FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: January 3, 2017
Contact: Sam Gibboney
Executive Director
360.385.0656
samg@portofpt.com

Headline: Work Scheduled to Begin on Boat Haven Breakwater

Work to repair the older portion of the Boat Haven breakwater is scheduled to begin January 9, 2017. The Port of Port Townsend has given a notice to proceed to American Construction Company of Tacoma. They plan to move a barge into position near the outside of the breakwater on Monday the 9th, and expect the project to take one week.

The older portion of the breakwater was built in the 1950’s and has deteriorated over the years. There are large holes on the outside and the integrity of structure is at risk. The Port Commission approved the project after Port staff presented findings of an assessment completed by Mott MacDonald, a coastal engineering firm. The engineer concluded that the need for an immediate repair was “very high” and that a delay would leave the structure very vulnerable. Port staff concurred that delaying action could lead to accelerated additional damage and potential for a breach even under non-extreme storm events.

The American Construction barge will remain just outside the breakwater for the duration of the project. Construction will be staged and has been permitted to avoid any impact to nearby eelgrass. Construction will take place during daylight hours. Some inspections are scheduled to occur at night to coincide with low tides.
“We expect this repair to buy us a few more years,” said Sam Gibboney, Executive Director of the Port. “The structure is at the end of its serviceable life, and we will need to make longer term plans for its eventual replacement,” Gibboney added.

The contract for the repairs was awarded to American Construction after a competitive bid process. The contract amount is $206,016.