by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
The over $1 million worth of damage done to the Northbank Riverwalk last year on Christmas day is about two months from being repaired.
About a month ago, the City’s Public Works Department began the last stage of the repair process. Over the course of the next couple of months, 20 steel pilings will be filled with concrete in an effort to reinforce the entire section of damaged Riverwalk. That section stretches from Newnan Street to just east of the County Courthouse parking lot.
City engineer George McDonnell is managing the project for the City. Above ground he’s working with Misener Marine while a diver in the river below the Riverwalk guides the concrete into the pilings. McDonnell stays in radio contact with the diver.
“This is a pretty good sized job,” said McConnell, who has been with the City for eight years. “This is a good crew, first rate.”
According to McDonnell, the damage was done by a barge from Hawaii being pushed up the river by a tug boat from New York. McDonnell tracked down the barge company and got the company’s insurance policy number. He said there’s reason to believe the barge company could be liable for some if not all of the repair costs. However, that aspect of the project is out of his hands.
Right now, McConnell and his department continue to work on the Riverwalk portion in front of the Hyatt. That section has been closed for several months and McConnell says the job will likely be done in mid-November, about two weeks after the Florida-Georgia crowd leaves town. However, if everything goes right, the job may be done sooner.
“It depends on how far along I am,” said McConnell. “We might get out of here before the game. It might be real close.”
The current phase of repair is the last.
“This was actually four different jobs,” said McConnell, while walking around and pointing out other damage that may not be so obvious.
For instance, he showed where the barge hit the Riverwalk and traced the crack across the street and to the edge of the County Courthouse parking lot. He also indicated where a section of brick pavers across Coastline Drive have sunk and formed a small trench across the street. McConnell said Public Works will dig up the pavers and assess the damage.
“There are 1,000 pilings overall and we have checked every one of them,” said McConnell, adding that most were in good shape and weren’t affected by the barge.