The City of San Francisco Parks and Recreation Department awarded Dutra Construction a contract worth $20 million to design and rebuild the San Francisco West Marina Yacht Harbor. Dutra will team with marine engineering firm Ben C. Gerwick to complete the project.
The San Francisco Marina is the City’s oldest with vessels having birthed in it’s original basin since before the 1906 earthquake.
Published: November, 2011
The City of San Francisco Parks and Recreation Department awarded Dutra Construction a contract worth $20 million to design and rebuild the San Francisco West Marina Yacht Harbor. Dutra will team with marine engineering firm Ben C. Gerwick to complete the project.
The San Francisco Marina is located on the northern waterfront of the City contiguous to the district that bears its name. Consisting of two harbors — east and west — the marina is the City’s oldest recreational facility of its kind with vessels having berthed in its original basin since before the 1906 earthquake. Currently, the marina is home to two yacht clubs—the St. Francis and Golden Gate—that will play host to the 34th America’s Cup in 2013 as well as the predecessor events including the Louis Vuiton Challenger Selection Series and the America’s Cup World Series. This will be the first time the America’s Cup has been hosted in the United States since 1995.
The West Harbor Marina project consists of demolishing the old marina, dredging the marina to a depth of -12 feet, furnishing and installing new concrete docks to create over 320 state-of-the-art slips of various lengths, upgrading utility service, building a floating wave attenuator, building a fixed breakwater, renovating the harbormaster building, removing an existing rubble mound breakwater, performing various site repairs and upgrading the landscaping throughout the marina grounds.
Keeping the marina open to 200 boats of varying lengths during construction presented the major challenge to the project. Dutra used project phasing—half of the marina scheduled for completion in 2011 and the second half in 2012—and boat relocation plans to strategically minimize the slips going out of commission during construction.
Since breaking ground in June 2011, Dutra has dredged over 55,000 cubic yards of sediment out of the marina basin; demolished about one-third of the existing docks, piles and gangways; and driven a 185-foot sheet pile breakwater wall that protects the entrance to the marina. Currently, concrete docks are being designed and fabricated by Kiecon in Antioch with barged delivery for the first phase of docks scheduled for October and November 2011. The docks will be assembled on site with concrete guide piles driven through the docks to keep them in place. Once utilities (including electric, potable water and fire water) are added, boats will begin to occupy the new slips.
Renovation of the harbormaster building and other site improvements is scheduled to commence this month. Installation of the floating wave attenuator is scheduled for March 2012. Boats will be able to occupy the phase one slips of the marina by the end of March 2012. Phase two will then begin with the remaining old docks demolition and a similar construction sequence for 2012. Dredging will begin in June, followed by new dock delivery, pile driving and dock installation. The project is on track to be completed by the end of November 2012 in time for the 2013 America’s Cup.
