Drone footage released by the project engineer of the $16 million Flagler Beach pier reconstruction shows a parallel trestle almost completed as the project nears the point where demolition of the century-old structure will begin. The contractor is asking for a $145,000 change order and a 40-day extension to complete the project, pushing it to mid-January 2027.
Senior Project Engineer Maksim Milovidov with England-Thims & Miller, who is overseeing the project, released the footage today. City Manager Dale Martin made it available to local media.
“It is eye opening to see the progress of the Pier Project from the perspective of the drone video,” City Commissioner Scott Spradley, an attorney who himself flies drones and takes video and pictures of the city, said. “You can clearly see the temporary trestle running parallel to and nearly the length of the existing pier. This should be comforting to those residents who incorrectly believe that the trestle is in fact the new pier, when in fact it is only a platform for equipment and materials. The next milestone will be the disassembly of the existing pier, which I understand will begin on the landward side. I look forward to these drone videos as the project continues to move forward.”
Martin described the ongoing relationship with contractor Vecellio and Grogan as productive and cordial. “The Project Manager is readily available to discuss issues and has responded promptly to the few concerns that have been raised,” Martin said.
There have been few change orders. On Oct. 9, the City Commission approved a $38,933 change order resulting from the city’s request to the contractor to delay mobilization. The delay was related to turtle nesting season and permitting from the Department of Environmental Protection and delayed approval of a traffic plan, as the construction zone required the shifting of State Road A1A lanes near the pier.
The commission will be asked to approve a proposed change order of $145,000 reflecting “costs associated with the turtle nest delays, permitting, builder’s risk insurance, and the electrical line strike,” Martin wrote in an email. The project was delayed several weeks once a pair of turtles began nesting at the foot of the trestle at the end of July, just then beginning construction. Work was delayed a month. A week earlier, the contractor had struck an underground power line, cutting off power to the Funky Pelican restaurant on the pier and the radio station there.
The change order raises the contracted amount from $14.2 million to $14.3 million. City funds will not be used to pay for it. The project is financed by Federal Emergency Management Agency and state dollars. The contractor is asking for an additional 40 days to end the work.
The City Commission voted in 2021 to build the new pier, when the cost was pegged at $12.5 million. Last January, the commission approved the current $14.1 million contract. The pier has been ravaged by successive hurricanes, tropical storms and Nor’easters since Hurricane Matthew in 2016. It has also been gradually amputated. The new pier will be a concrete structure, and it will be about 10 feet higher than the old pier, to account for rising seas.
The city is hosting its annual New Year’s Eve fireworks show at midnight on Dec. 31 and will use the trestle as the launching platform rather than the pier, Martin said, since the old structure is about to be demolished. The contractor, the fireworks vendor, and the city are coordinating the effort.
Lance Carroll says
Impressive work by the crew operating the pier project. What will happen with the lumber from the demolished section? It would be a sad sight to see the lumber going to landfill…
FlaglerLive says
Most of the lumber is to be discarded by the contractor along with the pylons. The first 100 feet of the structure are to preserve the existing wood as a bridge to the past, while lumber, especially planks bearing tributes, beyond that 100-ft mark may be made available to people who wish to preserve a part of the pier. The city has not explained those mechanics–i.e., how to secure a piece of the pier for personal preservation. Doubtless it will as the deconstruction approaches. Thank you for the question.
Dan Ignatuk says
Looks awesome. At this point the pier appears to be shorter than the existing pier. Will that be the case when finished?
FlaglerLive says
The shorter platform you see is not the pier. It’s only a construction platform. The new pier will be along the same footprint as the old pier, once the old pier is removed. The parallel platform is only there to allow for the removal of the old pier, and construction of the new one. It will itself be removed when the work is completed.