Southeast High Speed Rail, Washington, D.C. to Raleigh, North Carolina

 

Since 2008, Dovetail has completed cultural resource studies, project eligibility and effect coordination, consulting party outreach, and Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) production for the Southeast High Speed Rail project. This project involves several segments: the portion between the Potomac River and Richmond, the section between Richmond and Raleigh, North Carolina, and numerous subsidiary projects along the corridor. Together, the project covers over 200 miles of rail and over 100 miles of new roadway. Dovetail’s technical responsibilities to date include:

  • Reconnaissance- and intensive-level historic architecture evaluations with extensive archival research
  • Production of a Geographic Information System (GIS)-based archaeological predictive model
  • Phase I and Phase II archaeological studies
  • GIS field data collection
  • Technical report production
  • Resource documentation forms

In total, Dovetail has recorded over 200 archaeological sites and over 4,000 architectural properties at the Phase I level, completed archaeological testing at two dozen sites, conducted extensive architectural analysis of over 200 properties to determine National Register of Historic Places eligibility, crafted almost 300 chains of title, and conducted extensive additional archival research on properties along the entire corridor.

Beyond technical studies, Dovetail has also completed all compliance for the project, including project initiation, determination of an area of potential effects, resource eligibility, project effect, multiple MOAs/Programmatic Agreements, and extensive consulting party dialogues in both Virginia and North Carolina.

This extensive rail project requires coordination with a number of involved parties, including:

  • North Carolina Department of Transportation
  • Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation
  • Virginia Department of Historic Resources
  • Virginia Department of Transportation
  • North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
  • Federal Rail Administration
  • Federal Highway Administration
  • National Park Service
  • Advisory Council on Historic Preservation
  • Over 50 consulting parties
  • Other consulting firms and numerous communities, individuals, and agencies who have a vested interest in this corridor