CONNECT
The pieces of equipment in the photo above are building caissons for the train bridges that will be part of the roof of the bus terminal. (I had to look up the definition of a caisson.) There will be eight sets of tracks (Amtrak, Ski Train, commuter rail) requiring four bridges. As we know, trains can be pretty heavy so the bridges will require deep, sturdy foundations. Therefore, the caissons.
Don’t forget tonight’s event at the convention center. See Ken’s post below.
There is good news to report. The hole is drained and excavation work on the bus terminal has resumed. A variety of factors caused long delays in getting the pumping and filtering systems in place. The ground water is contaminated with substances in addition to those found in the first phase, the clean water standards have gotten more stringent, and very few labs in the country are equipped to perform the required testing. The delays are not expected to impact the Spring 2014 completion of the project. Here is a shot that I took on Tuesday before the snowstorm.
The walls/seats are being installed around the planters near the light rail station. Here’s another photo from Tuesday. It appears that the walls are being installed along the inside edges of the foundations to maximize clearance between the planters, as suggested in some DenverInfill comments.
Water, concrete, more concrete. That’s the short story of the current situation at Union Station.
First, let’s look at the water situation. Digging phase two of the bus terminal is being held up by ground water. Pumping out the ground water is being held up for analysis of the contaminants in the water, finding an effective method for filtering out those contaminants, and getting approval for the process. In the meantime, I have a good view of a not-so-good reflecting pool.
Now for concrete story number one. The concrete borders for the tear-shaped planters are being poured. Those borders will double as seats for passers-by.
Concrete story number two is about the other half of 16th Street between Chestnut Place and Wewatta Street. As you will recall, the street was torn up during the removal of the light rail tracks that served the light rail station of yesteryear. The new street is in but not quite ready for use. Utility work is still underway at the intersection of Wewatta and 16th. Here’s how it looks from that intersection.
Please check out more current photos at JobSiteVistor.com.
Using DenverInfill to keep up to date on this project works pretty well. But seeing it in person is another story.
Ken is out of town, so I will be conducting the tour so please join me this Saturday at 10:00AM in front of the historic station at 17th and Wynkoop. Even if you have taken recent tours, you may want to come along on this one to see the project from a new perspective: 200 feet above.
Since we will be walking a little more than usual, you should plan to spend more than an hour. The suggested (truly optional) donation for the tour is $10 per person and all proceeds go to the non-profit Union Station Advocates.
Last week in Update #86, I wrote about the start of landscaping work near the new light rail station. More has happened since then. On Friday, about 50 trees arrived via two tractor trailers (see the first photo below). Today, the first tree was planted, and it’s on the west side of Chestnut Place between 18th and 19th streets (second photo). The other 49 or so trees are also destined for Chestnut.
Also referring to Update #86, the DUSPA renderings that I posted were not the best representation of the future landscaping. Ken was kind enough to find some better ones including the two below (courtesy of Hargreaves Associates). You can find a couple more on our Denver Union Station page at JobSiteVistor.com.
Still more news. Work has resumed on the section of 16th Street along the front of the building at 1900 16th Street. Here is a day-old photo of that part of the project.
In answer to Corey’s question on September 16 about the mall shuttles, the prototype mall buses are due to arrive in October.
Finally, as you know, from time to time I like to post interesting, downtown photos unrelated to the DUS project. You may remember the fog last Friday (September 16). I took three photos that morning, one follows and the other two are at JobSiteVistor.com (go to last week’s “Weekly Photos” to find them). To enjoy the following one which is my favorite, you need to click on it to enlarge it. Then strain your eyes to see the top of the Four Season Hotel in the center of the frame. (I flirted with an idea of playing “Where’s Waldo” but thought you might be tiring of silly games.
In case you missed the announcement in the business section of this morning’s Denver Post, Zocalo Community Development plans to break ground early next year on a 12 story, 220 unit apartment building on 17th Street between Wewatta Street and Chestnut Place. Here is the rest of the story.
