BATH –– Bath Iron Works officials on Tuesday broke ground on a new parking garage. The aim is to create more parking for employees and create a better flow of traffic in downtown Bath during shift changes.
“We know that parking in proximity to the shipyard is a challenge that hurts our ability to attract and retain good people,” said Bath Iron Works President Chuck Krugh.
The garage is being built on where BIW’s largest general parking lot once was. The new building will be four stories high and two levels underground. In all, Krugh said, the building will offer 972 parking spaces.
The building is part of a project to expand parking that also includes work on two surface lots. Krugh said when finished, he expected the shipyard’s parking capacity to increase as much as 600.
Krugh said finding adequate parking for the shipyard’s more than 6,000 employees has been a challenge for decades.
Krugh also acknowledged that the shipyard causes daily traffic jams at 3:30 p.m. during shift changes.
“At 3:30, when our shift ends, I think everybody in Maine knows to stay away from Bath for about 15 or 20 minutes, and so I think it’s going to start to ease that flow,” he said.
The work will also include widening nearby Washington Street and adding crosswalks.
The garage will be for employees only most days, but Krugh said it was possible it would open to the public on special occasions like holidays.
Krugh declined to say how much the project costs. Some funding has come from federal sources and the U.S. Navy.
Krugh said it will take about two years to complete.
