A joint venture of Lane Construction Corp. and Salini Impregilo is beginning work on a 10,500-acre storage reservoir beside the Caloosahatchee River in Hendry Co., Fla., to restore and maintain the river’s estuary near Fort Myers. The five-year, $524-million lump-sum contract is the largest ever awarded by the South Florida Water Management District, the agency responsible for the state’s work under the $16.4-billion Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan. Mobilization on site will be complete this fall, with substantial completion scheduled in the spring of 2024.
Lane is leading the JV with its parent Salini Impregilo. The March 14 award follows a Jan. 30 opening of four bids for the civil works project. With its bid 21% below the engineer’s estimate of $660.3 million, Lane Salini Impregilo was low, prompting a day-long bid confirmation meeting, says Alan Sharkey, engineering and construction bureau chief for the management district.