Lock project to bring 462 jobs to area as work gets underway

200 direct and
262 indirect jobs
expected to
construct lock

By Jody Norwood
Tribune-Courier News Editor
jnorwood@tribunecourier.com

BENTON – After years of funding delays that halted work on a 1,200-foot lock, it was announced Friday that construction would soon begin. And along with, would bring 462 jobs to the area.

“We estimate this $40.7 million contract will result in 200 direct jobs and another 262 indirect jobs, for a total of 462 jobs over a 27-month period,” said Corps of Engineer’s Lt. Col. Anthony Mitchell. “These are new jobs. There is no doubt, without the stimulus act, these jobs would not have been generated for at least another two years. Probably more.”

Mitchell said many of the jobs would be available during the entire 27-month project, but noted some would have shorter tenure.

“That is the nature of a construction project like this,” Mitchell said.

According to the Davis-Bacon Act, which requires the prevailing wage to be paid on public works projects, equipment operators at the lock will make around $23 per hour. Laborers will make approximately $20 per hour.

“They’re going mainly to the local workforce,” Mitchell said. “Our contractor has indicated that they plan to utilize the local workforce whenever possible, with the exception of supervisors, management staff and office support personnel. Local hires should comprise approximately 85 percent of the local workforce.”

Thalle Construction Co., of North Carolina, representatives confirmed that not only would they attempt to hire locally, but they would also work with local suppliers and subcontractors. Mitchell estimated Thalle could spend up to $5 to $6 million with local firms and businesses.

Mitchell announced Friday that Thalle Construction Co., had received the $40.7 million contract. The funds come from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, commonly referred to as the stimulus. Mitchell also informed Thalle’s executive vice president Larry Fantozzi that an additional $5.8 million in work at the lock had been awarded to his company as part of $7.6 million in funding approved Wednesday. The funds will go to construct a series of concrete monoliths, large concrete slabs that will form a new lock along the Tennessee River.

“A concrete monolith is simply a huge concrete section of a lock wall,” Mitchell said. Thalle will build the first nine of 61 sections, which will extend the current 600-foot lock to 1,200 foot to accommodate longer vessels. “Our contractor, Thalle, will place about 130,000 cubic yards of concrete to build these nine monoliths.”

Construction of the new lock has been on hold for three years after beginning in 1998. Steve Little, chairman of the Inland Waterways User Board, said delays had caused the ultimate cost of the project to increase.

“If this project had been fully funded since its beginning, today we might be attending a dedication ceremony instead of a ground breaking,” Little said. “How many of us today would start construction of a home if we didn’t know we had the cash flow to complete it? That is the way our country, for too many years, has addressed these projects. We’re pretty good at starting projects as a nation; we’re not so good at finishing projects as a nation.”

Little said barge companies and others reliant on the industry make long-term capital investments and said national policy should reflect the same position.