Construction firm Kiewit is now responsible for working with the state to design the future replacement of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, making the firm a central player in the years-long rebuild after one of the most consequential Maryland tragedies in decades.

Board members for the Maryland Transportation Authority, which owns assets like the Bay Bridge and operates toll facilities across the state, voted Thursday morning to approve the $73 million contract for project development with the company.

As part of the “progressive design build” contract, Kiewit will work alongside state transportation officials to jointly produce the blueprints and then have exclusive rights to negotiate the building of the bridge. Transportation officials opening the bridge to traffic in the fall of 2028.

That would be roughly four and a half years after a massive container ship struck one of the former Key Bridge’s support piers on March 26, causing the structure to crumble into the Patapsco River, killing six construction workers. Rebuilding the bridge became an unexpected and massive need for a state short on funds for ambitious plans in education, housing and transportation.

During board discussion, Maryland Transportation Secretary Paul Wiedefeld thanked MDTA staff for decisive work in getting to this milestone as quickly as possible in light of the March tragedy.

In an interview, MDTA Executive Director Bruce Gartner said it took significant daily effort from his staff and consultants to get this done only five months after the bridge collapsed. He called officially beginning the fourth of Gov. Wes Moore’s directives during recovery — rebuild the bridge — meaningful and a sense of “delivering for the people of Maryland.”

“We just can’t forget what we’ve been through,” Gartner said.

Kiewit’s was the most expensive of three rebuild proposals that the MDTA considered but scored highest on technical aspects, which the agency decided would be weighted more in its decision than price. Each firm submitted indirect cost estimates for things like their anticipated profit margin — Kiewit’s proposal came in $20 million and $41 million higher than the others, respectively.

The agency looked at key staff members for each company and how they handled things like permits and risk management on previous projects, said Jim Harkness, chief engineer for the MDTA.

The project is estimated to cost between $1.7 billion and $1.9 billion. Cost estimates should solidify in about six months once the team reaches 50%-60% design, Harkness said, when a “guaranteed maximum price” should become clear.

Kiewit will design a structure with at least 230 feet of clearance above the main shipping channel in the Patapsco River, according to Coast Guard guidance given in June — the fallen bridge stood 185 feet above the water’s surface depending on the tide. The main span should also be 200 feet longer than the previous bridge. Those changes mean the MDTA will have to demolish the remaining spans of the bridge and start from scratch.

Paying for the entire rebuild remains an unresolved question. As it stands, 90% of the total cost will flow out of a Federal Highway Administration emergency fund, and Maryland would be responsible for the remaining 10%. A pair of bills, one proposed in the U.S. House of Representatives and the other in the Senate, would remove the state’s obligation and ensure 100% federal funding, as pledged by President Joe Biden soon after the bridge fell.

Those bills, which have the support of the entire Maryland federal delegation, call for pursuing reimbursement to the federal coffers through a mix of insurance payouts from a state policy on the bridge and payments from any entity found liable for the disaster. That could include the owner and operator of the striking cargo ship, the Dali, pending the results of federal investigations from the National Transportation Safety Board and the FBI.

The MDTA board also voted Thursday to designate its full $350 million insurance payout for reimbursing the federal government. Sixty million dollars has already been repaid for the quick-release funds issued for cleanup and recovery in the aftermath of the tragedy, according to MDTA documents, with $290 million yet to change hands.

“I think this demonstrates good faith … and is a good path forward,” said board member John F. von Paris during discussion.

The move will not materially change the MDTA’s financial goals and forecast approved by the board in June, the authority said. The board also voted Thursday morning to stay the course of its long-term investment strategy.

With this design, Kiewit adds another banner Baltimore project to its portfolio. In February, Amtrak announced a $1 billion contract with a construction supergroup including the firm for work on the future Frederick Douglass Tunnel in West Baltimore.

The company is now responsible for boring two multi-mile tunnel tubes for passenger rail on one side of town and designing a roadway across the Patapsco River on the other.

The Nebraska-based company is one of the largest construction firms in the country, pulling in more revenue in 2023 than all but one other company, according to the Engineering News-Record.

This story was updated to clarify that transportation officials estimate the rebuild project will cost between $1.7 billion and $1.9 billion.