A Marine contractor has been selected to repair a number of sinkholes and broken culverts in the Navy Yard, with that contract being put before the Boston Planning and Development Agency (BPDA) Board for a vote Thursday evening.
ACK Marine and General Contracting has executed a contract with the BPDA to make the necessary repairs at a cost of $713,200 near Pier 4. They have the ability to make emergency repairs that come up during the process for a cost of no more than 10 percent of the contract, or $71,320.
The problem started in 2018 when a sinkhole was discovered on Flagship Way and on the brick sidewalk adjacent to it. Under that area was an old concrete box culvert that had been used to drain Drydock 2, but had been abandoned for years. After several investigations with cameras and divers, it was found that the wood pilings supporting the culvert had failed, and the large culvert was sinking. It became quite a precarious situation given that the culvert was within the roadway and sidewalk.
During construction, the Flagship Way roadway and rotary and plaza will have to be closed down during construction. It will remain closed until repairs are fully completed.
The repair option determined safest and most effective is construction of a continuous concrete foundation underneath the unsupported culvert. This scheme ensures worker safety by ensuring that no workers need to enter the space beneath the culvert to complete the repair work, read a BPDA memo.
Bids on the project were opened Feb. 4, and ACK was the lowest bidder by at least $300,000.