Vilano Beach project moving along nicely

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Company, LLC is making nice progress on the St. Johns County’s Coastal Storm Risk Management Project.

The scheme, managed by the Army Corps Jacksonville District, includes both dune and beach berm construction along approximately 2.6 miles of coastline from Vilano Beach to South Ponte Vedra Beach.

Construction is proceeding from south to north along the beach and is projected to be complete in the middle of December.

According to USACE Project Manager Jason Harrah, the project is now 30 percent complete. “Together with the cutter suction dredge Ohio, the contractor has about 40-50 people employed full time working in the area.”

In total, the contractor will place approximately 1.3 million cubic yards of sand to the project area.

USACE awarded this $15.1 million contract on July 7, 2020, to Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Company (GLDD).

The main aim of the project is to address critically eroded areas along the county’s shoreline by improving coastal resilience.

St. Johns County will contribute 71 percent of the cost while Jacksonville District, the federal sponsor, is contributing the remaining 29%.