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  • July

    South Atlantic Division Commander, signs a memorandum of agreement for Guajataca Dam Permanent Repairs, the govenor of Puerto Rico and the Exec. Engineer of PREPA watch

    USACE signs MOA Agreement for Guajataca Dam Repairs

    SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers South Atlantic Division commander, Brigadier General Daniel Hibner, signed a Memorandum of Agreement on June 29, 2023, with the Puerto Rico Power Authority (PREPA), to initiate the permanent repairs of the Guajataca Dam in Isabela, Puerto Rico. The total estimated cost for this project is around $1 billion. The funds will be received from PREPA with funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency Disaster Recovery Funds. It is estimated that the permanent repairs will benefit 1,000 people that live directly downstream of the dam and another 250,000 that receive water from the filtration plants in Guajataca, Quebradillas, Isabela, and the mountains of Aguadilla. Governor Pedro Pierluisi was present during the signing ceremony.
  • The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District celebrated Corps Day on Friday, June 23, at the Jacksonville Fairgrounds. The annual event celebrates employees’ accomplishments and achievements over the past year and hosted hundreds of families, friends, and special guests. This year’s theme was “Game Day,” and the crowd was adorned with sports apparel from their favorite teams.

    Jacksonville District employees celebrate annual Corps Day at Jacksonville Fairgrounds

    (JACKSONVILLE, Fla., June 23) --The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District celebrated Corps Day on Friday, June 23, 2023, at the Jacksonville Fairgrounds. The annual event celebrates employees’ accomplishments and achievements over the past year and hosted hundreds of families, friends, and special guests.

  • June

    Jacksonville District

    Jacksonville Commander announces Lake Okeechobee Wet Season Strategy

    The start of the wet season is a key moment in any water year, and it is here for 2023. We have seen the weather shift into wet season patterns across south Florida and over Lake Okeechobee. When the system is in a transition, we work together to assess the current system conditions, look back at what’s happened, and evaluate trends moving forward. Let’s review the 2022-2023 dry season and outline our strategy for the 2023 wet season.
  • Jacksonville District Park Ranger, Megan Parsons (right) helps a volunteer to dig and plant a tree. Volunteers will plant nearly 9,000 native pollinator wildflowers and grasses at the W.P. Franklin Recreation Area during Pollinator Week on June 24, in the second phase of plantings to reforest an 8.5 acre open field as part of the Engineering with Nature Program. (USACE photo by Mark Rankin)

    USACE Hosts volunteers for National Pollinator Week

    ALVA, Fla. – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District hosted volunteers from Southern Florida for a day of service at the W.P. Franklin Lock and Dam South Recreation Area near Alva during National Pollinator Week, on Saturday, June 24, to plant nearly 9,000 Florida native pollinator wildflowers and grasses.

  • May

    U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, South Atlantic Division commander, Brig. Gen. Daniel Hibner and Puerto Rico Congresswoman Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon Resident for Puerto Rico, introduces key leadership that is currently coordinating the creation and establishment of Task Force U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico (TF VIPR) during a press conference that was held in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Task Force U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico (Task Force VIPR) was created to organize and prioritize the demand of construction projects throughout the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. (USACE photo by Luis Deya)

    USACE creates project Task Force VIPR for Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico

    SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers continues to take new approaches to engineering solutions for our nations toughest challenges and introduced the new task force that aims to speed up construction of the ongoing civilian works on the Island. Task Force U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico (Task Force VIPR) was created to organize and prioritize the demand of construction projects throughout the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.
  • MV One Stork calls at Jacksonville

    Jacksonville hails arrival of largest container ship to ever call at port

    JACKSONVILLE, Fla., May 4, 2023 – Less than one year since the completion of the Jacksonville Harbor 47-foot Deepening project, Jaxport marked a milestone with the arrival yesterday of the largest capacity container ship to ever call at the Blount Island Marine Terminal. The USACE Jacksonville District's Harbor Deepening project provides the water draft needed to accommodate such vessels.

