Granite Construction Awarded $39.3 Million Army Corps Levee Project in California

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, San Francisco District, has awarded a $39.3 million firm-fixed-price contract to Granite Construction for levee and floodwall construction in Watsonville, California. The contract will be performed over approximately three years, with an estimated completion date of September 11, 2027. The place of performance is Watsonville, California, and the contract was awarded using a sealed bid process.

Work to be Completed Under PAJARO RIVER REACH 6 Contract

For more details on the solicitation and project background, see the official solicitation page on HigherGov. The full Invitation for Bids is also available as a PDF document here.

The Pajaro River Flood Risk Management Project, Reach 6, aims to enhance flood risk management along Corralitos Creek—a tributary of the Pajaro River Levee System in Watsonville. This initiative is part of a broader mission by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to protect local communities from flooding and improve infrastructure resilience across the region.

Key elements of the project include:

• Construction of approximately 2.6 miles of engineered levees using about 111,600 compacted cubic yards of fill.
• Levee crest elevations will range from 2 to 8 feet with a minimum crest width of 20 feet and side slopes at a ratio of 3H:1V.
• The access road atop the levee will be surfaced with at least 8 inches of CalTrans Class 2 Aggregate Base.
• Erection of approximately 1,500 linear feet of floodwalls ranging from 6 to 9 feet in height.

The project area encompasses roughly 10,000 acres within the lower Pajaro River watershed, including stream channels, active floodplains, and terraces along the Pajaro River and its tributaries—the Salsipuedes and Corralitos Creeks. The region straddles Santa Cruz County to the north and Monterey County to the south.

Coordination with future construction activities is required as the Highway 152 Bridge will be raised by about six feet under a separate project. The first 100 feet from boarding the bridge are reserved for this future work.

The contract includes requirements for performance and payment bonds, adherence to updated wage determinations, and compliance with a Project Labor Agreement. There are no small business set-asides for this procurement (NAICS Code: 237990). Amendments during the solicitation process addressed bid deadlines, revised specifications and plans, geotechnical reports, and subcontracting goals.

Awardee Details: Granite Construction

Granite Construction, headquartered in Watsonville, California, is an established contractor with extensive experience in large-scale civil infrastructure projects for federal agencies of a similar scope. The company has previously completed major contracts such as:

• Pretty Rocks Landslide Project ($214 million) for Western Federal Lands Highway Division
• Sacramento Weir Widening ($177.1 million) for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
• Border Infrastructure-Barrier Gaps Design Build Construction ($168.2 million) for Customs and Border Protection
• Rail Yard Improvements at Fort Bliss ($76.3 million) for USACE Fort Worth District
• Levee Reach2/Vinyard & Harrison Sumps ($48.4 million) for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
• Navy-Commercial Tie-In Hardening Joint Region Marianas ($39 million) for NAVFAC Pacific

For more information about Granite Construction’s federal contracting history, visit their profile on HigherGov.

This award was disclosed by the DoD in its daily press release. Additional contract details will be available on HigherGov once disclosed by the government in approximately 90 days under W912P725CA018 after the contract is formally disclosed by the government.

Anna Davis

Staff Writer

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