Anne Arundel, Baltimore City & Baltimore County

24-WL-0757(R1) /24-NT-0163/ 202461017/ MARYLAND TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY; A public information hearing for the proposed work listed below will be held to gather information and hear testimony to assist the Maryland Department of Environment (MDE) in determining a decision on a modification to Wetlands License 24-WL-0757, and an amendment to the nontidal wetlands application 24-NT-0163. Statements for or against this project may be presented orally at the hearing or in writing to MDE, Tidal and Nontidal Wetlands Divisions; 1800 Washington Boulevard, Baltimore, Maryland, 21230, Attn: Matt Wallach. The hearing will be held Wednesday, August 20, 2025, at the North Point Edgemere Volunteer Fire Department, 7500 North Point Rd, Baltimore, MD 21219. A poster session will be held from 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM; the informational hearing will begin at 5:30 PM. Written comments will be accepted until September 6, 2025. 

The applicant has applied to modify tidal wetlands license 24-WL-0757 and amend the nontidal application for the proposed replacement Francis Scott Key Bridge project over the Patapsco River in Baltimore City, Baltimore County, and Anne Arundel County, Maryland. The updates include adjusting the final alignment of the main span of the bridge 260 feet east of the original alignment to avoid conflicts with the large structural components of the original bridge, which are deep below the mudline of the Patapsco River. The amended application/modification request also includes impacts based on 50% design level plans, which include revised details for bridge piers, pier protection, roadway approaches, and roadway drainage associated with the final alignment. Tidal impacts have decreased from 553,820 square feet (12.71 acres) to 24,383 square feet (0.56 acres) of permanent impacts to tidal waters. Temporary impacts to tidal waters have remained the same at 10,605 square feet (0.25 acres). The project updates will also permanently impact 135,789 square feet (3.12 acres) of emergent nontidal wetlands, 101,681 square feet (2.34 acres) of the 25-foot nontidal wetland buffer, 187 linear feet (599 square feet) of an intermittent tributary to the Patapsco River, and 112 linear feet (337 square feet) of a perennial tributary to the Patapsco River.  The project is proposed within the Baltimore Harbor and Patapsco River watershed, a Use II waterway within the project area, with Use I tributaries. The project is located along I-695 from southwest of Broening Highway to northeast of the B&O Railroad crossing, in Baltimore City, and Baltimore and Anne Arundel Counties. Mitigation will be required for all permanent tidal waters, and nontidal wetland and waterway impacts. The Applicant has proposed to satisfy nontidal mitigation through payment into an approved mitigation bank and/or a permittee responsible site, and tidal impacts through off-site and out-of-kind permittee responsible mitigation. The purpose of this project is to rebuild and include necessary access for the construction of the replacement Francis Scott Key Bridge.

Written comments, and requests to be included on the interested persons list will be accepted until September 6, 2025. This public notice for 24-WL-0757(R1) is solely for the 260 foot shift in alignment of the new Francis Scott Key Bridge. This public notice for 24-NT-0163 is for impact to nontidal wetlands and waterways.  Only those issues subject to regulation by the MDE Nontidal Wetlands and Waterway Construction Divisions (impacts to nontidal wetlands, wetland buffer, and waterways, including the 100-year nontidal floodplain) and the Tidal Wetlands Division will be considered in rendering a decision to grant or deny the Nontidal MDE Permit and the modification to the Tidal Wetlands License. Any further notices concerning actions on the application will be provided only by mail to those persons on the interested persons list. Please refer to Subsection 5-907 and 5-204 of the Annotated Code of Maryland or the Code of Maryland Regulations 26.23.02, 26.24.01, and 26.24.02 for information regarding the application process. 

Information on the full rebuild project is available at the following link: https://mde.maryland.gov/programs/water/WetlandsandWaterways/Pages/FrancisScottKeyBridge.aspx.  and http://www.keybridgerebuild.com/.  In addition, a copy of the plans and supporting project information will also be housed in the following locations and will be made available upon request: Sollers Point Branch of the Baltimore County Public Library, 323 Sollers Point Rd. Dundalk, MD 21222; and Enoch Pratt Free Library – Cherry Hill Branch, 606 Cherry Hill Rd, Baltimore, MD 21225. Public comments should be submitted by the end of the public comment period which ends September 6, 2025. For more information contact Matt Wallach at [email protected] or 410-207-0893.