  • April

    Members of the USACE, Jacksonville District, Puerto Rico Integrated Project Office received Dr. David W. Pittman, Director of the US Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) as well as representatives of its seven laboratories on March 30, 2023.

    ERDC leadership visits Jacksonville District Puerto Rico Projects

    SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, Antilles Office and the Puerto Rico Integrated Projects Office hosted a recent visit by Dr. David W. Pittman, Director of the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) as well as representatives of its seven laboratories. 
  • Project manager, stands at the pulpit at a public meeting.

    Puerto Nuevo Flood Risk Management Project Team participates in Community Meeting

    San Juan, Puerto Rico - The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District, Antilles office, Río Puerto Nuevo Flood Risk Management Project team participated in a community meeting March 28.

  • March

    Maj. Jesús Soto, Deputy District Engineer, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District provides opening remarks at the Puerto Rico Big 3 Industry Day. The event focused on discussing Río Puerto Nuevo Flood Control Project, Supplemental Contract 3 and provided updates for the Supplemental Puerto Rico Civil Work Construction projects. (USACE photo by Jennifer Garcia)

    USACE hosts Industry Day in San Juan Puerto Rico

    San Juan, Puerto Rico – March 1, 2023 -- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, Antilles Office hosted an Industry Day in San Juan Puerto Rio at Colegio de Ingenieros y Agrimensores de Puerto Rico. Local, national, and international construction companies from benefited from their participation.
  • photo from St. Augustine Back Bay public meeting and charrette

    USACE hosts charrette, public scoping meeting for St. Augustine Back Bay CSRM Feasibility Study

    St. Augustine, Fla. – Feb. 24, 2023 -- Jacksonville District’s St. Augustine Back Bay Coastal Storm Risk Management Feasibility Study took two big steps forward when the district and its non-federal sponsor, the City of St. Augustine, began a three-day charrette and held a public meeting to introduce residents to the study’s issues and aims.
  • Sharon Rodriguez, Deputy Chief, Programs and Project Management, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District represented Brig. Gen. Daniel H. Hibner, Commander South Atlantic Division, at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Hydrographic Services Review Panel along with Capt. José E. Díaz, Commander, Sector San Juan, Captain of the Port Puerto Rico/U. S. Virgin Islands, U.S. Coast Guard and Cristina Cabrera, Special Assistant and Interim Director of the Office of Coastal Programs and Climate Change at the Department of Natural Resources, Puerto Rico. During the presentation, Rodríguez presented an overview of the coastal projects managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District as well as the agency’s surveying capabilities and maintenance of federal channels and harbors. Rodríguez praised the partnership between both federal agencies as USACE continues to conduct surveys to be used in NOAA nautical charts and build resilient coastal projects.

    USACE participates in NOAA hydrographic review panel

    San Juan, Puerto Rico, Feb. 24, 2023 -- Over 50 local, national, and international construction companies benefited from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Jacksonville District, Industry Day held this week at Colegio de Ingenieros y Agrimensores de Puerto Rico.

  • February

    Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works Michael Connor lauds USACE for their dedication to excellence during a groundbreaking ceremony marking the start of Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) Reservoir, a key component of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan that reconnects Lake Okeechobee water to the central Everglades Feb. 21, 2022. (U.S. Army Photo Brigida Sanchez)

    USACE breaks ground on massive Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir Project

    South Bay, Fla. – Feb. 22, 2023 -- Groundbreaking ceremonies have been used for centuries to celebrate the start of a new venture and give thanks to those who blazed a trail and made it possible.  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, and the South Florida Water Management District teamed with federal, state, and local officials along with stakeholders to break ground for the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) Reservoir, a major component of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan that reconnects Lake Okeechobee water to the central Everglades.
  • (Left to Right) Pedro Pierluisi, Governor, Puerto Rico (Center Right), Michael L. Connor, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works (Center Left), COL James Booth, Commander, USACE Jacksonville District (second center right), Jeniffer Gonzalez, Congresswoman Puerto Rico, partners and stakeholders. (USACE photo by Luis Deya)

    USACE moving forward: San Juan Harbor Improvements Project Partnership Agreement

    San Juan, Puerto Rico., Jan. 31, 2023 – The U. S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District and Puerto Rico Port Authority joined forces in a brief ceremony and signed a Project Partnership Agreement as a way forward towards the improvement of San Juan Harbor, in San Juan, Puerto Rico Jan. 30, 2023.

