Community Relations Plan Former Richmond Naval Air Station Miami, Miami-Dade County, Florida FUDS ID#: I04FL003805 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District 701 San Marco Boulevard Jacksonville, Florida 32207 March 2015 Table of Contents Page 1.0 Overview of Community Relations Plan .............................................................................1 2.0 Site Description and History ................................................................................................1 2.1 Property History .................................................................................................................1 2.1.1 Potential Contaminants ..............................................................................................2 2.1.2 U. S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Involvement ...........................................................2 2.1.3 Community Reaction..................................................................................................2 2.2 Property Description and Location ....................................................................................2 2.3 Property Inspections and Cleanup Activities .....................................................................5 2.3.1 Known or Suspected Contamination ..........................................................................5 2.3.2 History of Inspections and Studies Conducted at the Site..........................................6 2.3.3 Lead Agency ..............................................................................................................6 3.0 Community Background......................................................................................................6 3.1 Community Profile.............................................................................................................6 3.2 History of Community Involvement ..................................................................................7 3.3 Key Community Concerns.................................................................................................7 3.4 Response to Community Concerns ....................................................................................7 3.5 Summary of Communication Needs ..................................................................................8 4.0 Public Involvement Program ...............................................................................................8 4.1 The Plan..............................................................................................................................8 4.2 Projected Schedule for Community Involvement Activities............................................11 5.0 References..........................................................................................................................12 Appendices Appendix A: Community Survey ............................................................................................... A1 Appendix B: Media Contacts ....................................................................................................... B1 Appendix C: Potential Meeting Locations ................................................................................... C1 Appendix D: Public Involvement Tools ..................................................................................... D1 Appendix E: Stakeholders List .................................................................................................... E1 Figures Figure 1 Location of the Former Richmond Naval Air Station within South Florida Figure 2 Location of the Former Richmond Naval Air Station within the Region Figure 3 Boundaries of the Former Richmond Naval Air Station with Project Locations Tables Page Table 1: Census Data Comparing the Richmond Community to the County, State and Nation ... 7 Table 2: Community Involvement Schedule ................................................................................. 9 Former Richmond Naval Air Station Community Relations Plan ii Abbreviations and Acronyms Aerostar Aerostar SES LLC BaPe Benzo(a)Pyrene Equivalent CRP Community Relations Plan DERP Defense Environmental Restoration Program DERM Department of Environmental Management DoD Department of Defense FDEP Florida Department of Environmental Protection FUDS Formerly Used Defense Site LTA Lighter Than Air NAS Naval Air Station RI/FS Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study SI Site Inspection TCE Trichloroethylene U.S. United States Corps U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Former Richmond Naval Air Station Community Relations Plan iii 1.0 OVERVIEW OF COMMUNITY RELATIONS PLAN The United States Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) developed this Community Relations Plan to facilitate two-way communication between the community living or working within or near the former Richmond Naval Air Station and the Corps and to encourage community involvement in site activities. The Corps will use the community involvement activities outlined in this plan to ensure that those living or working on or near the former Richmond Naval Air Station are continuously informed and provided opportunities to participate in the environmental restoration process. This Community Relations Plan addresses the site’s relationship to the community and the Corps (Section 2.0), provides a background of the community (Section 3.0), presents the Corps’ community involvement program (Section 4.0) and provides a listing of available resources (Section 5.0). The Corps drew upon several information sources to develop this plan, including community interviews and site files. The Corps’ Jacksonville District will oversee the implementation of the community involvement activities outlined in this plan. 2.0 SITE DESCRIPTION AND HISTORY Across the country, the military acquired properties, often during times of conflict, to use for military demonstrations, training and testing. Once the military no longer needed the land, it was transferred to other entities. These sites can range from privately owned farms to national parks. They also include residential, educational and industrial areas. The Department of Defense is committed to correcting environmental damage caused by its activities and created the Defense Environmental Restoration Program for Formerly Used Defense Sites to evaluate, and if necessary, remediate sites such as the former Richmond Naval Air Station. The Corps is responsible for managing the program on behalf of the Department of Defense. 2.1 PROPERTY HISTORY The U.S. Navy began constructing Richmond Naval Air Station in 1942 as a Lighter-Than-Air blimp base. The approximately 2,108-acre base was designed to be entirely self-sufficient and included a mess hall, medical clinic, recreational areas, barracks, and water and sewer systems. The Navy also constructed three blimp hangars; mooring-out sites; a helium plant; and maintenance, propeller, battery, welding, plating, and paint shops, along with other support facilities. The hangars were more than 1,000 feet long, 175 feet high and 297 feet wide with an interior floor space of approximately 7 acres. In addition to being home to a blimp squadron, Richmond Naval Air Station also provided maintenance services and supplies to the airships in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean region. Blimps patrolled the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico to protect allied marine fleets from German U-boats. The blimp crews would monitor allied ships and would report if they identified any U-boats. In September 1945, the area began preparing for a hurricane. Believing the hangers at Richmond Naval Air Station were hurricane proof, the military moved aircraft from nearby bases into the blimp hangars. By the time the hurricane hit, more than 300 aircraft were in the hangers along with 25 blimps. During the storm, the roof of Hangar 1 blew off, and shortly thereafter, a fire Former Richmond Naval Air Station Community Relations Plan 1 blazed that quickly spread to the other hangars. Within hours, all three hangars and everything in them were destroyed. The base was never re-built, and by November 1945, it was closed. The University of Miami, Miami-Dade County Division of Parks and Recreation, Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Coast Guard now own the property that comprises the former Richmond Naval Air Station. 2.1.1 Potential Contaminants Over the years, the Corps has conducted a number of investigations and remedial actions at the former Richmond Naval Air Station, including removing structures, debris, and underground storage tanks. Previous studies have detected petroleum products and metals in the soil and water in the area of the former incinerator (now on the Federal Bureau of Prison’s land). In the area of Hangers 1 and 2 (now home of the Gold Coast Railroad Museum), studies have detected petroleum products, solvents, and metals in the soil. 2.1.2 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Involvement The Corps has performed investigations and removal projects periodically since 1984, including removing former military structures and underground storage tanks. The Corps is now doing a Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study in the areas of the former incinerator and Hangars 1 and 2. The purpose of the Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study is to characterize the nature and extent of impacts to the environment caused by the military’s use of the land. In other words, the Corps wants to determine what may be present, in what locations and concentrations. Fieldwork, which is scheduled to begin the summer of 2015, will include