RFI_SLI_South_Jetty_FINAL_20251202.pdf

Statement of Purpose

This notice constitutes a REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI). This announcement seeks information from industry and will ONLY be used for preliminary planning purposes. THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION

FOR PROPOSALS AND NO CONTRACT SHALL BE AWARDED FROM THIS RFI. Respondents will not be notified of the results of the evaluation. The Government will not pay for any response expenses.

Interested parties are responsible for adequately marking proprietary or competition sensitive information contained in their response. The Government is specifically interested in capabilities, technologies, methodologies, ideas and solutions for the rehabilitation of the seaward 400’ of the St. Lucie South Jetty including the jetty head (located at the St. Lucie Inlet in Martin County). The information received will be used to support a market analysis for the project with the general goal to rehabilitate a portion of the St.

Lucie South Jetty in Martin County.

Project Background

History:

St. Lucie Inlet is comprised of the navigation channel and numerous general navigation features including the impoundment basin, north jetty, offshore breakwater, and south jetty. The Federal navigation channel requires routine maintenance, primarily limited to Cut-1 and the impoundment basin. The north jetty, offshore breakwater, and south jetty have not received any routine or emergency maintenance from

USACE or the non-federal sponsor (NFS), Martin County. The only known construction efforts for these structures are initial construction (1978-1982) and the north jetty modifications (2009).

The south jetty has experienced continued degradation resulting from numerous damage drivers, most notably deterioration of the asphalt walkway and internal grout, armor stone instability, and slope instability. The worst damage occurs along the jetty’s most critical component – the structure head. A breach developed many years ago near the seaward limit of the structure head and continues to expand and new breaches are forming along the head section. The continued degradation threatens to further compromise the ability of the jetty to stabilize the inlet and adjacent shorelines (the northern end of

Jupiter Island) and limit the volume of sand entering the inlet system, potentially increasing operation and maintenance (O&M) costs for the federal project.

To date, the Federal navigation channel has experienced no direct service disruptions or increases in

O&M directly related to the south jetty condition; however, given the age and continued deterioration of the structure, this is unlikely to continue. Further, a major storm event could significantly damage the south jetty and quickly result in adverse impacts to the Federal project and overall inlet stability. Major maintenance is recommended before the jetty is further damaged, more extensive structure repairs are needed, and repair costs increase.

Project Location:

St. Lucie Inlet is in Martin County on the southeast coast of Florida, about 115 miles north of Miami

(Figure 1), serving as the County’s only point of access to the Atlantic Ocean. The Federal project connects the Atlantic Ocean with several key waterways including the Intracoastal Waterway (IWW) and

Okeechobee Waterway, both heavily used by recreational and commercial vessels. The nearest coastal inlets are Jupiter Inlet, 17 miles south, and Ft. Pierce Inlet, 22 miles north.

Figure 1: St. Lucie Inlet Federal Navigation Project Location

Project Description:

The project provides for the full repair and rehabilitation of the most damaged, vulnerable, and critical section of the jetty: the structure head. Work consists of rehabilitation to bring the seaward-most 300 to

500 feet of the structure up to current design standards. The proposed engineering design incorporates anticipated future sea-level rise and the potential for increased storm severity, improves structure resilience and stability, and reduces maintenance requirements. Without intervention and maintenance, degradation of the jetty head will continue and likely progress along the entire structure. This could result in structure failure, which would destabilize the northern end of Jupiter Island and have significant impacts on the inlet stability and Federal navigation project.

Existing Conditions:

The south jetty consists of a 1- to 2-foot-thick foundation of loose bedding stone (without geotextile fabric or a structured foundation), a uniform gradation core (800 – 1,600 lb stone), and a single layer of 6- to

10-ton armor stone. The upper portion of the structure includes chinking stone and asphaltic concrete grout and a 10-foot-wide asphalt (fishing) walkway atop the crest. The asphaltic grout and asphaltic concrete walkway were critical to the design by providing a secondary structural feature to bind the single-layer armor stone. The structure has experienced varying levels of damage due to numerous failure modes. The failure modes primarily consist of 1) asphalt and grout deterioration due to a lack of maintenance; 2) armor stone instability due to undersized stone and/or asphalt and grout deterioration;

and 3) slope instability due to toe scour, structure settlement, and/or destabilized (undersized) stone. The structure condition and failure modes vary along the structure’s length but conditions generally degrade progressively seaward with the greatest degradation along the head section. See Figure 2 below and the following photographs of the site.

Figure 2: South Jetty Head Section – Aerial Imagery of Main Breach at ≈Sta. 11+50

Project Information

Scope of Work:

The proposed work includes repairing and rehabilitating the seaward head of the south jetty (the seaward-most 300 to 500 feet) by restabilizing the structure foundation and placing a second layer of large armor stone. The proposed scope includes:

1. Excavating the bed material to place a widened marine mattress foundation, expanding the current structure footprint;

2. Placing 8-14 ton toe protection stone to form the structure foundation and provide scour protection;

3. Removing and disposing of the remaining asphalt walkway and grout (off-site);

4. Repairing the existing core and single layer of armor stone, as needed; and,

5. Placing a second layer of 8-14 ton armor stone to stabilize the structure.

Overview of Construction Staging and Access Requirements:

• Clearing of access roads, trails, and staging areas.

• Likely expansion of access roads for equipment transit

• Potential extensive clearing and improvement of trail for equipment transit.

