FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS Trunk Highway 10 in Elk River State Project: 7102-123 City of Elk River Sherburne County, Minnesota Minnesota Department of Transportation TABLE OF CONTENTS I. ADMINISTRATIVE BACKGROUND/STATEMENT OF ISSUE ......................................1 II. FINDINGS OF FACT.............................................................................................................2 III. DECISION REGARDING NEED FOR ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT ....4 A. Type, Extent, and Reversibility of Impacts .............................................................4 B. Cumulative Potential Effects of Related or Anticipated Future Projects ..............10 C. Extent to Which the Environmental Effects are Subject to Mitigation by Ongoing Public Regulatory Authority ................................................................11 D. Extent to Which Environmental Effects can be Anticipated and Controlled as a Result of Other Environmental Studies .......................................................12 IV. CONCLUSIONS...................................................................................................................12 APPENDIX A: Figures APPENDIX B: Comments Received APPENDIX C: Responses to Comments APPENDIX D: Final Section 4(f) Evaluation APPENDIX E: Public Hearing Documentation - i - I. ADMINISTRATIVE BACKGROUND/STATEMENT OF ISSUE The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) has identified long-term improvements to Highway 10 in Elk River, including reconstruction of Highway 10 from an urban arterial roadway to a freeway design within Elk River between Upland Avenue/County Road 44 and the Highway 101/169 interchange (refer to Figures 1 and 2 in Appendix A). MnDOT is the proposer and Responsible Governmental Unit for this project. An Environmental Assessment/Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EA/EAW) has been prepared for this project in accordance with Minnesota Rules Chapter 4410 and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) [42 USC 4321 et. seq.]. The EA/EAW was developed to assess the impacts of the project and other circumstances in order to determine if an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is indicated. The EA/EAW was filed with the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board (EQB) and circulated for review and comments to the required EA/EAW distribution list. A “Notice of Availability” was published in the EQB Monitor on November 1, 2010, and a legal advertisement was published in the Star News on October 30, 2010. A press release was also provided to media outlets in the surrounding area. The EA/EAW was made available for public review at the Elk River Public Library, Great River Regional Library, Elk River City Hall, Sherburne County Public Works Office, and MnDOT District 3 Offices. An open house/public hearing for the proposed project was held on Thursday, December 2, 2010, at the Elk River City Hall. The hearing presented the project design and identified potential environmental impacts of the project. At the hearing, members of the public were given the opportunity to provide formal written comments or oral testimony on the proposed project. Two written comments and no oral statements were received at the December 2 public hearing. Additional comments were received through December 20, 2010. Four additional written comments were received during the EA/EAW comment period, for a total of six comments. All comments received during the EA/EAW comment period, including those received from the open house/public hearing, were considered in determining the potential for significant environmental impacts. Comments received during the comment period are provided in Appendix B, and responses to the comments are provided in Appendix C. Based upon the information in the record, which is composed of the EA/EAW for the proposed project, the issues raised during the public comment period, the responses to the comments, and other supporting documents, MnDOT makes the following Findings of Fact and Conclusions: Trunk Highway 10 in Elk River Page 1 S.P. 7102-123 Findings of Fact and Conclusions II. FINDINGS OF FACT Project Description The Highway 10 improvements studied in this EA/EAW include reconstruction of Highway 10 from an urban arterial roadway to a freeway design within Elk River between Upland Avenue/County Road 44 and the Highway 101/169 interchange. The project includes the construction of a grade-separated interchange at Upland/Proctor Avenues and a half interchange at Main Street (interchange ramps to and from the east). A one-way pair of frontage roads would connect interchange ramps at Upland/Proctor Avenues. At-grade intersections would be removed, and frontage roads along Highway 10 would be constructed to provide local access. The Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Railway would be realigned to the north, and grade- separated crossings will be constructed at Proctor Avenue, Jackson Avenue, and Main Street. The proposed action would improve bicycle and pedestrian safety by providing grade-separated crossings of Highway 10 and the