Grace Industries was awarded a contract with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to remove historic fill along the shoreline of Westchester Creek in the East Bronx, NY, and place new riprap to create a high and low marsh area for wetland plantings. The scope included work to mill and pave an existing playground at the Bronx YMCA, at the access point to the shoreline. Grass areas were restored, and wetland plantings have been placed along the shoreline.

Excavation and placement of riprap was completed in three weeks, ahead of schedule and under budget. By the numbers, more than 7,000 tons of soil were excavated and moved offsite for disposal, 1,300 tons of riprap were imported, 250 tons of bedding stone were imported, 1,360 square yards of PA approved asphalt are scheduled to be put down, and 26,000 tidal wetland planting plugs will be installed.

This project presented several challenges, including the coordination of trucking – loading 15-30 offsite trucks, and receiving 150-200 tons of imported material daily – with a tight egress on an extremely small plot of land along the shoreline. Crews also needed to learn how to work with the tidal changes of the waterway to allow for proper excavation, grading and placement of new materials. To overcome these logistical challenges, erosion control measures were instituted, and access points for trucks to go to-and-from the loading area were established.