Inwood Park bulkhead to be overhauled

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A $2.7 million project to overhaul the 54-year-old bulkhead at Inwood Park and install a new kayak launch is expected to begin in January and, depending on the weather, will take at least a year to complete.

The existing timber bulkhead, which has not been replaced since it was originally installed in 1965, is planned to be replaced with reinforced fiberglass sheet piles and tie rods. The bulkhead’s alignment will also be reconfigured. The current non-compliant American with Disabilities Act floating dock will be replaced by an ADA compatible kayak launch.

All of the aluminum railing, electrical utilities and asphalt walkways will be replaced. The new bulkhead will have reinforced concrete capping instead of the existing timber capping. Precast concrete panels will replace the current asphalt boat ramp.

“Before I became the legislator I toured the park and I toured the park with the county executive (Laura Curran) and Ken Arnold (county commissioner of the Department of Public Works) and saw that the boat ramp was in disrepair, and that was last year,” said County Legislator Carrié Solgaes, who represents Inwood. “I said It doesn’t have to be this way and we got the money and pushed it along ahead of other DPW projects.”

Geotextile material is to be installed and the riprap will be replaced. Geotextiles are porous fabrics which, when used in connection with the soil, have the ability to drain water, filter and separate debris and reinforce and protect against damage. Riprap is man-placed rock or other material used to protect bridge abutments, pilings, shorelines, streambeds and other shoreline structures against damage by swift-flowing water.

There were concerns about Chesterfield Associates Inc., the Westhampton Beach-based company that was awarded the contract, Solages said. The marine construction firm was the general contractor for the Glen Cove ferry terminal project, where it was discovered the bulkhead was at risk of collapsing because seven of 200 support bolts had broken in 2011. Chesterfield was alleged to have improperly installed the tie rods.

After litigation, a settlement was reached in 2014 with Chesterfield, AECOM USA, Cameron Engineering and Halcrow Engineers. The county’s Inspector General Jodi Franzese conducted what was called a “limited review” of Chesterfield. It was determined that there were design flaws that could not be attributed to Chesterfield.

“The tie rod installation, however, was not identified by the independent engineering and peer review reports as the sole cause of the bolt failures,” Franzese wrote in her report.

The kayak launch will be the 22nd on what is known as the South Shore Blueway Trail, which is a network water access points for boats powered by people and beachable sail boats. The trail the southern coast of Nassau County encompassing the western bays of the South Shore Estuary Reserve which is comprised of West, Middle, and East Hempstead bays and South Oyster Bay. From the Town of Hempstead’s western border it stretches 18 miles to the Nassau/Suffolk border at South Oyster Bay.

“The Inwood community is ecstatic about the planned upgrades to our beloved park,” said David Hance, president of the Inwood Civic Association. “It is long over due. We are due so happy that Inwood is finally getting the attention it deserves. Inwood Park is a great resource for our expanding community.” Earlier this year, the park’s administration building that includes the main office and restrooms underwent reconstruction by the county. A project that cost nearly $750,000.