Final Environmental Assessment No. 2014-119 Estes Park Transit Facility Parking Structure Eastern Colorado Area Office Great Plains Region April 2016 MISSION STATEMENTS The mission of the Department of the Interior is to protect and provide access to our Nation’s natural and cultural heritage and honor our trust responsibilities to Indian Tribes and our commitments to island communities. The mission of the Bureau of Reclamation is to manage, develop, and protect water and related resources in an environmentally and economically sound manner in the interest of the American public. i Table of Contents ACRONYMS ................................................................................................................................. iv CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................. 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 1 Need for and Purpose of Action.................................................................................................. 2 Background Information ............................................................................................................. 2 Colorado-Big Thompson Project ............................................................................................ 2 Existing Estes Park Parking Facility on C-BT Project Lands................................................. 2 Paul S. Sabanes Transit in Parks Program .............................................................................. 3 Estes Park Transit Facility ...................................................................................................... 3 Scoping ....................................................................................................................................... 4 CHAPTER 2 – PROPOSED ACTION & ALTERNATIVES ........................................................ 5 No Action Alternative ................................................................................................................. 5 Proposed Action .......................................................................................................................... 5 Estes Park Transit Facility Parking Structure Project ............................................................. 5 Special Use Permit .................................................................................................................. 6 Summary ..................................................................................................................................... 9 CHAPTER 3 – AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT & ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES .. 11 Colorado-Big Thompson Project & Water Resources .............................................................. 11 Big Thompson River Above Lake Estes Stream Gage ......................................................... 11 Estes Valley Recreation and Parks District .......................................................................... 12 Socioeconomic Conditions ....................................................................................................... 13 Public Parking Facilities ....................................................................................................... 14 Water Quality & Wetlands........................................................................................................ 15 Fisheries Resources ................................................................................................................... 17 Wildlife & Land Use ................................................................................................................. 18 Elk ......................................................................................................................................... 18 EVRPD Management Zones ................................................................................................. 20 Threatened, Endangered & Sensitive Species .......................................................................... 21 Vegetation Resources................................................................................................................ 24 ii Recreation ................................................................................................................................. 25 Historic Properties .................................................................................................................... 27 Paleontological Resources ........................................................................................................ 29 Indian Trust Assets & Environmental Justice ........................................................................... 30 Air Quality & Noise .................................................................................................................. 30 Visual Resources ....................................................................................................................... 32 Cumulative Impacts .................................................................................................................. 34 Summary and Environmental Commitments ............................................................................ 34 Mitigation Measures and Environmental Commitments ...................................................... 34 CHAPTER 4 – CONSULTATION & COORDINATION ........................................................... 41 General ...................................................................................................................................... 41 Comments Received on Draft EA ............................................................................................. 41 Agency Consulations ................................................................................................................ 42 Agency Coordination ................................................................................................................ 43 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................. 44 ATTACHMENT A—Estes Park Free Shuttle Map ATTACHMENT B—Town of Estes Park Documents ATTACHMENT C—FTA’s Categorical Exclusion-North Side ATTACHMENT D – Preliminary Parking Structure Design Drawings ATTACHMENT E – Colorado-Big Thompson Project Map ATTACHMENT F-Proposed Stream Crossing Design ATTACHMENT G—Suggested Best Management Practices ATTACHMENT H – Colorado State &Tribal Historic Preservation Office Correspondence ATTACHMENT I—Rocky Mountain National Park Letter of Support ATTACHMENT J—Scott Ponds Natural Area Enhancement Plan iii ACRONYMS ADA American with Disabilities Act APE area of potential effect BIA Bureau of Indian Affairs BLM Bureau of Land Management BMPs Best Management Practices BTABESCO Gage Big Thompson above Lake Estes, Colorado Gage C-BT Project Colorado Big Thompson Project CDOW Colorado Division of Wildlife CDPHE Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment CDPS Colorado Discharge Permit System CPW Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife CDWR Colorado Division of Water Resources CFR Code of Federal Regulations CWA Clean Water Act DAU Data Analysis Unit dB(A) A-weighted decibels EA Environmental Assessment EPA Environmental Protection Agency Estes Park Town of Estes Park EVRPD Estes Valley Recreation and Park District Service United States Fish and Wildlife Service FTA Federal Transit Administration ITA Indian trust asset kg kilogram O&M operation and maintenance MS4 municipal separate storm sewer system NEPA National Environmental Policy Act NHPA National Historic Preservation Act NPS National Park Service NRHP National Register of Historic Places NWP nationwide permit PFYC potential fossil yield classification Project Area proposed location for the Estes Park transit facility and parking structure PRPA Paleontogical Resources Protection Act RMNP Rocky Mountain National Park RMP resource management plan RTP regional transportation plan SUP special use permit UFR Upper Front Range Transportation Planning Region U.S. United States iv (Blank Page) v CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION Introduction The Town of Estes Park (Estes Park) has requested authorization from the Bureau of Reclamation to construct and maintain the Estes Park Transit Facility Parking Structure (parking structure) on Colorado-Big Thompson (C-BT) Project lands along the Big Thompson River west of Lake Estes (See Figure 1). The proposed parking structure includes a multi-level parking structure with two small adjacent parking areas that would replace an existing surface parking lot. The existing parking lot and the proposed parking structure both overlap federal and Estes Park owned lands. In exchange for granting Estes Park, the use of lands owned by the United States, Reclamation would maintain unrestricted access to the Estes Park property for operation, maintenance, and construction activities associated with the C-BT Project. Estes Park also proposes to use grant funds from the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) Paul Sarbanes Transit in Parks Program to fund a majority of the parking structure. Figure 1-Project Locator Map 1 Need for and Purpose of Action The transit and parking structure facility was originally designed with community assistance and planned to be located on Estes Park owned lands, directly east of the Estes Park Visitor Center and north of the Big