The River’s Edge Trail will be closed temporarily for a bank stabilization project.

The trail will be closed along the north side of the Missouri River from 4th Street Northeast to the 10th Street bridge from Jan. 27 through March 7.

The contractor, Olympus Technical Services, will also be using a portion of the West Bank Park access road for material storage and will provide barricades in the construction area.

City approves next phase of river bank stabilization project

City Commissioners awarded a $365,105 construction contract to Olympus in September for the second phase of the Missouri River north bank stabilization project.

The goal of the second phase is to continue preserving the north bank shoreline and eliminate erosion along the roughly 550-foot stretch of river, according to city staff. The project will provide protection for the River’s Edge Trail and the 36-inch sanitary sewer main that parallels the river along the top of the shoreline.

City rejects over budget bids for riverbank stabilization

The city rejected bids for the project in early August and rebid the project later that month.

The city received three bids for the project in July, with the lowest bid being $384,977.

The available funding for the project is $367,485, according to city staff through federal and state grants and city utility funds.

After rebidding the project, the city received three bids on Sept. 4 ranging from $365,105 to $399,300 with Olympus Technical Services submitting the lowest bid.

City staff selected the project under the public works capital improvement plan and it was budgeted in the sanitary sewer utility enterprise fund.

The city received a $356,208.23 hazard mitigation grant from the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency with a required local match of $118,736.07 being funded through the state’s Missouri/Madison River Fund and the sewer fund with a total project budget of $474,944.30, according to staff.

First phase of riverbank stabilization project nearly done [2023]

Of the project total budget, $107,460 is allocated to WWC Engineering and $367,485 is budgeted for construction.

The project is a partnership between the city, Cascade County, Cascade County Conservation District, Recreational Trails Inc. and NorthWestern Energy and has identified a 1,400 linear foot stretch of bank on the northwise of the Missouri River where significant erosion is occurring immediately west of the 9th Street bridge, adjacent to the city wastewater treatment plant and Calumet Montana Refining.

Large portions of the riverbank have sloughed off into the river creating an unstable condition and a safety hazard, according to city staff.

The height of the bank within the proposed project area is seven to 20 feet in vertical height with erosion threatening the River’s Edge Trail and a 36-inch buried sewer line, which are about 30-60 feet from the edge of the bank, according to city staff.

City Commissioners voted in November 2022 to accept a U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency grant for this second phase of the project.

Phase two’s goal is to continue preservation of the northern riverbank and eliminate erosion along the 550-foot stretch of the river and also protecting the trail and sewer line.

Missouri River stabilization project continuing [2022]

The proposed project includes installation of riprap with blended soils and planting of willows at the toe of the slope and a graded slope with erosion protection.

The Cascade Conservation District contracted in 2002 with Land and Water Consulting, now know as WWC, for a Missouri River Urban Corridor Inventory and Assessment to document existing conditions and provide potential restoration options.

The study identified the roughly 1,440-foot stretch from the 9th Street bridge upstream as the highest priority for riverbank stabilization.

City receives FEMA grant for riverbank stabilization project [2021]

The CCD sponsored the development of the preliminary engineering report for the project that was published in 2015.

In August 2022, commissioners approved a contract to Winkler Excavating Inc. for the first phase of project construction, which has since been completed.

The second phase will finish the recommended repairs including bank stabilization along 550 linear feet.