GDC Awards Hudson River Ground Stabilization Project First Construction Contract

On Feb 16, 2024

The Gateway Development Commission’s (GDC) Board of Commissioners awarded the Hudson River Ground Stabilization (HRGS) Project to Weeks Marine, Inc. for expert professional design-build services. The HRGS project marks the first heavy construction contract by GDC on the Hudson Tunnel Project (HTP).

The HRGS Project is an important component of the new tunnel project. It will inject a mix of soil, concrete, and water to stabilize the riverbed in 1,200 feet of the shallow area on the Manhattan side of the Hudson River. This work will ensure the Tunnel Boring Machine can excavate the new tunnel while protecting the riverbed from disruption.

Today’s award enables work on the HRGS Project to begin this year, joining ongoing construction sites for the HTP that launched in 2023. Ground broke last November on both sides of the Hudson River, with construction underway on the Hudson Yards Concrete Casing – Section 3 on Manhattan’s west side and the Tonnelle Avenue Bridge and Utility Relocation Project in North Bergen. Five out of the nine packages that comprise the HTP are either already in procurement, awarded, or under construction.

In a joint statement, Alicia Glen, New York GDC Commissioner and Co-Chair, Balpreet Grewal-Virk, New Jersey GDC Commissioner and Co-Chair, and Tony Coscia, GDC Amtrak Commissioner and Vice Chair, said, “By authorizing the Hudson Tunnel Project’s first heavy construction work, we are one step closer to crossing the Rubicon and securing this tunnel’s future. Work is on-track and there can be no turning back on the 21st century transportation experience our riders have long been waiting for.”

“Under the leadership of the Biden administration, Majority Leader Schumer, Governors Hochul and Murphy, our Congressional delegation, and our Board, progress on the Hudson Tunnel Project is an ongoing testament to American infrastructure at its best,” said GDC CEO Kris Kolluri. “The year is starting off the same way last year ended, with GDC hitting our milestones to make sure the most urgent infrastructure project in the nation is built.”

Following a publicly advertised bidding process, Weeks Marine, Inc.’s proposal was reviewed by an Evaluation Panel consisting of technical experts and representatives from GDC, the State of New York, NJ TRANSIT, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ), and Amtrak. Weeks Marine, Inc. was selected through a competitive evaluation of technical and price proposals.

Today’s award includes $284 million for the total contract price with Weeks Marine, Inc., along with the approval of a Market Case Estimate in accordance with the HTP Project Development Agreement, and the authorization of a Notice to Proceed for Phase I for an amount not to exceed $100 million.

The HRGS Project will modify conditions in the Hudson River to allow for future construction. In the low-cover area of the Hudson River off Manhattan’s shoreline, the riverbed is made up of silt too soft to support a tunnel. By injecting grout into the silt, columns of soil mixed with cement and water will stabilize the ground above the future tunnel. Temporary sheet pile cofferdams will enclose the work zone, enabling in-water ground improvement to be completed one phase at a time, beginning in the section of the river closest to Manhattan and moving westward toward the Hudson River’s navigation channel.

Phase One of the Project will be performed from Spring 2024 to Fall 2024 and includes surveying and the design and construction of a test cofferdam. Phase Two will be performed from Fall 2024 to Spring 2027 and includes the design and construction of remaining work related to the HRGS Project.

The GDC Board of Commissioners authorized additional items today to move the Hudson Tunnel Project forward, including:

• $510 million in Amtrak past costs, which will be credited towards Amtrak’s overall contribution to the HTP pursuant to the Amtrak Capital Funding Agreement authorized at GDC’s December 2023 board meeting
• A Second Amendment to the Project Development Agreement concerning incidental uses of the HTP and transactions related to Block 675, Lot 1 on the west side of Manhattan
• The delegation of authority to the GDC CEO in connection with employee benefit plans
• The GDC annual board meeting schedule for 2024

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