[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 4 (Thursday, January 7, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Page 850]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-00035]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration
Limitation on Claims Against a Proposed Public Transportation
Project
AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This notice announces final environmental actions taken by the
Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for a project in Los Angeles, CA.
The purpose of this notice is to announce publicly the environmental
decisions by FTA on the subject project and to activate the limitation
on any claims that may challenge these final environmental actions.
DATES: By this notice, FTA is advising the public of final agency
actions subject to Section 139(l) of Title 23, United States Code
(U.S.C.). A claim seeking judicial review of FTA actions announced
herein for the listed public transportation project will be barred
unless the claim is filed on or before June 6, 2016.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nancy-Ellen Zusman, Assistant Chief
Counsel, Office of Chief Counsel, (312) 353-2577 or Terence Plaskon,
Environmental Protection Specialist, Office of Environmental Programs,
(202) 366-0442. FTA is located at 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE.,
Washington, DC 20590. Office hours are from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.,
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is hereby given that FTA has taken
final agency actions by issuing certain approvals for the public
transportation project listed below. The actions on the project, as
well as the laws under which such actions were taken, are described in
the documentation issued in connection with the project to comply with
the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and in other documents in
the FTA administrative record for the project. Interested parties may
contact either the project sponsor or the relevant FTA Regional Office
for more information. Contact information for FTA's Regional Offices
may be found at http://www.fta.dot.gov.
This notice applies to all FTA decisions on the listed project as
of the issuance date of this notice and all laws under which such
actions were taken, including, but not limited to, NEPA [42 U.S.C.
4321-4375], Section 4(f) of the Department of Transportation Act of
1966 [49 U.S.C. 303], Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation
Act [16 U.S.C. 470f], and the Clean Air Act [42 U.S.C. 7401-7671q].
This notice does not, however, alter or extend the limitation period
for challenges of project decisions subject to previous notices for the
Regional Connector Transit Corridor Project published in the Federal
Register. The project and actions that are the subject of this notice
are:
Project name and location: Regional Connector Transit Corridor
Project, Los Angeles County, CA. Project sponsor: Los Angeles County
Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA). Project description:
The proposed project would provide a 1.9-mile direct connection of
light rail transit service from the Metro Gold Line Little Tokyo/
Arts District Station to the 7th Street/Metro Center Station in
downtown Los Angeles. The project would allow passengers to transfer
to Blue, Expo, Red, and Purple Lines, bypassing Union Station and
providing a one-seat ride for travel across Los Angeles County. In
January 2012, FTA and LACMTA prepared and distributed a Final
Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report (Final
EIS/EIR) for the project. On June 29, 2012, FTA issued a Record of
Decision (ROD) for the project. Subsequently, the Final EIS/EIR and
ROD were challenged in federal court. Final Judgment was entered on
October 24, 2014, partially in favor of Flower Associates and
partially in favor of the Defendants (``NEPA Judgment''). The NEPA
Judgment partially vacated the June 29, 2012 ROD and directed the
FTA to prepare a supplemental analysis under NEPA addressing the
feasibility of open-face shield and sequential excavation method
tunneling alternatives under South Flower Street south of 4th Street
in the Financial District. See, Today's IV, Inc. v. Federal Transit
Administration, et al. (U.S. District Court, Central District of
California, Western Division, Case No. 2:13-CV-00378) and 515/555
Flower Associates, LLC v. Federal Transit Administration, et al.
(U.S. District Court, Central District of California, Western
Division, Case No. 2:13-CV-00453). Pursuant to the Court's decision,
FTA and LACMTA prepared additional analysis for the project,
specifically draft and final versions of a Supplemental
Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS). The SEIS was limited in its
scope and analyzed in detail two additional tunnel construction
alternatives along Flower Street from 4th Street to 7th Street, as
required by the Court's Order. FTA issued the Final SEIS
concurrently with a Supplemental ROD per 23 U.S.C. Section
139(n)(2)(A), as amended by the Fixing America's Surface
Transportation Act, Public Law 114-94. This notice only applies to
this discrete action taken by FTA. Nothing in this notice affects
FTA's previous decisions, or notice thereof, for this project. Final
agency actions: Supplemental Record of Decision, dated December 16,
2015. Supporting documentation: Final Supplemental Environmental
Impact Statement, dated December 2015.
Lucy Garliauskas,
Associate Administrator Planning and Environment.
[FR Doc. 2016-00035 Filed 1-6-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE P