Sitka Ranger District releases EA on
new office proposal
Sitka, AK – The U.S. Forest Service
has released an Environmental Assessment on its proposal to build new office
facilities for the Sitka District Ranger. The public has 30 days to comment
after publication of the legal notice in the Daily Sitka Sentinel, the
newspaper of record.
The Tongass National Forest proposes
to construct a new office at the Sitka Ranger District’s administrative
site, 2112 – 2116 Halibut Point Road in Sitka. The purpose of the project
is to develop an accessible office and related access and parking, including:
* Construction of an office building
not to exceed 10,000 square feet, for 48 employees
* Parking spaces for 34 vehicles to
accommodate visitors and employees, plus parking spaces for two buses and
seven government vehicles
* Consolidated facilities to reduce
travel to the warehouse, carpentry shop, and bunkhouse
The new office will cost about $200,000
annually—a savings of $360,000 each year compared to costs for the present
Forest Service office in Sitka. The current 10-year lease on that facility
expires in November 2009. Reduced rent and utility charges increases the
amount of money the Forest Service can spend on its primary mission to
support natural resource management.
The EA offers two alternatives in addition
to the no action alternative. Alternative B is the proposed action. Details
on the proposed action, including a map of the project area, are available
at the Sitka Ranger District. The EA is in the "Project and Plans"
section of the Tongass internet site as http://www.fs.fed.us/r10/tongass/projects/Sitka_New_Office_EA.pdf
Comments may be submitted by e-mail
to comments-alaska-tongass-sitka@xxxxxxxxx; by regular mail to: Carol A.
Goularte, Sitka District Ranger, USDA Forest Service, 204 Siginaka Way,
Sitka AK 99835; by fax to (907) 747-4253, or hand delivered to the district
during normal business hours.
After close of the 30-day comment period,
the Forest Service will release a decision notice (DN). The decision may
be subject to appeal. Only those who submit timely comments will have standing
to appeal the project decision.
