A contract to complete Phase 1 of the ongoing Duffyfield Stormwater Enhancement Project has been approved by the New Bern Board of Aldermen.
According to George Chiles, director of Public Works for the City of New Bern put the work out for bid on Sep. 28 but did not receive the minimum number of required bids in the process. When the work was re-advertised on Oct. 19 the city received a bid from Trader Construction Company, Inc. of New Bern for $1,698,490. The bid was recommended for approval by Chiles and unanimously accepted by the BOA during their Nov. 28 meeting.
The contract includes installation of a stormwater force main and lift station equipment to service the recently expanded Biddle Street retention pond, which is located near the historic Greenwood Cemetery. The retention pond is being upgraded with larger pumps to accommodate a higher volume of rainfall.
Chiles said the work will include the completion of the lift station’s pumps, generators and electrical panels as well as the force main.
Chiles told the board that the work will be fully funded through the N.C. Department of Public Safety under their Emergency Management Disaster Relief Mitigation Grant.
The city began the planning and development of the Duffyfield Community Stormwater Enhancement Project in 2021 with the goal of creating a more resilient stormwater system to combat nuisance flooding in the Duffyfield community. Work began on Phase 1 in 2022 with more than $1 million in upgrades to the Biddle Street pump station, including the enlargement of the retention pond and installation of a larger pump system.
In early 2023 City Manager Foster Hughes announced nearly $7 million for construction and $400,000 for planning had been secured for the stormwater upgrades, which are set to be completed in four phases. Future work on the Duffyfield Community Stormwater Enhancement Project is set to include the construction of retention ponds on city-owned and FEMA-acquired properties on Biddle Street, Bloomfield Street, B Street, F Street and K Street that will flow into the enlarged Biddle Street pump station. The process is designed to filter out pollutants and improve the quality of water flowing into Jack Smith Creek and the Neuse River.
Phase 4 is scheduled to include construction of a greenway trail with boardwalks and a park.
The stormwater enhancement work is one of several improvement projects the city has undertaken in the Duffyfield area recently.
Over the summer, Barnhill Contracting Company of Jacksonville completed a long-awaited, $200,000 project to resurface eroded streets in the community. The contractor milled off the top layer of asphalt on the roadways before completing the fine grading work on portions of Main, Washington, Raleigh, and Myrtle streets.
By Todd Wetherington, co-editor. Send an email with questions or comments.