• Replanting the east staging area once repair work is completed.

Additional Environmental Restrictions:

• If construction takes place during Turtle Nesting Season, access would occur from wetland-side behind dunes (shown in yellow).

• If construction takes place outside of Turtle Nesting Season, additional access could occur from the beach (shown in orange).

• Water access will be allowed, but material cannot be dredged outside of the construction limits

(e.g., to dredge a barge access channel)

• Excavated material cannot be placed on the beach.

Drawings:

Figure 3: Proposed Staging Areas and Access Routes

Additional drawings are provided in Appendix A. These include:

• South jetty overview and rehabilitation project footprint

• South jetty topobathymetry

• Marine mattress layout and excavation plan

• Stone placement and rework layout

• Typical cross-sections of proposed work

• Typical cross-sections of previously constructed design

Site Photographs:

Captured April 10, 2024, between 09:00 and 16:00

Figure 4: ≈Sta. 9+10 Looking East (near high tide)

Figure 5: ≈Sta. 10+00 Looking East (mid-tide, outgoing)

Figure 6: ≈Sta. 10+00 Looking West (mid-tide, outgoing)

Figure 7: ≈Sta. 11+60 Looking East (high tide)

Figure 8: ≈Sta. 12+00 Looking West (high tide)

Figure 9: ≈Sta. 7+20 Looking West (mid-tide, outgoing)

Responses

Industry is asked to provide a written response addressing the following objectives or questions:

1) What is the preferred method to transport equipment and materials to the work site?

2) What are the preferred methods and equipment necessary to complete the rehabilitation of the jetty?

This includes but is not limited to methods and equipment for excavation of existing grade, maintenance of open excavation areas during construction, debris removal, and installation of the marine mattresses and armor stone.

3) Would a cofferdam be used to complete the work?

4) Do you have any concerns with the feasibility of the proposed work?

5) What work can be completed from the land (including from on top of the jetty) and what from the water?

6) Could you complete the work entirely from the land (including from on top of the jetty)?

7) Would waterborne access be more cost effective or otherwise advantageous?

8) What are the work platform requirements for the equipment that will be used for construction?

9) If there is displaced armor stone within the excavation prism, can it be excavated? Can it be excavated efficiently?

10) How much area around the structure (offset distance) do you expect to need to occupy or work in to complete the proposed work?

11) Is there a key plant item needed to do the work? Do you have any recommendations for design modification that would increase productivity or simplify the equipment requirements?

12) Are the existing roads/paths sufficiently sized for access to the work site? The existing access route (orange in Figure 3) is approximately 3,2000 feet in length and 10 feet wide. The turtle nesting season access route (yellow in Figure 3) is approximately 850 feet in length and would require clearing for access. The non-turtle nesting season access route (pink in Figure 3) is approximately 900 feet in length. How wide do the access routes need to be? Would any road improvements need to be done? Would road base need to be imported to improve the road for access? If so, what grade, size, and material type would be required?

13) How much area is needed for staging and stockpiling of materials? Are the staging areas shown sufficient?

The west staging area (purple in Figure 3) is approximately 32,200 square feet (0.74 acres) in size. The east staging area (blue in Figure 3) is approximately 39,500 square feet (0.91 acres) in size. Could the work be completed without using the full extents of both areas?

14) Are there any significant health and safety concerns that limit the practical construction methods?

(e.g., would working from the jetty crest be practical at the seaward end of the jetty?)

15) What potential protections are required to construct this project in the winter given the rougher meteorological and coastal conditions that occur?

16) There is an existing pond located near the project site. Would there be construction runoff caused by equipment that would necessitate protecting the pond? What measures would be taken if necessary?

17) What is an estimated duration to complete this work from start to finish? Would it take two seasons to complete construction if work is restricted during turtle nesting season? How much lead time is required and/or preferred for armor stone procurement?

18) What details can be provided to improve the clarity of the drawings?

Additionally

Submission Instructions:

Provide Firm's name, address, point of contact, phone number, website, and email address.

Responses to this RFI must be received no later than 5:00 PM, EST, on 02 January 2026 and shall be sent to Nicole Batista-Cruz at Nicole.M.Batista-Cruz@usace.army.mil and Ruth Rodriguez at

Ruth.C.Rodriguez@usace.army.mil.

Industry Conference Call:

There will be an Industry Conference Call on 06 January 2026 at 1:30 - 2:30 PM, EST, through the following Microsoft Teams Meeting:

• LINK: HTTPS://WWW.MICROSOFT.COM/EN-US/MICROSOFT-TEAMS/JOIN-A-MEETING

• MEETING ID: 993 431 302 91

• PASSCODE: Cr63Ds6o

• DIAL IN BY PHONE: 601-262-2433

• PHONE CONFERENCE ID: 694 576 537#

This is your opportunity to ask questions and to make sure that you understand what this requirement entails.

NOTE - DO NOT SUBMIT PROPRIETARY AND/OR BUSINESS CONFIDENTIAL DATA.

The official Synopsis citing the solicitation will be issued on SAM.GOV and inviting firms to register electronically to receive a copy of the solicitation when it is issued. All interested firms must be registered in SAM.gov to be eligible for award of Government contracts.

mailto:Nicole.M.Batista-Cruz@usace.army.mil mailto:Ruth.C.Rodriguez@usace.army.mil https://www.microsoft.com/EN-US/MICROSOFT-TEAMS/JOIN-A-MEETING