WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH — The latest updates for the multi-bridge replacement in a local beach town include the naming of a contractor and the possibility of a years-long timeline being condensed.
Town Manager Haynes Brigman spoke to the Wrightsville Beach Board of Aldermen at last week’s budget workshop regarding a $105-million project planned on the island for 2028. Its scope includes replacing the bridge on US 76 (Causeway Drive) crossing Banks Channel, and two new bridges on US 74 (West Salisbury Street), crossing Lees Cut and Banks Channel.
READ MORE: Traffic impacts worry WB residents as multi-bridge replacement looms
Balfour Beatty was awarded the contract in January, after a bid opened on Sept. 2, 2025 and closed Sept. 30. However, North Carolina Department of Transportation project engineer Todd Lapham said the construction manager / general contractor (CM/GC) bid focused on quality over cost. The bid document noted contractors were “selected based on qualifications and demonstrated competency.”
NCDOT spokesperson Veronica Newsome noted the qualifications were as followed: “Proven N.C. coastal bridge performance, decades of NCDOT marine construction experience, exceptional schedule and cost control history, deep CM/GC and collaborative delivery capability, large local workforce and equipment presence, technical expertise in coastal foundations and environmental management, strong risk mitigation strategy and innovation track record.”
Balfour Beatty has worked with NCDOT before, as the contractor behind the Surf City Bridge, and also has developed UNCW Veterans Hall, UNCW Freshmen VIllage, a UNCW parking deck, UNCW Dobo Hall, and is signed on for the Military Cutoff Road Expansion project.
As part of the process, the awarded contractor negotiates a guaranteed maximum price for construction, instead of simply submitting the lowest bid. The construction is estimated to cost $70 million, with the other $35 million covering land acquisition of rights-of-way along the construction zones.
The project is paid for by the NCDOT’s improvement program.
Lapham said NCDOT received 10 or 11 letters of interest, which went before a committee. Similar to a traditional technical review committee, it consisted of the local Highway Division 3 representatives and representatives from the Alternative Delivery Unit, which administers the CM/GC bid.
The committee then “shortlisted” the bids down to three, held an interview with each bidder, and received statements of qualifications. Lapham said some of the characteristics the team looked for included contractors completing projects of a similar caliber, timeline proposals, and whether the scope or scale could be reduced.
The project has stirred up quite a bit of unrest among Wrightsville Beach residents, with the replacements anticipated to inundate the island with more traffic congestion. Originally proposed to be completed within four to five years, Brigman and town staff said they hoped to reduce the construction time, but the likelihood is unclear.
“There’s been a lot of rumors that the project itself will start sooner than the original timeline that they presented to us, which was spring 2028,” Brigman said.
He met with the contractors and NCDOT on Monday, Feb. 23, to discuss it further. Port City Daily reached out to town staff to inquire into the meeting’s events and to receive any updates regarding the project’s timeline but were unable to receive a response by press.
The next bridge replacement committee meeting is set for March 16 at 10 a.m. in the Wrightsville Beach public safety building conference room, where a timeline will be discussed now that a contractor has been chosen.
[Ed. note: The post has been updated to reflect the bridge being replaced is not the drawbridge and to update the qualifications and qualities of the contractor, provided after press. Port City Daily regrets this error.]
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