Smooth sailing so far for Point Hudson jetty

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A successful first week has removed most of what can be seen of the first jetty to be replaced at Point Hudson.

Orion Marine Contractors have been laboring both smart and hard at the site.

“Orion was able to remove more piles and armor rock than they had planned. After a six-day work week, they left the job site Saturday afternoon, feeling pretty good about their accomplished work,” said Matt Klontz, director of capital projects for the Port of Port Townsend.

While the water looks clear, more still lurks below the surface.

“Later in the week, they will remove the armor rock below the mud line, which is the rock you can’t see even on low tides since it is buried below ground,” Klontz said.

Beyond getting the job done fast, the contractors have also kept things clean.

“Last week, Orion could pull most piles out in one piece,” Klontz said. “They did have a few that broke into two, and they found a few that were already broken and buried below the mud line with just their tops sticking out. Orion was still able to extract and pull these piles out.”

“This is a positive environmental perspective since completely removing the creosote from our marina environment is ideal,” he added.

The contract with Orion mandates the first section of jetty must be fully replaced by March in order for Point Hudson Marina to open back up as the weather returns to prime sailing season.

“That said, we’re hopeful that Orion will finish early,” Klontz said, and from the looks of things so far, that dream just might come true.

Then Orion will begin again and replace the second jetty that makes up the breakwater during the same time period next year.

The breakwater project has been long anticipated to replace the century or so old jetties. With the existing timber-and-riprap jetty first completed in 1936, successive repairs were made in 1969 and 1996 to hold off full-replacement.

The design life for the new jetty is 40 years, but after coming in under budget on the $10.6 million contract, an extra 1/8-inch is being added to the wall thickness that could add up to 20 years of service life.