AWARDS | Geometrix Northwest

Sellwood Bridge named Project of the Year

By: DJC Staff in News May 18, 2017 10:35 pm

The Sellwood Bridge Project was honored as 2017 Project of the Year at the Daily Journal of Commerce’s TopProjects awards Thursday. (Sam Tenney/DJC) More than 600 people gathered at the Oregon Convention Center Thursday evening to help the Daily Journal of Commerce pay tribute to more than 30 outstanding projects completed in 2016 in Oregon or Southwest Washington.

The annual TopProjects competition, now in its 23rd year, is regarded as one of the Pacific Northwest’s most popular building industry events. This year’s competition drew more than 95 entries in 10 categories, including new construction of private, public, mixed-use and multifamily buildings, infrastructure and transportation projects.

The replacement of the Sellwood Bridge in Portland was named the 2017 Project of the Year. The honor is given to a project that earns the highest overall score in the competition. In giving the project an almost perfect score, judges gave nods to the project team, including general contractor Slayden-Sundt Joint Venture, T.Y. Lin International Group and project owner Multnomah County, for an outstanding effort coordinating many components, using DMWESB subcontractors effectively and tapping innovative solutions to overcome challenges.

OR 38: Elk Creek to Hardscrabble Creek

1st Place in Public Works/Infrastructure/Transportation: over $15 million (2009)

This $47 MM design build multi-discipline highway project consisted of the design and replacement of five bridges over environmentally sensitive waterways in multiple work zones along OR 38. The project also included upgrades to the OR 38/OR 138 intersection. The project stretched over a 14-mile section of OR 38 between the cities of Drain and Elkton, Oregon.

The project included extensive in-water work, including six cofferdams to facilitate the demolition of the old bridges and to construct the new bridge piers. All of the in-water work had to be completed during the July 1 to September 30 in-water work period.

As the design-builder, Slayden Construction Group was also responsible for obtaining all permits and clearances for the five bridge sites. Elk Creek contained Coho Salmon, a listed species under the endangered species act. The project also contained critical habitat for the Northern Spotted Owl, another listed species.

Two of the five bridges were replaced using a “Rapid Replacement” technique, in which the new structure is built adjacent to the existing structure, then “slid” into place after removal of the existing structure. The two rapid replacements were each completed during a 48-hour weekend closure.

Total Project Value: $47.1 million

Slayden Construction Role: Design-Build General Contractor

Owner: ODOT

Rogue River Bridge

FIRST PLACE PUBLIC WORKS/INFRASTRUCTURE/TRANSPORTATION $1M - $5M

By: Lindsey O'Brien in TopProjects 2011 May 26, 2011 8:33 am

The challenge in working on the Rock Point Bridge was to be as true to the bridge’s original appearance as possible. Spanning the Rogue River since 1921, the bridge was one of the first designed by Conde McCullough, who is renowned for his arch bridges along the Oregon coast.

Because the Rock Point Bridge is on the Historic Registry, it was important that the new bridge looked the same after construction. By pre-casting the ornamental concrete bridge rail sections, the project team from Wildish Standard Paving Co. was able to create an accurate replica, said Tom Deines, project manager for Wildish.

For public safety, however, it was also crucial to increase the bridge’s structural strength in order to comply with current traffic standards. In addition to concrete patching done with high-strength concrete, the team wrapped the arch ribs and the main arch with fiber reinforced polymer to increase the arches’ structural integrity.

“It was a challenge to replicate the ornamental rail work, but we did that and also came up with something that was structurally stronger than what was there before,” Deines said.

Nearly all of the concrete rubble that came from demolition of the 501-foot-long bridge was recycled and used for reclamation of previous excavations. When more ornamental pieces of the concrete bridge rail were removed, local residents flocked to receive the old balusters.

The Oregon Department of Transportation and local residents and businesses considered the project a successful preservation of an important piece of Oregon bridge history. “Members of the community have told us that we put the bridge back to what it looked like when it was new,” Deines said. “That’s a big part of the success in historic projects.”