The U.S. Coast Guard has awarded a $230 million design-build contract for new operational and support facilities at Base Charleston, bringing the value of three recent infrastructure contracts at the South Carolina installation to more than $440 million.
The Coast Guard's Facilities Design and Construction Center awarded the latest contract to Brasfield & Gorrie LLC, Birmingham, Ala., on June 16. The project is expected to be completed in 2030.
Plans include a 90,000-sq.-ft. engineering complex with space for facilities and naval engineering units, electronics support, industrial production, boat storage, shipping and receiving, and hazardous materials storage.
A separate 120,000-sq.-ft. multifunctional building will include a 75-room unaccompanied personnel housing facility, a galley with capacity to serve 650 patrons, a fitness center, and an exchange. The project also includes a parking structure for personnel working aboard vessels homeported at Base Charleston.
The award follows two contracts announced in May for pier and shore-side improvements at the expanding base.
Whiting-Turner Contracting Co., Greenbelt, Md., received a $116.7 million fixed-price design-build contract to recapitalize Pier Mike. The project includes demolition of the existing pier and construction of a new facility designed to homeport four Offshore Patrol Cutters and accommodate one visiting cutter.
Each berth will also be capable of mooring National Security Cutters, according to the Coast Guard. The Pier Mike project is scheduled for completion in 2030.
Brasfield & Gorrie was also awarded a $95.5 million contract for a new 30,000-sq.-ft. combined medical and dental facility, a new entry control point and visitor center, and supporting utilities. That project is expected to be completed by July 2029.
“The strategic expansion of Base Charleston is vital to our maritime operations and national security,” Vice Adm. Jo-Ann F. Burdian, commander of Coast Guard Atlantic Area, said in a statement. “This investment not only supports homeporting of our newest cutters, it ensures our dedicated service members have the modern infrastructure, healthcare, and support facilities they deserve to maintain peak mission readiness.”
Together, the three contracts total approximately $442.2 million and are part of a multi-year expansion of Base Charleston aimed at supporting the Coast Guard's next generation of cutters and expanding operational capacity on the East Coast.
The Coast Guard has previously said Base Charleston is slated to become the service's largest homeport. The service expects its workforce in the Charleston area to double by 2030 as the installation expands to support additional cutters and shore-side operations.
All three contracts were awarded through the Department of Homeland Security's National Multiple Award Construction Contract III. The Coast Guard said the projects are supported in part by a broader $25 billion capital investment in the service.
Additional phases of the Base Charleston expansion are planned.
