FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Manatee Pocket Dredging Contract Awarded to Dickerson Florida, Inc.

Stuart, Fla. - July 22, 2009 - At their July 21 meeting, the Martin County Board of County Commissioners unanimously approved staff’s request to award the contract for the dredging of the Manatee Pocket to Dickerson Florida, Inc. Headquartered in Fort Pierce, Dickerson will manage the dredging and construction operations for the removal of 280,000 cubic yards of muck in the Manatee Pocket in Port Salerno. “This project is second on the County’s priority list behind the Indian Street Bridge. We are pleased to be moving forward and to have been able to award the contract to a local Treasure Coast firm,” said Martin County Coastal Engineer Kathy FitzPatrick.

In the Request for Proposal (RFP) package developed by the County, bidders were provided with the flexibility to select alternative dredging methods and staging areas as part of their response to the RFP. The Dickerson team proposed a hydraulic dredge project that will use pipelines and pumps to remove muck. When the Federal Aviation Authority denied the request to use Witham Field as a staging site, Dickerson proposed a favorable alternative site that is located closer to the Pocket and provides more direct access to major roadways.

The Manatee Pocket Project benefitted from $12 million in grant funding from various national, state and local sources. Dickerson’s proposal was lower than the County’s original estimate and well within the budget to complete the project

Before construction can begin, the County still needs to secure a permit modification for the new handling site. Once the permit is in hand, the project could begin as early as September with approximately 15 months of work before the project is near completion.

"We know how important this project is to the County and to the community. We're proud to be part of the team and looking forward to a great project," said Larry Heimer, Jr., vice president, Dickerson.

Martin County citizens are invited to learn more about the Manatee Pocket Project at www.manateepocketproject.com.

About the Manatee Pocket Project
The Manatee Pocket Project is a dredging project that entails the removal of about 280,000 cubic yards of muck in the Manatee Pocket in Port Salerno. Once completed, the project will result in a clean, 100-foot-wide channel that will provide navigational, economic and environmental enhancements to the Manatee Pocket and its adjacent waterways.

The goals of the project are to:

• Increase the draft and size of vessels that will be able to access the Pocket
• Define a channel to minimize impacts to adjacent shallow water areas and benefit manatee protection
• Remove detrimental muck sediments
• Improve the ability of marine life to re-establish in the Pocket
• Improve the water quality in the Pocket

For more information visit www.manateepocketproject.com

Contact:
Kathy Fitzpatrick
Martin County Coastal Engineer
772-288-5429
kfitzpat@martin.fl.us

Richard E. Czlapinski
Coastal Engineering – Tetra Tech EC
561.735.0482 Ext: 202
richard.czlapinski@tteci.com

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