Documentation in Support of U.S. Air Force No Adverse Effect Determination Volume I For Phase II Backbone Fiber-Optic Transmission System Vandenberg Air Force Base, Santa Barbara County, California

This document addresses the potential for effects to occur to significant historic properties as a result of the proposed installation of the Phase II Backbone Fiber-optic Transmission System (BFOTS) that would provide centralized space vehicle launch control to space launch complexes on VAFB. The project is subdivided into two separate projects, Phase I and Phase II. Informal consultation with the SHPO determined that Phase I could be a standalone project. Concurrence was given for No Effects Determination in 1989. The potential effects of Phase II are the subject of this document. Identification of historic properties was accomplished through archival search, data review, intensive pedestrian survey, and field reconnaissance of known sites in the project vicinity. The literature search revealed that, although much of the area in the vicinity of the Phase I fiber-optic cable corridor had been surveyed within the past 3 years, only about 1.6km of the Phase II project had been covered by intensive survey. Two new sites were discovered and seven previously recorded sites were revisited. Of the 14 historic properties located in the Phase II APE, six had previously been determined eligible for listing in the NRHP, and one was not evaluated because it was apparent that it would not be affected. These seven are located in the vicinity of Coast Road along the Phase II BFOTS alignment. The remaining seven properties, all previously unevaluated, are situated along Backbone Ridge. These seven were the subject of a testing and evaluation program recently completed by Environmental Solutions (1990) and found to be potentially eligible for NRHP listing as a district.