain within the Charles River Reservation will be the subject of a DCR Construction Access Permit and is not included as the part of the permanent easement required by Article 97. - 4 - easement rights within the Charles River Reservation to BWSC. The easement will require the above referenced Article 97 authorization from the Massachusetts Legislature. Because the Project requires a state action (i.e., Article 97) and meets or exceeds a related threshold in the MEPA regulations (again, Article 97), the Project is subject to MEPA review. Upon the completion of construction, the general land use will remain the same and full access to the Charles River Reservation will be restored within the Project Area. Multiple submittals by Harvard University (EEA 14069) have included information on the need for a proposed new stormwater trunk drain project through this area of North Allston. As the NASDEP expands the capacity of BWSC’s existing stormwater infrastructure, and BWSC will own and operate the NASDEP, BWSC is the Proponent for this stormwater infrastructure project, and the Project as described in this ENF is being proposed for review as a separate and distinct project. The NASDEP has been designed to improve existing conditions where current BWSC infrastructure is undersized and to accommodate the entire catchment area. Any future development in the catchment area will be required to undergo review and approval by BWSC and the Boston Planning and Development Agency (“BPDA”) as necessary and comply with MassDEP and BWSC/BPDA requirements for stormwater standards, including treating the first 1.25 inches of total rainfall depth. The Proponent has coordinated with multiple departments at DCR regarding the scope, design, alternatives evaluated, and construction management of the proposed project. The required Article 97 Legislative approval process and coordination for the granting of the easement is ongoing. The six conditions of the EEA Policy are discussed in this ENF as identified in the following table.
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