VICTORIA — Work to replace the aging dock serving the Black Ball Ferry Line in Victoria Harbour is slated to begin Oct. 13.
An eight-week disruption in service is anticipated in January and February.
The project is pending final approval of the design by the British Columbia Ministry of Transportation.
The first phase of construction is expected to be completed by mid-May in time for the heavy summer tourist season, said Black Ball CEO Ryan Burles, based in Victoria.
The second phase is expected to run from October 2016 through May 2017.
During the first three months of construction, ferry service will continue on its usual schedule, with operations reduced to twice a day following Canadian Thanksgiving Day on Oct. 12, as is normal for that time of year, Burles said.
“We are going to be landing and operating while we are building it.”
Beginning Jan. 4, the ferry service will not be in operation for at least eight weeks to allow for major construction, Burles said.
“We will be out for those two months to put in the new car ramp,” he said.
“We are drilling the piles into the rock, and then we’ve got to lay the stations and place the car ramp, so that is why the eight-week period” is required, so “we will be able to have time to do all that.”
Replace aging dock
As part of the project, currently estimated at about $12.3 million in Canadian dollars, crews will replace the aging wooden dock using modern materials.
“It is a rebuild of the dock, which is an 80-year-old creosote piling that needs to be replaced,” Burles said.
“This dock is on its last legs, so it certainly needs to be replaced because the repairs to it were becoming not cost-effective.”
The new dock will be constructed of steel pilings and concrete, and will be the exact same size as the old dock, he said.
“It will be a dock for the next generation going forward for us, so it is good on all sides.”
The dock is owned by the Province of British Columbia, Burles said.
“What they have done is allow us to do a tenant improvement, so we are going to do the work.
“We are very highly motivated — not only to do it but to do it so we can still operate it,” Burles added.
The project also will include replacement of mooring dolphins and car ramps and construction of covered walkways for passengers, he said.
A dolphin is a cluster of piles used for mooring vessels.
“We are going to work with the dock and the dolphins all in one, which basically makes it a smoother construction format,” Burles said.
The dock in Port Angeles also will be improved with the replacement of a mooring dolphin.
The first major portion of construction in Victoria, driving new pilings into the sea floor of the Inner Harbour, is expected to begin in late October, “as long as everything goes smoothly with regard to getting the crane and moving some kiosks and moving some fencing . . . so that Canadian Customs can still inspect cars coming off,” Burles said.
The crane will be based on the land so it won’t disrupt the docking of the MV Coho, which ferries passengers and vehicles back and forth across the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
“We couldn’t have a derrick because then we would have to move the derrick every time the ship came in,” Burles said.
“We are going to be doing the work on the land. That is where . . . having enough area to make sure that Canadian border services can still do their job and U.S. Customs can still do theirs, too,” comes into play.
Minimize impact
Black Ball Ferry Line chose to close the route from Port Angeles during eight weeks early next year to minimize the impact on tourism, Burles said.
“We are trying to do this with as least disruption” as possible, he said.
“We are usually quite busy around Christmas and New Year’s, and then it dies, basically, so we are trying to hit the [slowest] time of the year.”
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Sequim-Dungeness Valley Editor Chris McDaniel can be reached at 360-681-2390, ext. 5052, or cmcdaniel@peninsuladailynews.com.
