Keeping tourism traffic moving meant 2.4 miles of four-lane construction switched lanes from summer to off-season (September to early June). Additional challenges included re-decking the Dell Creek Bridge and realigning five miles of frontage roads and back roads to improve safety. Adding to the engineering design needs was accommodating multi-modal transportation with sidewalks, bike lanes, pedestrian paths, kiosks, decorative street lighting and other aesthetic amenities. A Type II environmental report was also required.

Construction was completed in phases and spread over eight years to minimize disruption. Regular weekly meetings and open lines of communication with local businesses and impacted property owners were essential to the project鈥檚 success.

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IKEA Way threads 2,700 feet of new two-lane and four-lane concrete roadway through and past environmentally valuable wetlands and wooded areas as part of this multi-phase project. Permitting involved extensive alternatives analysis and coordination with WDNR and USACE. Uniquely, the project was interrupted to take express care with transplanting eggs for a species of salamander. Special fencing was constructed to keep the salamanders safely off the road in a wooded area.

Additional services included utility design (storm sewer, water main and sanitary sewer), land surveying, signal design for AG真人平台官方网站st Drexel Avenue, street lighting and median landscaping. Construction inspection services featured raSmith鈥檚 electronic daily reports designed to enhance key progress communication.

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GZA, desiring a partner with a strong history in mixed-use developments, brought raSmith aboard the design team. Site planning and engineering the $130-million destination certainly tested the team鈥檚 creative problem-solving skills鈥攁nd showcased flexible design solutions. The underground detention systems for stormwater management and water quality are linear in design, which will allow new infrastructure to function properly while remaining flexible should the site plan change in the future. The plaza design also needed to be flexible to accommodate future buildings without modifying the existing infrastructure, including fiber-optic cables and wiring for lighting. Even the 45-foot-tall sledding structure needed to accommodate a building and skating trail beneath it.

Planning a project of this size called for a lot of close communication and coordination with multiple agencies and local government that created trust and built relationships along the way. Construction of Titletown District Phase I is nearing its completion. While the second phase of the master plan is still under wraps, visitors to Lambeau will soon enjoy this vibrant, exciting area of the Green Bay community.

Renderings reproduced with permission from the Green Bay Packers.

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Community Safe Room Wins Top Honor Among Projects Constructed Under $5 Million

Highland Manor Community Safe Room received a 2016 Excellence in Wisconsin Structural Engineering Award, in the projects less than $5 million in construction costs category, from the Structural Engineers Association of Wisconsin (SEA鈥揥I).

This project challenged raSmith鈥檚 structural engineers with finding a solution for the 450 residents of the Highland Manor Mobile Home Community in Madison, Wis., who lacked safe shelter during severe weather events, such as tornadoes. Working collaboratively with precast engineers at Spancrete, the team designed a safe room meeting strict standards that resist extreme wind pressures associated with a tornado event. The design team鈥檚 creativity and teamwork in overcoming significant design challenges resulted in the largest freestanding safe room in Wisconsin that serves as a model for future shelters and safe rooms.

“The project was a successful team effort from initial design through building construction. AG真人平台官方网站 credit this overall successful project to excellent working relationships, cooperation and communication among all team members,鈥澛爏aid Kim Spoden, AIA, Assemblage Architects.

Photo courtesy SEA鈥揥I: David Boldt, the project鈥檚 structural engineer, explained how this award-winning project grew to become the largest freestanding safe room in Wisconsin.

Additional Information

The Highland Manor Community Safe Room represents an innovative, forward-looking approach to preventing fatalities during severe weather events. In order to qualify for $1.2 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grant funding, the building had to meet FEMA P-361 requirements. These design criteria are intended to provide a superior level of life safety protection against the extreme wind speeds and flying debris associated with tornados. Although FEMA鈥檚 guidelines are beyond what most engineers will need to consider for upcoming projects, the related International Code Council ICC-500 requirements may soon become mandatory in Wisconsin for certain types of common structures. This facility meets both ICC-500 and FEMA P-361 requirements, demonstrating it is possible to create a large-scale safe room in a cost-effective manner.

Highland Manor residents gathered together at the grand opening of the Community Safe Room.

As a safe room, Highland Manor can hold up to 845 individuals. When not harboring community residents during severe weather, the facility functions as a park shelter and community meeting room, making it usable by residents throughout the year.

“It has allowed residents to get involved with their community by becoming volunteers on the safety team, giving many a sense of purpose in their community,” said the Highland Manor Homeowners’ Association.

Judging and Awards

A jury of SEA鈥揥I professionals selected award recipients based on five general criteria, including: the structural design鈥檚 creativity; technical innovations used and their influence on the project鈥檚 design; the design鈥檚 ingenuity for efficient use of materials and labor; how unusual problems were solved by the design; and quality of execution. The Highland Manor project, led by a collaborative and forward-thinking design team, effectively fulfills each of these criteria.

SEA鈥揥I presented the 2016 Excellence in Wisconsin Structural Engineering Awards during their fall technical conference held on Friday, November 4. Award winners made presentations highlighting the challenging aspects of their projects.

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