MENDOTA HIGH SCHOOL STADIUM
W-T Civil Engineering is proud to be chosen by DLA Architects to assist with the design of the proposed Stadium at Mendota High School. The site improvements include bleachers for 2,000 spectators, locker-room, washroom, concession and 3 storage buildings, 8 lane running track, synthetic turf field, parking lot for 65 vehicles, scoreboard, track & field appurtenances, 550’ of watermain, and a sanitary lift station. As a part of this project, by restricting the discharge and allowing stormwater to pond up on site within the dry bottom detention pond, the stormwater flow will be reduced by 80%. In order to make the dry bottom detention pond safer in flood events when it is full of water, a shallow safety ledge was incorporated into the design.
MENDOTA HIGH SCHOOL PLAN VIEW RENDERING
FIELDTURF REVOLUTION EVENT AT SADDLEBROOK RESORT
On February 8th and 9th, W-T was well represented at the FieldTurf educational event at the Saddlebrook Resort in Tampa Florida. Although the trip certainly had its personal perks (i.e. getting away from the 13o highs and mountains of snow), it was also very educational and informative. The newest FieldTurf synthetic Turf fiber “Revolution” was the focus of the event. The new fiber is reported to be the strongest fiber ever and also to produce less glare. First, the fiber is stronger due to a new polymer and due to the multiple spine cross sectional shape. The new polymer allows for stronger and less skin abrasive fiber. The fiber cross section, mainly the multiple spines, also adds to the improve strength and durability. As with all turfs, the spine provides for more turf durability, but the edges of the spine are natural weak points where the fiber can break down over time. The German engineers spoke about this at length and assured the audience that the multiple spines spread the load over several spines and therefore reduce the stress on each individual spine. Although more of an aesthetic quality, glare is also reduced by the new fiber. Anyone who watched the Superbowl will appreciate the drawbacks that glare can have. Especially under artificial lights, “flat” blades of turf reflect light straight back at the eye, which give a glimmering appearance to the field that is obviously very unnatural. Evan Longoria also spoke with regard to his experiences playing on synthetic and natural major league baseball fields and offered a well received high end user perspective.
Evan Longoria at Q&A Session at Saddlebrook
CRAIGS LIST OF DIRT
Anyone need some dirt? Seriously! Even though we use the latest software to estimate earthwork and try to balance all sites, sometimes it is not possible. For example, did you know that, on average, 4,000 cubic yards (400-500 trucks) of earth is excavated from one synthetic turf football field? Not many schools have enough unused space to keep that much material on site. Whether you need to remove excess soils or haul in soils in order to raise a site to desired elevation, earthwork is a huge cost to many Civil Engineering projects. We have contacts in the earthwork business and coordinate with them constantly in order to provide our clients with the most economical solution to their earthwork needs. The theory is that, from an environmental standpoint as well as a financial standpoint for both parties, it would be a shame if two nearby projects could help provide materials / a place to move it to but instead hauled material long distances just because they weren’t aware of one another. Just like with the real Craigslist, we hope that the “Craigslist of dirt” can help to make that connection easier. Please note that most of these projects were not designed by W-T. We will gladly list your needs / excesses if you just let me know what you have, how much you have and when you need it.
This edition’s featured earthwork opportunities:
20,000 cy of black topsoil in the Homewood-Flossmoor area
11,000 cy of clay and black topsoil in Palatine Area in spring
Need 30,000 cy of material in Lake County now through spring
100,000 cy clay & 50,000 peat in Lake County in late 2011
25,000 cy of C-DOT approved material in NW Indiana now
20,000 cy of sandy loam on south side now
20,000 cy of dredged material in Wheaton now
1,500 cy of dredged material plus asphalt grindings in Elk Grove area in Summer 2011
Need 15,000 cy of structural fill in Mendota in spring
For more information, please contact Jason Green at jason.green@wtengineering.com