District ARRA awards surpass $50 million

By Joe Barison
District Public Affairs

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 7, 2010 - The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers San Francisco District has awarded over $50 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment (ARRA) “stimulus” contracts to small and large businesses for projects that support the district’s mission. The projects include harbor and channel dredging, construction and upgrading of major recreation areas, endangered-species preservation, vital fish-hatchery operations, and water recycling.

“Our district’s ARRA program is about jobs. We know that people have very real concerns about employment and providing for their families, and in quickly awarding contracts to businesses, we are doing our part to help companies stay in business and hire people,” said Lt. Col. Torrey DiCiro, San Francisco District commander. “These projects support our environmental work and enhance economic security for people throughout our district.”

The district awarded its first ARRA contract in May 2009 and has continued regular contract awards up to today’s approximately 80 contracts for district projects. The district ARRA program stands at 46 completed projects with 34 projects underway.

“All of the ARRA projects are intended to repair or increase the life span of old infrastructure and put as many people in the trades to work as legally possible,” said Mike Dillabough, district Operations and Readiness Division chief.

The projects are dispersed among the North Bay, with 63 ARRA projects valued at $14.5 million; the East Bay, with 11 projects valued at $23 million; the Peninsula, with two projects valued at $11 million; and the South Bay, with one project valued at $400K. Some projects within the district are outside of the Bay Area – ranging from Monterey Bay to Humboldt Bay, with seven projects valued at $2.8 million.

“Without the ARRA funds, the Oakland Harbor Deepening Project would have had to wait another year to complete, and this would have been disastrous for the Port of Oakland,” said Dave Doak, who managed the district’s project. “The ARRA funds allowed the inner harbor turning basin to be completed, which lets fully loaded container ships to unload all of their cargo at the Port of Oakland.”

Small businesses, many of which are 8(a) category — owned by minorities, women and/or service-disabled veterans — received 61 of the contract awards; large businesses received 18 contract awards.

The San Francisco District is authorized to award an additional $20 million in ARRA contracts and is moving forward to carry out its part of the nation’s economic stimulus program.

In July, the district awarded a contract for $871,162 to upgrade a settling pond at the Coyote Fish Facility.