The Scott administration will pay a Texas contractor nearly $4 million to settle claims involving a trouble-plagued cofferdam built across the Druid Lake reservoir in Druid Hill Park that at times exposed city residents to excessive turbidity in their drinking water.

Meanwhile, a key objective of residents in Reservoir Hill and neighboring communities – a lake available for recreational uses – remains unfunded despite years of planning and promises.

The $3.75 million cost overrun is all good, according to Bureau of Water Construction Chief Timothy Wolfe, because the contractor, Oscar Renda, originally wanted over $7 million in cost overruns, plus $1.4 million in interest.

The EWO (extra work order) is less than 3% of the project’s overall price tag, Wolfe said, at a recent Board of Estimates meeting at which the overrun payment was approved.

His upbeat assessment was enough for Council President Nick Mosby and Mayor Brandon Scott to laud the completion of the project’s first phase – to install massive underground water tanks to comply with new federal mandates.

But there was no discussion about how the city plans to turn the remaining lake and adjacent grounds into a public asset.

Back in 2016, the plan was to encircle the shrunken lake with a new promenade and to build ball fields and an amphitheater over the underground tanks.

In 2021, the Department of Recreation and Parks released a “Druid Lake Vision Plan” with more elaborate design concepts – an Olympic-sized swimming pool, outdoor cafe, education building, fishing pier, boat house and a raised boardwalk spanning the water – that city officials estimated would cost about $50 million.

No capital funds have been allocated so far by the city to turn these concepts into reality, though a $17 million state grant has been secured for lake improvements and $800,000 set aside for more studies.

What’s more, no plan has been developed to introduce fresh water into the lake and to keep the water circulating so it doesn’t stagnate or harbor E. coli or other waterborne pathogens.

Instead, the city is relying on storm runoff to keep the lake full and safe.

Declaring Victory

At the September 4 BOE meeting, Mosby took the lead in declaring the project finished and patting himself on the back for a job well done.

“Starting with me as a city councilman, [it was] my fight to get this done right. I can ride off on my horse knowing that Druid Park Lake is done,” he said, alluding to the fact that he lost the Democratic primary for Council president and will be leaving office in December.

“I can cut the ribbon with our amazing mayor – I’m just going to put that on record,” he added.

“We’re not done yet,” Scott replied, saying it was “up to” Recreation and Parks Director Reginald R. Moore “to make this a usable, livable lake.”

“We’re looking forward to that,” the mayor continued. “That will make Druid Hill Park even more special, especially for those who live in Reservoir Hill.”

PAST BREW COVERAGE:

• Druid Lake would be reduced by one-fifth for water storage tanks (10/25/13)

• Get ready for many years of disruption at Baltimore’s Druid Lake (12/9/16)

• Project to protect city’s drinking water has so far compromised it (7/11/18)

• Amid high turbidity levels, MDE calls for more tests (10/4/18)

• The Druid Hill and Lake Ashburton construction messes: It didn’t have to be this way (10/4/18)

• City will speed up testing to get Druid and Ashburton drinking water tanks online (10/18/23)

The cheery tone at City Hall is in stark contrast to the dismal scene at Druid Hill Park, where the lake – down at least six feet from its historic water level due to the recent lack of rain – sits amid a shoreline partly blockaded by heavy equipment and construction debris.

Wolfe hedged when asked when the tank project would be closed out, saying that “substantial completion” should occur by the end of this year.

(Board of Estimates documents show the construction end date was recently pushed back by six months, from September 4, 2024 to March 8, 2025.)

Botched Cofferdam

Oscar Renda won the contract in 2016 in part by proposing a new type of cofferdam to wall off the lake water from the underground tanks.

While its competitors proposed a dam with conventional sheet pilings, the Texas company wanted to build the wall with 100,000 tons of rip-rap or rock rubble.

The rip-rap had the potential of introducing considerable amounts of dust and residue into the reservoir, not to speak of churning up long-settled bottom sediments.

To avoid such contamination, Oscar Renda proposed – and the Department of Public Works approved – the placement of a “turbidity curtain”next to the cofferdam.

The curtain didn’t work because DPW miscalculated the depth of the lake, leading to various “leaks” at the bottom of the lake, according to the contractor.

Shortly after construction began in 2017, turbidity readings shot up, indicating that the drinking water was being contaminated by sediment and other solids.

Shut down three times by the Maryland Department of the Environment, the turbidity problem was eventually addressed by draining the lake, installing the cofferdam, then refilling the lake.

All of which caused considerable delays, according to Oscar Renda.

“A recurring theme over the course of the life of this project [was] the City unable to make the correct decisions within an acceptable time frame,” Area Manager John Marcantoni wrote to DPW in a March 29, 2019 memo reviewed by The Brew.

“For approximately 15 months, Oscar Renda and the City have corresponded about the possible reasons and causes creating excessive turbidity,” Marcantoni continued. “Particularly with regard to the specified turbidity curtain, which failed to maintain the turbidity levels as required in the contract documents.”

Over the next five years, the contractor and the city battled over who should pay for the shutdowns before settling on the $3,750,868 EWO (Extra Work Order) that was unanimously approved by the spending board.

Missing: Money

In the meantime, the Baltimore Department of Recreation and Parks hired Unknown Studio to transform the lake “from a sterile drinking water reservoir to a destination for recreational water access, aquatic ecology and innovative stormwater management,” according to the consultant.

In a 2022 presentation to the Urban Design & Architecture Advisory Panel, it was estimated that the new amenities would cost about $50 million on top of the $140 million spent on the underground tanks.

The state has committed $17 million to lake improvements, and the city has kicked in $800,000 for additional planning and studies.

As for the remaining $35 million or so needed, Rec and Parks speaks of applying for federal grants, foundation money and private donations.

All of which means that the former reservoir – now partly empty and fenced off from public access – will likely remain that way for a long time to come.

• To reach a reporter: reuttermark@yahoo.com