Work started Sept. 11 on a $152.2-million bulkhead replacement at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., that project officials say will replace 1950s-era seawalls, accommodate larger passenger and cargo vessels and improve resilience against hurricanes and sea-level rise.
The effort is being led by Moss & Associates under a managing general contractor model. The project’s budget was increased last November to reflect the expanded scope from its initial $90.9-million price tag by the Broward County Commission.
Additional funds cover risk adjustments, demolition of Building 6 in Northport for staging, installation of new high-wind bollards and floating fenders for larger cruise ships and a shift to water-side construction, which requires marine equipment and logistics changes.
Officials noted that higher inflation, exceeding the 3% annual rate initially assumed through 2026, also contributed to the higher cost.
Mott MacDonald designed approximately 2,840 linear ft of new bulkhead in Phase 1, with about 900 ft already complete. A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permit notice specifies that the replacement will add about 2,243 linear ft of steel sheet-pile wall, in some areas set as much as 5.5 ft waterward of the existing bulkhead and capped with 6.25 ft of reinforced concrete.
The design includes tie-backs and soil anchors to strengthen the wall and uses combi-wall systems and concrete caps in certain sections. Federal planning documents note that bulkheads built more than 40 years ago have exceeded their design life, requiring replacement before future navigation improvements can advance.
Port Everglades’ bulkhead replacement program will remove existing shoreline and construct new reinforced walls, extending berth width to 450 ft to support larger vessels and improve long-term resilience. Image: Courtesy of Port Everglades
Kris Pagán, principal project manager for marine structures at Mott MacDonald, said his firm’s work “supports the Port’s objective to serve as an economic engine for the county but also ensures long-term infrastructure vitality for one of the country’s most critical seaports.”
Port Everglades describes the design as a deeper and stronger wall placed just outside the existing line, with the intervening space filled.
“The new wall, which is expected to last 75 years or more, will be installed a few feet outside the existing wall and the space between the walls will be filled,” according to the project overview.
Engineers also designed the wall to be raised by up to five feet in the future to address sea-level rise and to withstand hurricane storm surges, reverse surges and wave overtopping.
Funding comes primarily from Port Everglades’ enterprise revenues generated by cruise, cargo, energy and real estate operations. As a self-supporting enterprise fund, the port does not rely on local property tax dollars for capital projects.
In 2023, however, the port also received a $32-million resilience grant from the Florida Dept. of Environmental Protection to support replacement of the North Entrance Channel bulkhead. That award, port officials said, underscored state backing for infrastructure that secures both navigation safety and economic activity.
Substantial completion for Berths 1 through 3, Berths 1A through 1D and the Entrance Channel North Bulkhead is scheduled for Sept. 24, 2026, under the county’s contract amendment. The port stated Phase 1 construction is expected to conclude by December 2026.
The work is part of a broader Marine Infrastructure Program that also includes bulkhead replacements at Berths 16 through 18, scheduled to start in early 2027. Port Everglades’ master and vision plans identify bulkhead renewal as one of the most significant near-term capital projects in its 2025–2029 program, aligning the replacements with long-term expansion, resilience and navigation goals.
Port leaders contend the bulkhead program is critical to maintaining Everglades’ role as a major cruise and cargo hub. “Engineers have designed the new wall like the existing wall surface, but it will be deeper and stronger to accommodate the planned deepening of the entrance channel and improve wall stability,” port documents state.
