The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), New York District, and the U.S. Department of Transportation have broken ground on a critical maintenance dredging project in the Hague Basin at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) in Kings Point, NY. The $12.9M contract was awarded to Posillico affiliate Breakwater Marine LLC, led by Capt. Mike DiNapoli, Division Manager.
The scope of work calls for removing roughly 51,000 cubic yards of sediment from the basin and deepening it to 15 feet at the entrance and 12 feet along the interior. The basin has silted in over decades of use, limiting how USMMA’s training vessels can move through and dock at the Academy. Once the dredging is complete, full operational depth will be restored, allowing the fleet to transit and dock without the current constraints.
The project is one piece of a broader, multi-year Campus Modernization Plan aimed at rehabilitating aging infrastructure across the Academy and strengthening its training capabilities. Much of USMMA’s campus dates back to the Academy’s founding in the early 1940s and has seen little modernization since, making projects like this one a priority as the Academy works to bring its facilities up to the standards its training programs demand.
USACE New York District Commander Col. Alexander Young credited the project delivery team for working through complex environmental and permitting challenges on an expedited timeline to reach the groundbreaking milestone, and noted that USACE looks forward to continued close collaboration with its partners as the wider USMMA revitalization effort moves forward.
The Hague Basin project adds to Posillico’s growing portfolio of marine construction work, reflecting the continued expansion of the company’s marine division under Capt. DiNapoli’s leadership.
