After months of delays, a contract has been awarded to stabilize the shoreline along Snow’s Cut.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Wilmington District announced that a contract had been awarded to Cape Romain Contractors Inc. in a news release on July 20. The deal totals $7,015,897.42.
The Corps has received $15 million in funding through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to conduct planning and design, environmental compliance and construction.
Initially slated to begin back in January, officials said that work will now start in the coming months. The timeline was pushed back earlier this year because the Corps had previously not accounted for the need to complete a value engineering study in the original schedule, officials told the StarNews in February.
The project is anticipated to be completed by July 2027.
What's happening with Snow's Cut?
Snow’s Cut has incurred significant and persistent erosion for nearly 100 years, forming steep embankments along the shoreline and creating sinkholes on the land. The waterway has grown from 90 feet wide to 600 over the past century.
Destabilization is expected to continue over time due to “consistent energy from passing vessels, tides and currents,” according to the Corps. Without intervention, upland portions of properties along the waterway could become too dangerous to access.
Between 1953 and 2013, erosion accounted for an average loss of 1.6 feet along the northern bank and 1.8 feet along the southern bank each year. Since then, New Hanover County officials have estimated that the waterway along Snow’s Cut Park has lost up to five feet annually.
The Corps’ proposed project would stabilize roughly 7,500 feet of shoreline along four areas of Snow’s Cut between the bridge and the Cape Fear River.
Who is Cape Romain Contractors?
Cape Romain Contractors is a South Carolina-based heavy civil marine and highway bridge construction contractor founded in 1946. The company has work on several multi-million-dollar projects including piers, wharfs and bridges across South Carolina, North Carolina and Georgia.
Earlier this year, the company completed a $3 million shoreline stabilization and beach nourishment project in Hilton Head, South Carolina.
Cape Romain Contractors is also currently under a $15.5 million contract with the U.S. National Park Service to replace and rehabilitate docks and other facilities at Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina.
Daniel Sheehan covers New Hanover County for the StarNews. Reach him at dsheehan@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Long awaited project at Snow's Cut set to begin