BNSF Railway at Bridge Street, Proctor Avenue, Jackson Avenue, and Main Street. Refer to Figure 4 in Appendix A for a depiction of the improvements studied in the EA/EAW. The purpose of the project is to address regional mobility, traffic operations, and local connectivity/accessibility while serving as a guide for comprehensive planning in the City of Elk River. Currently, there is no funding in place for construction of the proposed project. This EA/EAW process is intended to support the anticipated future use of federal funding and to allow for land use and local transportation improvements consistent with the proposed project to be implemented over time as funding becomes available. Corrections to the EA/EAW or Changes in the Project Since the EA/EAW was Published The ERDB file number referenced in the May 24, 2008 letter from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MnDNR) in Appendix B of the EA/EAW is incorrect. The correct ERDB file number for this project is 20080649. In addition to the land use requirements highlighted in Section VII.A.14 of the EA/EAW, Minn R.7050.0180 classifies the segment of the Mississippi River adjacent to the project area as an Outstanding Resource Value Waters (ORVW). This classification calls for additional control on new or expanded discharges from either point or non-point sources to OWVRs. Since completion of the EA/EAW, a more recent Phase I Environmental Site Assessment was completed in February 2009. This Phase I ESA found 36 sites of documented or potential contamination within the study area. Nine (9) sites were identified as having high risk potential for contamination, and 19 were identified as medium risk potential sites. Table 12 from the EA/EAW has been revised to show the current properties with high or medium potential for contamination (see Table 1 below), and their locations are shown in revised Figure 7 in Appendix A. Five (5) high potential sites would be affected by right of way acquisition (3 total, 2 partial); 8 medium potential sites would be affected by right of way acquisition (7 total, 1 partial). Medium and high potential properties that are identified as total acquisitions are identified in Table 1 below (revised from Table 12 of the EA/EAW). Trunk Highway 10 in Elk River Page 2 S.P. 7102-123 Findings of Fact and Conclusions TABLE 1 (Revised from Table 12 of the EA/EAW) KNOWN OR POTENTIALLY CONTAMINATED SITES NEAR HIGHWAY 10 CORRIDOR Risk Reason for Concern Site ID Site Name Site Address Potential (Contaminant)(1) 1 Great River Energy 17845 Hwy 10 High RCRA-CESQG, ERNS, FTTS, HIST FTTS, MLTS, FINDS, MN LS, UST, LAST, AST, Spills (multiple), TIER 2, SWF/LF (orphan) 2 Old Town Tavern 506 Main St. Medium Spill 3 USTs Hwy 10 and Main St. High USTs 4 Boelters Union 76 600 Hwy 10 Medium LUST (Closed), UST 5 USTs West of 600 Hwy 10 High USTs 6 Sipe Auto Service 611 Hwy 10 Medium LUST (Closed, Orphan), UST 7 Nadeau’s Cleaners Inc., Bluff Block Site, USTs 621 Main St. High RCRA-NonGen, FINDS, VIC, MN List of Sites, SRS 8 USTs 630 Main St. High LUST (closed), UST, Spill, AST Amoco SS #5053, Hetricks 308 Jackson Place 9 Elk River Flower 612 Railroad Dr. Medium Spill 10 Elk River Section/Burlington Northern US Hwy 10 Medium UST 11 Jackson Express 356 Jackson Medium UST 12 US West 440 Jackson St. NW Medium LUST (closed) 13 USTs 369 Jackson High USTs 14 Grand Rental Station 728 Railroad Dr. Medium RCRA-CESQG, FINDS, AST 15 Napa Auto Parts 800/824 Railroad Dr. High LUST, UST 16 Elk River Machine Co. 828 4th St. Medium RCRA-SQG, ENF, TIER 2, FINDS, Spills (2), AIRS 17 Cinema Professional Building 657 Main St. Medium LUST (closed), UST 18 Elk River Hardware 665 (556) Main St. Medium RCRA-NonGen, FINDS, Spill 19 USTs Hwy 10 and King Ave. High USTs 20 First National Bank 729 Main St. Medium Spill 21 City of Elk River 307 King Ave. Medium Spill 22 Charlie Browns Inc./Beaudry Oil 335 (actually 334) Lowell Medium LUST (Closed), UST, AST 23 Beaudry Express/Beaudry Oil Company 610, 630 Proctor Ave. High LUST, UST, RCRA-NonGen, FINDS, Spill 24 Houle Oil 793 Proctor Rd. Medium LAST (closed) 25 Lefebvre & Sons Inc. 615 Quinn Ave. Medium RCRA-NonGen, FINDS, LUST (closed), UST, ENF 26 Cretex Concrete Products North 1340 6th St. Medium RCRA-CESQG, FINDS, LUST (closed, 2), UST, AST, Spill, TIER 2 27 Beaudry Oil Bulk Facility 720 Quinn Ave. Medium LAST 28 Elk River Oil, Elk River Bulk Plant (Orphan) 533 6th St. Medium AST, LAST Bolded sites identified for total acquisition based on preliminary design of the proposed project. (1) Acronyms: Above Ground Storage Tank (AST); Underground Storage Tank (UST); Leaking Underground Storage Tank (LUST); Leaking Above Ground Storage Tank (LAST); Voluntary Investigation and Cleanup (VIC); Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA); Small Quantity Generators (SQG); Conditionally-Exempt Small Quantity Generators (CESQG); U.S. EPA Facility Index System (FINDS); MPCA Hazardous Waste Enforcement Summary (ENF), Aerometric Information Retrieval System (AIRS); Emergency Response Notification System (ERNS); Material Licensing Tracking System (MLTS); Minnesota List of Sites (MN LS) Shaded areas represent sites with high risk.