After a season full of runs, strikeouts, fly balls and slides, the Otak men’s softball team had their first-ever playoff victory in their 6th season. Proving that Otak employees can play as hard as they work, the team took advantage of the fantastic Oregon summer weather by getting outside and interacting with members of the Lake Oswego community.
Sustainability is a state of mind in Otak’s Carbondale, Colorado office. Four out of five staffers bike or walk to work whenever possible and staff recycle everything they can. They are always looking for ways to reduce the volume of what they use so they replaced paper plates with dishes purchased at a local second-hand store, and traded plastic cutlery for silverware. Instead of paper towels in the restroom, they each have a terry towel in the color of their choice. They convert scrap paper into notepads, and use compact fluorescent bulbs in overhead lighting. And instead of air conditioning, they let the mountain air cool the office every morning.
Otak’s Carbondale, Colorado office has a special connection to some of the best trails in the Rockies. They enjoy planning and designing them, and are also lucky to enjoy using them on a daily basis. That’s why they support the efforts of Roaring Fork Outdoor Volunteers. In the past year, Carbondale Otakians have given more than 400 hours of service to this local non-profit, which partners with the BLM, Forest Service, and local municipalities to organize volunteer trail and conservation projects in the Roaring Fork and Colorado River Valleys from Aspen to Glenwood Springs, and west to Rifle.
The Cedar Creek Bridge is currently under construction in Sherwood, which is located 11 miles southwest of Otak’s Lake Oswego office. Originally scoped as a project to improve the fish passage through Cedar Creek, the project expanded to much more. Otak’s bridge and roadway staff designed a new bridge, as well as a pedestrian path and trail connections while construction managers directed utility coordination and construction oversight. Careful design of the hydraulics and stream restoration was performed by the project lead, Otak’s Water and Environmental Services group. Removal of the original culvert system will enhance fish passage and allow for pedestrians and cyclists to access the creek and adjacent trail system. The project broke ground in mid-June and is expected to fully open to traffic by the end of September.
