Record of Decision New Federal Courthouse

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Record of Decision Attachment C -Agency Comment and Responses 1.20-It is acknowledged that the federal courthouse is a regional facility and that many of the people using the facility come from outside the Eugene/Springfield area. Because of this, the benefits of siting the facility in either city would be the same for the regional economy. 1.21-The draft EIS concluded on page 207 that "Given the slow speeds at which trains travel through downtown Eugene, a train derailment along the 1,200 feet of track adjacent to the Chiquita and EWEB sites is a highly unlikely occurrence. While it is not possible to eliminate the slight risk of train deraihnents and subsequent spills of hazardous materials, the impact and disruption from this type of accident can be avoided by siting the federal courthouse at an appropriate distance from the rail line." No comments regarding this statement were made during the public comment period following the issuance of the drab EIS. The final EIS included the same statement on page 156. As shown in Figure 15 on page 84 of the final EIS, the Ferry Street overpass does not abut the site as claimed in the city of Springfield letter. The picture shov 1.zo Hfmty ~O~ ~o ~ yes at this court are coming from out oftown, as ate visitors I to the courthouse. The'I?~I$ Goes not adequately aadr~a tba issue that the radioed tracks could compromise safay/crwu seaavity probbma by materialePJaood oe tipmsoz:transl+oet ofLazardoin mater®ls. Nor does rt address the issue:of the Ferry $traet txidge overpass aboltimg the s.z1 site, PCB ~ oPPoy for d'aect obaxrvation and potential Imstio ioteraetion withthecoucthcitisefi~taaekvaied~osrtinn.. For thesetuwreasomabnetheBpoth- : ~' site in Springfield was+e>~ outright m rho early.Ptocesa ofidwtifyiag potential sites. Has something b tlra bcatianl criteria? TheFEI3 attrl'ixites m positive secluity or satity associated wiW the amenity of a ;.zz I publ~ly oweed tegiorml Park 8a7ily (Island Fark) bated inntrediately adjacent to the FederaltoprtLousa NoiseNi6rafan TLe FE1S does not adequsuly address tire issue oYaodse or vlbratioa associated with the. railroad track on the noAherrr bounascy oftheAlbeiaative 2 site. Tftwe is rm meatioaof z.za the cos<'ofmrtigatmg rroive generated from the raiLoad tt~ka. Agaay a site b Springfield was rejected. early on 6erause $ was adjacent to araikoad flack. What Les chattged7 Tortation The FEIS dismisses traffic issices at Ahemative 2 despite Public iestmwrty to the contrmy i.za regarding difficuhy is ingress std egress and the hkeL'hood oftraHic backing up onto the Feat' Stream Bridge. When veLicles idk in traffic, tLey ereax t air quality won isst>es. TLat i~;~c been saatesseaitt tLe Fels:;; There is a signifi~rrt shortage of parking identified at the Alterlmtiss 1 site and a moderate sLortageofparkiog ides at the Akmtative? ate: Public testmrony,stating i.zs that the area itumodiately adjacent to the Dowmownliiverfiotrt site world include parking ~ part ofits rederelopaient to support the courthouse devebpmeat, was dot adequately weiglxd Nor ward tbeoptions availableto.useremporary perking in Wrllamalane's facility. Public services and Uh'tities We are uoarre vrlmt tha EIS refers to when it stateatdmt `: Eugene hsa a oonmamity-owttd i.ze ukxommuoicatiomst'stem" (p.14S). EWER is inthe process ofeo~tiog Ltfravtnlctune. By eontrast, s[JB Lad a u~oav ring in place and spring5eld is smut to ligLtlpowar.th6 ring. Water.Resoun i.27 Figure 8, page46, shows Ahetaative l and 2, but neglects to state that Altetrtative I has I "no soodplaL, issues." a of the courthouse facility in relation to Highway 99 (Mill Street), and the Ferry Street overpass is outside the picture. A rough estimate is that the facility would be approximately 250 feet away from the overpass. The possibility that the Ferry Street overpass would be used "by a sniper to shoot from an elevated position" was not addressed in the environmental document because it was regarded as an extremely unlikely event. 1.22 Although the proximity of Island Park to the Riverfront site would not significantly add to the safety or security of the facility, it would provide a buffer between the facility and a public thoroughfare. 1.23-The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires that an EIS assess potential project impacts on the various elements of the environment. NEPA does not require that an EIS assess the potential impacts of the environment on a project. It I __ __ 1J llUt LGliU11GLL LL1Ylt LL1G L'1J liVllJ1LLG1 LLiG 11111J0.V1 Vl noise and vibration from the trains on the new federal courthouse, although GSA would consider such factors in the site screening process. 1.24-The traffic analysis addressed traffic on the Ferry Street bridge and concluded that the courthouse project would not have a significant adverse impact on traffic conditions on the bridge or elsewhere. Because the project is not likely to affect traffic congestion, idling vehicles are not likely to affect air quality. Both environmental documents addressed air quality conditions and project-related impacts. 1.25-As a point of clarification, the Summary of Impacts sections of the draft and final EIS erroneously included a statement that the shortage of public parking at the Riverfront site would be significant. The text of the documents and the transportation technical appendix correctly described the shortage of public parking as moderate. Both the