Georgetown University Boathouse/Land Transfer Environmental Impact Statement

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National Park Service invites Public Scoping Comments to help develop the Environmental Impact Statement for proposed GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY BOATHOUSE/LAND EXCHANGE – PEPC PROJECT #15645.

The National Park Service (NPS) is beginning to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to analyze impacts associated with an exchange of land and the construction of a proposed boathouse by Georgetown University on the Potomac River in Georgetown in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The EIS also provides information to be used in fulfilling Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act.

The proposed project area is located within the Georgetown Historic District, the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park (C&O Canal NHP), and the Georgetown Waterfront Park of the National Park Service.

The Georgetown Waterfront Park was established in 1984 as part of the Park System of the Nation's Capital. The approved Plan for the Georgetown Waterfront Park and C&O Canal NHP (Georgetown Section) includes a non-motorized boathouse zone in the proximity of Key Bridge, where boathouses have been located historically. The proposed Georgetown University Boathouse would be located within this boathouse zone.

The property would be made available to the University in exchange for prime wooded shoreline property within the C&O Canal NHP and its one-mile access easement along the Capital Crescent Trail that the University owns.

Comments received during the public scoping period will help identify potential impacts to park resources and to develop feasible project alternatives.

An environmental assessment (EA) was undertaken by the NPS in 2006. Based on comments received during the EA review, the NPS determined that an EIS was warranted to analyze potential environmental impacts from the proposed action, the range of reasonable alternatives, and mitigation options.




Contact Information

For further information on this project, please contact the William Line, Communication Officer, National Captial Region, 1100 Ohio Drive, SW, Washington, D.C. 20242