facilities renewal master plan - National Zoo - Smithsonian Institution

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FACILITIES MASTER PLAN ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT Exhibit Strategies/ Visitor Experience Entry/ Arrival/ Parking Transportation/ Circulation/ Service Administrative/ Operational/ Service No-Action Alternative Additional exhibit planning would occur on a site-by-site basis Entry points not consolidated, Connecticut Ave would remain primary entry, multiple pedestrian entrances would remain throughout the park, and one bus entry Existing parking facilities would remain In-park transportation system would not be implemented All roads will continue to be used for service vehicles, conflicts with visitor access would continue to be mitigated by limiting service hours No new administrative, research or education offices. Table 1. Comparison of Alternatives Alternative A Alternative B Alternative C Great Ape House demolished and a new Mid-Point entry becomes a visitor hub Parking Lots A, B, D ,and Bus Lot reclaimed for new animal exhibit space/ revitalization of older exhibits Three visitor entries at Connecticut Avenue, a Mid- Point entry from Parking Lot C and Harvard Street Bridge/Beach Drive Structured parking deck at Parking Lot C would provide 1,128 spaces New underground parking structure at Connecticut Avenue entry would provide 300 spaces Aerial tram connecting upper and lower ends of park Traffic circles on North Road North Road and Blue Road are main service roads, Hawthorne Street used for emergency access New service road near current Parking Lot C site New administrative, support and operations structure at Parking Lot C site Additions to research buildings to include office and lab space, new greenhouse Holt House rehabilitated for Zoo uses Great Ape House converted to visitor/ educational center Parking Lot A and Bus Lot reclaimed for new animal exhibit space/revitalization of older exhibits Three visitor entries at Connecticut Avenue, a bus entry at current Lot B, and Harvard Street Bridge/Beach Drive Parking Lots D and E remain Staff parking at Parking Lot C site New underground parking structure at Connecticut Avenue entry would provide 300 spaces Ground-based tram along North Road Traffic circles on North Road North Road and Blue Road are main service roads, Hawthorne Street used for emergency access New service road from Amazonia Science Gallery to Bird Hill and near current Parking Lot C site New administrative, support and operations structure at Parking Lot C site Additions to research buildings to include office and lab space, new greenhouse Holt House rehabilitated for Zoo uses Great Ape House demolished and a new Mid-Point entry becomes a visitor hub Parking Lots A, B and D reclaimed for animal exhibit space/revitalization of older exhibits Three primary visitor entries at Connecticut Avenue, a Mid-Point entry from Parking Lot C and Harvard Street Bridge/Beach Drive Bus Lot incorporated with Panda Plaza for bus entry Above-ground parking structure at Parking Lot C would provide 1,128 spaces New underground parking structure at Connecticut Avenue entry would provide 300 spaces Small staff parking lot near Holt House Aerial tram connecting upper and lower ends of park and ground-based tram along North Road Traffic circles on North Road North Road and Blue Road become main service roads, Hawthorne Street used for emergency access New service road from Amazonia Science Gallery to Bird Hill New administrative, support and operations structure at Parking Lot C site Additions to research buildings to include office and lab space, new greenhouse Holt House rehabilitated for Zoo uses SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION – NATIONAL ZOOLOGICAL PARK 38 | P a g e
FACILITIES MASTER PLAN ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT III. AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES The description of the affected environment is intended to document the existing conditions of the National Zoo Rock Creek site, and includes those resource disciplines that have the potential to be affected by the proposed alternatives. These descriptions provide a technical baseline standard for the subsequent evaluation of impacts of each proposed action alternative and the No-Action Alternative. The analysis of the environmental consequences or “impacts” of the Facilities Master Plan alternatives as well as the No-Action Alternative immediately follows the existing conditions description of each resource discipline. Alternatives are described in Chapter II of this Environmental Assessment (EA). The No- Action Alternative provides a baseline for assessing the environmental effects of the action alternatives. In this EA, SI has made a reasonable effort consistent with NEPA to assess the potential effects of the feasible and practical alternatives outlined in the Master Plan. As it is a master plan, the alternatives described in Chapter II are conceptual and site layouts and/or building plans have not been finalized. Therefore, impacts in this EA have been assessed assuming that development activities could affect all the resources within a development zone. However, as more detailed design proceeds, SI would seek to further minimize impacts. Direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts have also been assessed in this chapter. Direct impacts are caused by a particular action and occur at the same time and place. Indirect impacts are caused by the actions and are later in time or further removed in distance, but are still reasonably foreseeable. Cumulative impacts are the impacts on the environment, which result from the incremental impact of the action when added to other past, present, and reasonably foreseeable future actions regardless of what agency (federal or non federal) or persons undertake such other actions. Cumulative impacts can result from individually minor, but collectively significant actions taking place over a period of time. Potential impacts are described in terms of: Intensity, the effects are negligible, minor, moderate, or major; Type, the effects are beneficial or adverse; Duration, the effects are short-term, lasting through construction or less than one year, or long-term, lasting more than one year; and Context, the effects are site specific, local, or regional. The thresholds of change for the intensity of impacts are defined as follows: Negligible, the impacts is localized and not measureable or at the lowest level of detection; Minor, the impact is localized and slight but detectable; Moderate, the impact is readily apparent and appreciable; or Major, the impact is severely adverse and highly noticeable. SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION – NATIONAL ZOOLOGICAL PARK 39 | P a g e
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