  • January

    Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, Hon. Michael L. Connor provides remarks during the El Caño Martín Peña Groundbreaking Ceremony in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Jan. 1, 2023.

    USACE holds Groundbreaking Ceremony for Caño Martín Peña’s Ecosystem Restoration Project in Puerto Rico

    San Juan, Puerto Rico., Jan. 31, 2023 – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District and the “Corporación Proyecto ENLACE del Caño Martín Peña” hosted a ground-breaking ceremony marking the start of the ecosystem restoration project in the Caño Martín Peña residential area.
  • The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District (USACE) hosted a ribbon-cutting event to celebrate completion of construction for the Herbert Hoover Dike Rehabilitation in Clewiston, Florida.

    USACE Celebrates Completion of the Herbert Hoover Dike Restoration Project

    Clewiston, Fla. – Jan.25, 2023 --The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District celebrated the substantial completion of construction for the Herbert Hoover Restoration Project around Lake Okeechobee.
  • Left to Right) St. Augustine city Commissioner Cynthia Garris, Vice Mayor Roxanne Horvath, Col. James Booth, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, commander, Commissioner Jim Springfield, Mayor Nancy Sikes-Kline and Commissioner Barbara Blonder celebrate the St. Augustine Back Bay CSRM Feasibility Study signing.

    Jacksonville District signs Feasibility Cost Share Agreement for the St. Augustine, Back Bay Coastal Storm Risk Management Feasibility Study

    JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Col. James Booth, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District commander and Mayor Nancy Sikes-Kline a City of St. Augustine official, marked the start of a comprehensive study to address ongoing coastal flooding within the city limits.

  • December

    Howard Gonzales, the incoming deputy district engineer for Programs and Project Management, presents Tim Murphy, the outgoing deputy district engineer, with the Jacksonville District Pecky Cypress Award during a retirement ceremony Dec. 15, 2022 in Jacksonville, Fla. (USACE Photo by Mark Rankin)

    Murphy retires from Jacksonville District, lauded for his savvy leadership

    JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (Dec. 19, 2022) – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District recognized Jerry Timothy “Tim” Murphy, deputy district engineer for programs and project Management in a retirement ceremony highlighting his impactful career at the district headquarters.
  • District commander

    Jacksonville Commander announces Lake Okeechobee Dry Season Strategy

    JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (Dec. 28, 2022) During the height of hurricane emergency response efforts from Ian and Nicole, our decisions were easy to reduce immediate impacts. Now, the question of how to manage all the water in Lake Okeechobee is upon us, and the solution is not an easy one.
  • groundbreaking ceremony for the Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP) New Water Seepage Barrier Wall Project, in South Florida Dec, 15, 2022. (SFWMD photo)

    USACE Celebrates Ground Breaking with SFWMD to Support Everglades Restoration and Mitigate Flooding

    MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. (Dec. 12, 2022) - The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the South Florida Water Management District joined other federal, state, and local officials along with stakeholders to break ground on the Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP) New Water Seepage Barrier Wall Project, which extends the successful underground wall that was built as part of the 8.5 Square Mile Area Seepage Wall Project.

  • November

    Assessing coastal impacts of Tropical Storm Nicole

    Jacksonville District inspection teams assess Tropical Storm Nicole impacts to Florida Atlantic beaches

    JACKSONVILLE, Florida (Nov. 18, 2022) – When Tropical Storm Nicole came ashore over Florida Nov. 9, it exacerbated beach erosion and surge damage from Hurricane Ian that had pummeled the peninsula in late September, leaving a wake of destruction widely estimated to total $50 billion or more.