Month: March 2019

Structures was solicited for the VyStar Credit Union project in Orange City, Florida to come up with a value engineered design for a proposed H-Pile retaining wall system. The credit union was challenged with using minimal space for the retaining wall due to the essential need for an effective driveway, drive-thru, and parking lot for their customers.

Structures came up with a gravity retaining wall system using RediRock blocks. With the new design, Structures managed to take over 600 LF of H-Pile wall and cut it down to less than 100 LF, which was needed to support an adjacent structure during construction for a safe working environment. The new RediRock design used units as big as 72″ deep (nearly 2 tons) for the base to create long term structural stability for the retaining wall. The RediRock Magic Block design was used where 120 LF of the wall came very close to the neighboring property and kept a 9′ tall wall structure at less than 30″ thick. This design was a successful solution as it presented high aesthetics for the client while saving money.

Job: VyStar Credit Union
City: Orange City, FL
General Contractor: Dana B Kenyon Company

The Moline is a project centered in the heart of historic downtown Hopkins. The Architect was challenged to add an outdoor amenity deck to satisfy the new residences. The amenity deck includes a putting green, grill station and bar, firepit, bocce ball court, a pool, and lounging areas. Structures was used to install the Wausau Tile Architectural Slabs on top of a pedestal system. The pedestal system allowed for utilities to run underneath the pavers, such as electrical, drainage, and irrigation. The pedestals also allowed Structures to make the final deck elevation level, while setting the pedestals on a pitched roof system. Each pedestal has a 3/16″ tab used to provide consistent open joints between the pavers for both aesthetics and easy water drainage off the deck into the roof drainage system. Skilled labor was used to lay in the 45 degree angle slabs off the pool deck. Larger slab units were purchased to ensure there were no small pieces surrounding the pool for structural stability. Three different colors were used to designate areas like private patios, walkways, and the pool area. Slabs on pedestals were even set under the bocce ball artificial turf because of its long lasting durability and to ensure the court was leveled. In the end, the pedestal system was a successful solution to provide these residences with a useful outdoor amenity deck. 

Job: The Moline
City: Hopkins, MN
General Contractor: Doran Companies

St. John’s Episcopal Church set forth to remodel their basement classrooms. Doing this required the installation of a new Handicap ADA ramp from street level down to the basement. The Architect used Anchor Brisa retaining wall units to hold back grade for the ADA ramps. Anchor Brisa Moonlight color was selected to save on the cost of natural stone while maintaining a similar rock-faced look as the existing building.

There was very limited space between the street and the building to create the ramp at the regulated ADA grade. This required quality craftsmanship in saw cutting the angles for the retaining walls to create the landing areas on the ramp. Also, strong attention was made to the layout of the retaining walls as many factors went into leveling the base to maintain the proper block wall pattern exposed above grade.

With the size of the retaining walls, and limited space to backfill, over half the walls were backfilled with no-fines concrete to cut out the use of geogrid reinforcement. This was a porous concrete that allowed water to drain freely while still acting as concrete and increasing the structural integrity of the walls without the need for long geogrids. Above the retaining walls, freestanding blocks were needed as the back of the blocks were exposed along the stairs and many parts of the planting beds.

A homemade “Snipe-Bucket” was used to carry the no-fines concrete over the site and reach into tough places to backfill the walls. Each wall was constructed in a sequence that timed out with the concrete delivery schedule, so no backfill went to waste.

Overall the project was a large success adding a functional ADA ramp to the basement of the church with structural retaining walls while not holding back on quality and aesthetics. The church’s renovation is a beautiful addition to the high-end residential neighborhood on Sheridan Ave in Minneapolis! 

Job: St John’s Episcopal Church
City: Minneapolis, MN
General Contractor: Watson-Forsberg Company
Architect: Miller Dunwiddie Architecture