Landscape Contractor / Design Build Maintain

JUL 2016

LC/DBM provides landscape contractors with Educational, Imaginative and Practical information about their business, their employees, their machines and their projects.

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Above: Only the south side of the pond wall has been completed; the north side still has the wooden wall. It will be replaced once the city has set aside adequate funding. The pond had to be drained before the timbers could be removed. Crews had to dig down 12' before they reached soil that was suitable for building on. A stone bed was set at the bottom of the pond to create a dry foundation for workers and equipment. Top: The Department of Natural Resources had to permit the project because of the potential risk that the wall could wash out in bad weather during construction. Work had to be completed in 100' sections at a time. This required partial shipments of the stone units to be delivered to the site. Despite these limitations, the 470' long (approximately 5,875 square feet) wall was completed in just eight weeks. The wall design itself is atypical because multiple rows of blocks had to be installed below grade. Three rows of blocks have stone riprap installed in front of them for additional support. Layers of geogrid, a non-biodegradable mesh, were also used to anchor the wall units and stabilize the soil. Filter fabric was incorporated for soil separation. The crew filled joints between units and behind the wall with 3/4" drainage rock and drain tile to manage water infiltra- tion. In all, 6 rows of block units plus the caps were installed; only one row and the caps are visible above the water level. Another challenge was keeping the site dry during the multi- phase construction process. In addition to pumping out the water, a stone bed was set at the bottom of the pond to provide a solid dry foundation for more stable, safe working conditions. Additionally, there were limitations imposed by the Department of Natural Re- sources. The city had to obtain permission from the DNR because of potential risk the wall could wash out in bad weather while un - der construction. They required the work to be completed in small sections of only 100' at a time. Partial shipments of Rib Rock units were delivered to the site as needed, demanding a good deal of co - ordination between the manufacturer and the Wondra team. Work on the 470' long wall began at the end of September 2014 and was finished in eight weeks. Only the south side of the pond wall, about 5,875 square feet, has been completed to date. The north side will be finished once the city sets aside funding to com- plete the project. Schall is very pleased with the materials and workmanship, and says the retaining wall looks wonderful. Additionally, he noted that the project came in on budget and on time. Residents have also commented that the wall is attractive and complements the sur- rounding buildings. DBM LC 16 LC DBM (Continued from page 14)

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