Thumbnail photo courtesy of Andrew Goff; Right: Most recent rendering of Citizens Dock/seawall project. | Image courtesy of the Crescent City Harbor District
Harbor commissioners gave staff the green light to seek a general contractor, project manager, accounting firm and a grants manager as construction for the seawall and Citizens Dock rebuilds loom.
Commissioners unanimously approved releasing requests for proposals on Tuesday after Mike Bahr, CEO of Community System Solution, gave a rundown of what they and the public can expect over the next roughly two years.
“We’re looking at this as one project,” he said. “These two elements are two separate grants, but it really is one very large construction project that’s all taking place at the same time.”
The Crescent City Harbor District is rebuilding the 70-plus-year-old wharf and the seawall immediately adjacent to it after Bahr helped the agency secure two U.S. Maritime Administration grants. Before construction starts, Bahr told commissioners that Moffatt & Nichol, the architect firm that designed the two projects, will meet with the public, including CCHD’s tenants.
During the project, CCHD will have to determine where to store construction materials, where boats can dock as well as where to move cold storage containers and the seafood packing area while still making it accessible to fishermen, he said.
Bahr left it up to the Board of Commissioners to decide whether all of their tenants should be notified when construction starts.
“Moffatt & Nichol will be working with the general contractor on final construction documents,” Bahr said, noting that in order to obtain a building permit the design needed to be 60% completed. “The general (contractor) is typically going to handle all the materials. Those materials are all required to be American made now. If there are not American made materials, we can get waivers. They’ve already pre-waivered a lot of materials.”
Bahr also warned of material shortages, such as steel.
Harbor commissioners last month approved agreements with MARAD allowing them to draw down funds from the more than $15 million in 2022 and 2024 Port Infrastructure Development Program dollars. Those funds will pay for the reconstructed seawall and the first of Citizens Dock two piers.
Commissioners also authorized CSS to submit an application to MARAD for its 2026 PIDP grant. If awarded, CCHD will use that $11.25 million grant to build the second Citizens Dock pier.
The Crescent City Harbor District is also pursuing other grants for its required contribution to the project. According to Bahr, that amount had been $3.8 million, however it’s now $2.75 million. This reduction is due to MARAD allowing the Harbor District to use $425,000 in California Coastal Conservancy planning grant money for that match.
According to the project schedule, construction of the new seawall is expected to start in June. It will mostly take place in the water with the new wall being built about 5 feet from the existing sea wall.
The existing hoists and piers will be removed at the same time, Bahr said. A new parking lot will also be laid down, he said, and the whole thing will be about 5 feet higher than it is currently.
“The last thing that will happen in this project is there will be a connection from the parking lot to the finished dock,” Bahr said. “The dock will basically be built, finished, decked before there is the connection.”
Construction on the seawall includes demolishing the existing wall and hoists, refilling the area with dirt and rocks to replace areas that have washed out. The project calls for renovating the seafood packing and trucking area as well as installing two new hoists. A travel lift is also an option, Bahr said.
Bahr also went over the rules MARAD imposes as part of its PIDP grant. One of those is having a solid waste disposal plan since demolition is part of the project. During the environmental permitting process for the project, CCHD had to agree to mitigate for the loss of water and eel grass habitat and also ensure it’s not disturbing nesting birds and baby seals.
The Harbor District’s original contract with MARAD also stated that the agency had to be open to warrantless searches from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Bahr said. However, lawsuits in Oregon, Washington and California have resulted in removing that stipulation from the contract, so there will be no warrantless searches, he said.
Other opportunities to meet its $3.8 million match requirement for the PIDP grant include a $5 million California Coastal Conservancy construction grant. According to Bahr, if the Coastal Conservancy awarded a planning grant, it’s highly likely the agency will award a construction grant.
The Crescent City Harbor District also submitted Congressionally Designated Spending funding requests to Congressman Jared Huffman and U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff. According to Bahr, CCHD requested $5 million from both lawmakers.
The Crescent City Harbor District is also one of 12 small ports who submitted a joint application for $24 million in California Regional Investment grants for harbor modernization. According to Bahr, CCHD hopes to get a pilot study underway to determine if its dredge material could be used for habitat enhancement. The Harbor District also seeks funding for a fish fillet station.
True North Organizing Network is the lead organization for that grant, Bahr said.
During Tuesday’s workshop, Sandy Moreno, CCHD’s fiscal officer, mentioned a presentation California Municipal Advisors LLC gave to Harbor District staff.
CCHD is working with CalMuni Advisors and the Weist Law Firm to help pay upfront construction costs. Harbormaster Mike Rademaker has estimated that those costs will total about $1 million per month.
CCHD also discussed working with CalMuni Advisors to restructure its debt with Fashion Blacksmith, Moreno said.
Bahr noted that the general contractor will be making its construction payroll weekly when the project begins. Though it will start small, he said, it will increase overtime. If the general contractor pays their workers and subcontractors every Friday, he or she will likely bill the Harbor District on Monday.
“They’re going to expect payment at most (every) two weeks,” he said. “And you’ve got materials arriving at the same time. They’re going to expect payment on material arrival.”
Bahr recommended establishing a standing committee or an ad hoc committee who can make operational recommendations and expedite payment approval. Two members of the Board of Commissioners would meet with the project manager, general contractor, grants manager and harbormaster. Day-to-day operations will be delegated to the project manager, but the ad hoc committee could deal with things like a schedule change.
While they were amenable to that suggestion, including having the full Board of Commissioners ratify the ad hoc committees’ recommendations, they didn’t take action on that item yet,
