<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0DcUWk_0uwZLJjE00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0DcUWk_0uwZLJjE00" width="650" height="488" ><figcaption>The city of Manistee announced the closure of a section of the Riverwalk on July 3, 2024. (Scott Fraley/News Advocate) </figcaption></figure> MANISTEE — Local leaders say the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' mismanagement of a dredging project damaged Manistee’s Riverwalk. The Manistee River dredging project, meant to improve river navigation, resulted in damage to the Riverwalk and caused extensive riverbank erosion, according to harbormaster Jeff Mikula at the most recent meeting of the Manistee Harbor Commission. The dredging, managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and carried out by King Company, initially focused on clearing shallow sections of the federally managed shipping channel. The project was expedited to address sediment buildup that risked blocking access to large commercial vessels. However, last-minute directives led to dredging in non-maintenance zones, causing unexpected damage, Mikula said. In the days leading up to the Fourth of July, Mikula had concerns about equipment placement at First Street Beach and reported discussions with corps representatives. Despite assurances that dredging would not start until after the holiday due to a blackout period in the contract, last-minute changes altered these plans. While on-site, Mikula learned from the contractor that they had received a directive from the corps to start dredging immediately. The contractor informed Mikula that, contrary to earlier plans, they had been instructed to dredge near the red shed on the Riverwalk due to discovering a shallow spot that needed attention. “I told them … I can’t believe they’re going to have you take anything out of there, and he said ‘well, they’re not just having us take a little bit out of the center, they have us going full depths, full width,’” Mikula said. <blockquote> “And I said ‘my God, you’re gonna suck the bank in and you’re gonna suck the Riverwalk in and you’re gonna have erosion on the north side as well.’” </blockquote> Dredging near the red fishing shack, which Mikula said was considered a no-maintenance zone, resulted in the destabilization of the Riverwalk, according to Mikula’s July 16 report to the Manistee Harbor Commission. Upon realizing the severity of the situation, Mikula communicated his concerns to the involved parties, leading to a temporary halt in operations. By then, significant damage had already occurred, Mikula said. “I called back a couple of hours later and said that we’re already losing structures; I can see them sliding down the bank and they’re taking material all the way up from the shoreline,” Mikula said. “And they said ‘keep going.’” City manager Bill Gambill described the structural instability at a July 2 city council meeting. "You can feel the deck bouncing a little bit, so we're gonna have to close that off and evaluate,” Gambill said. The area had been closed off with public safety in mind, with heavy traffic expected during the Manistee National Forest Festival. The section of the Riverwalk between Tamarack Street and Cherry Street remains closed. Elizabeth Wilkinson, the project manager said that the Army Corps of Engineers is studying the incident and will continue to work with local officials. "We know that the net shed moved after our recent dredging operations," Wilkinson said. "We've had our&nbsp;engineering, our geotechnical experts have been looking into doing an analysis to try to understand better why that happened. And right now, as I understand it, there's, there are a few things that play into it." Wilkinson explained that multiple factors played into the damage. "We were dredging within the area of the federal channel that is designated as federal channel," she said.&nbsp;"The bottom line is, I think there was a few things that played into into what happened, including the dredging and including maybe things not being built as they probably should have been originally." The Army Corps of Engineers should have a more detailed understanding of the incident soon, which Wilkinson said will be shared with city officials. <iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FCityofManistee%2Fposts%2Fpfbid033WeqfSdWENTj9ets9ZesswCRmr8WFzvkuLUBnHQ7W8UMCnrB5sjYwk28xXneP7a9l&amp;show_text=true&amp;width=500"></iframe> Gambill said he has been in contact with Wilkinson and their attorney to discuss potential next steps. He said the city needs to submit a claim to the Army Corps of Engineers as part of the process to address the damages. “I think the first priority is opening up the Riverwalk, probably removing the net shed, and then we have to look at a longer-term solution,” Gambill said at an Aug. 7 city council meeting. While immediate actions are being taken, Gambill noted that this process will be ongoing and does not have a definitive timeline for the reopening of the Riverwalk at this time. "We have to look at a longer-term solution; (the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers) are probably going to want to see us have that more stabilized in the future," he said. </div></body>

Mountain View, CA

NewsBreak

Harbormaster: Missteps lead to Riverwalk erosion

Harbormaster: We're gonna have to re-armor up a pretty major section of (the Riverwalk).