WILMINGTON — One agency has weighed in on its recommendation to the North Carolina Department of Transportation when it comes to height upon discussing the build-out of a new Cape Fear Memorial Bridge.
READ MORE: Cape Fear Memorial Bridge: NCDOT engineer says tolling only current option to fund $800M gap
The United States Army Corps of Engineers noted in a letter sent to the North Carolina Department of Transportation on May 15 the minimum height should be 135 feet; the U.S. Coast Guard also will give its opinion to NCDOT. Both agencies are charged with ensuring the safety of navigation channels, like the Cape Fear River, but the Coast Guard’s bridge permit decision will be the final say and determined with USACE’s input.
USACE addressed its letter to Trevor Carroll, the division 3 NCDOT engineer, indicating: “Any bridge with a vertical clearance under 135’ would be injurious to the purpose of the federal project and the usefulness of the federal project would be negatively impacted.”
The agency is referring to the Wilmington Harbor Navigation Project. Though originally authorized in 1930, the project was updated in 1996 for USACE to maintain a depth of 38 feet from the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge to the Hilton Railroad Bridge.
While USACE wrote in its letter it has terminated further analysis of any clearance less than 135 feet, the agency also suggested the ideal clearance would be 147 feet or higher to “accommodate the largest vessel for which the channel was designed.”
USACE gauged the 147-foot information based on a 1996 feasibility study the navigation project. Though the study’s scope didn’t particularly include bridge heights, it noted the specifications of the design vessel considered in determining the harbor depth, including north of the bridge. The design vessel had a length of 712 feet, a width of 106 feet, and up to 75,000 gross tons.
In its analysis, USACE reports a vessel with these dimensions typically needs a height range between 120 feet and 147 feet.
Thus, USACE concludes, a bridge less than 135 feet would essentially be limiting the channel’s potential.
“The construction of a new bridge would be a great opportunity to construct a bridge that exceeds the ideal clearance of 147 feet,” the USACE letter indicates.
The current Cape Fear Memorial Bridge, a 65-foot structure with a movable span reaching 135 feet, was built in 1969, predating the 1996 feasibility study. USACE noted there has been no determination the current bridge has impaired the usefulness or purpose of the harbor deepening, thus why the agency went with a 135-foot minimum.
Conversation about the bridge height has been a hot topic in the community as well, as the cost of a 135-foot bridge is tapping out at $1.1. billion currently — escalating by more than half since last year when it was announced NCDOT received a $252-million federal grant from the Biden administration to help pay for it. The grant is on pause by the current Trump administration and the NCDOT indicated last week the only way to fund the remainder would be a toll if alternative sources aren’t available.
While many have called for a 100-foot bridge (plus or minus 35 feet), others including the Wilmington Chamber advocated for the 135-foot clearance, citing potential for commercial growth. However, vessels traveling north of the bridge have diminished as businesses have exited on the roughly 1,000 acres of land once intended for industrial use.
A higher vertical clearance would allow ships to reach those areas and potential businesses, despite the fact the bridge’s current 65-foot-movable span opening has declined by around 63% since 2019.
Ahead of making a determination, the agency welcomed community feedback on NCDOT’s options earlier this year. Port City Daily asked the agency how many responses it received from the public, how those responses were weighed, and how many were for the 135 height versus other options. According to USACE’s Jed Clayton, it received many but said specifics would require a FOIA.
“We did send out a Public Notice for this project, and received many comments, but we couldn’t make a public interest determination because we terminated our review when we determined that the request would negatively impact the purpose of the existing federally authorized Wilmington Harbor Navigation project,” he said. “However, once NEPA is completed by the lead federal agency, we will be able to continue through our section 408 permit process, which includes completing our public interest evaluation, until we reach a permit decision.”
[Editor’s Note: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated the USACE project that would be impacted was the harbor deepening project, which has not been approved. It is actually the Wilmington Navigation Project, which has been authorized since 1930. PCD regrets the error.]
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