Transportation Archives - Page 7 of 11

Connecting Communities Both Large and Small

With the recent hiring of Senior Transportation Manager, Amanda Owings, and James Winslow, Transportation Business Manager, Otak has taken a bold step toward enhancing its project capabilities within the transportation sector. Transportation is a critical piece to building community, providing a way to get from point A to point B, while also creating access to areas and building opportunities that may formerly have been out of reach. Both Amanda and James are poised to expand Otak’s transportation team and project capabilities.

Amanda is a traffic engineer who has worked within all facets of transportation, from traffic signal review to accessible ramp designs. “Any time you’re doing development, there’s a requirement to look at how it impacts existing systems. My experience evolved from civil engineering to performing roadway design and then specifically to traffic,” she comments.

James has worked in the civil engineering field for 20 years. Over the past 14 years, he worked in various segments of the transportation, active transportation, and traffic signals fields, where he has managed bridge, roadway improvement, sidewalk, and traffic signal upgrade projects. This experience included managing not only the design components, schedules, and budgets, but also the public, council, and community stakeholders. He has also worked in the water, wastewater, environmental, and geotechnical disciplines.

“I remember one stakeholder meeting where many individuals, including the director, had differing visions on how to move forward. However, through hard work and a collaborative approach, cooperation was possible. Often it takes a dedicated champion and commitment to really listen to others and work towards achieving that common goal,” he comments.

The pair’s varied and extensive backgrounds in transportation made them an ideal fit for Otak.

Amanda chose to come to Otak because she sees the opportunity to take her career into a creative space while drawing upon experience in traffic solutions. She looks forward to her role in growing the engineering team and mentoring younger engineers. Her work will entail performing quality control to ensure clients’ needs are met along with supporting internal teams to make sure they have the tools they need to do their work. Potential project work Amanda will spearhead includes bike and pedestrian path planning, multi-modal design related to roadways and development, and facilitating meetings to discuss how transportation-related infrastructure will intersect with land use goals, ADA accessibility, and future growth.

“I am passionate about safe, well-connected infrastructure and that our communities have equal access to this system. Often there’s not enough money to go around to build to the ideal, but where there is new development, I’ll help see that the design is appropriate for the needs of the surrounding community,” she says.

Applying his past experience to work on solving problems with innovative and creative solutions for multiple agencies across a region is what James finds most rewarding about his work with Otak. His years of public sector experience have given him a unique understanding of both the public and private sides of the project management equation. “I’m critically aware of the potential pitfalls that can be encountered on both sides, and potential solutions or initial steps that may need to be taken to help agencies avoid those potential issues,” James states. Along with his client work, James will join Amanda in guiding and supporting the transportation team as it grows.

Both Amanda and James see a bright future for transportation projects that they predict will be more equitably distributed, from big-city projects to small rural ones, allowing for every community to benefit from enhanced connections.

19th Street Pedestrian Bridge on Campus of University of Colorado

The University of Colorado (CU) Boulder’s main campus is separated from student residential areas by Boulder Creek, the Boulder Creek Trail, a riparian corridor, as well as a 30 to 60-foot-tall elevation differential. The 19^th Street Bridge establishes accessible connections while providing cost-effective aesthetic appeal at Colorado’s flagship university, bringing to life their vision of creating a “bridge through the canopy,” where pedestrians weave through trees on a structure connecting them with the surrounding environment and quick transportation to their campus destination.

A Low Impact Structural Design for A More Connected and Accessible Campus

To minimize fabrication efforts and construction cost, a series of identical straight 30-foot steel spans were utilized at a near-maximum ADA compliant slope to make the bridge no longer than necessary. Each pier landing serves as a turn point for the pathway to create an overall curve shape out of a series of straight lines. The piers are supported by a single concrete column founded on either a caisson or a micropile foundation, depending on the terrain. Custom railings using weathering steel plates and bars minimize materials and obstruction of the surrounding natural beauty. Lighted handrails shine downward to illuminate the bridge path after dark while minimizing light pollution. Otak designed the bridge with the goals of minimizing impact to the existing hillside, limiting the removal of existing high value trees, and to not disrupt the area’s historic stone structures. The 19^th Street Bridge greatly improves the connectivity to campus while providing students, visitors, and Boulder residents a connection to the surrounding nature and landscape for generations.

Creating Community On Former Riverfront Industrial Site

St. Helens, Oregon, is a growing community of over 13,000 people located 30 miles north of Portland. After years as an industrial hub, two wood product industries closed, leaving behind acres of brownfields abutting the Columbia River. The City of St. Helens (City) and its residents recognized the opportunity to reimagine the waterfront as a multi-use community asset and an RFQ was issued in late 2020 to begin the transformation with two projects: the South 1st and Strand Streets Road and Utility Enhancements and the St. Helens Riverwalk projects, both of which Otak will be working on.

The Otak team is leading the South 1st and Strand Street project and is a sub-consultant to Mayer/Reed for the Riverwalk project. As developers eye the riverfront location and offer visions for its future, the City and the Mayer/Reed-Otak team intend to address the transportation and infrastructure gap by connecting

Improved infrastructure and roadway connectivity will help guide future development of St. Helen’s riverfront.

the Columbia River Highway (OR 30) to the Riverfront District, as well as better connect pedestrians and bicyclists to existing roadways, trails, and the waterfront. The work will provide numerous road and utility enhancements and multimodal connections. Public water extensions and looping, sanitary sewer and storm drainage, and the relocation of the existing sanitary sewer lift station are all critical components that will help attract developers as the area begins to transition from industrial to mixed-use.

Running parallel with this project is the design and engineering of the St. Helens Riverwalk Project, which will include the design and construction of a boardwalk, overlook, and multi-use paths to maximize pedestrian connections. Mayer/Reed is leading this project overall, but Otak is managing the design for the replacement of an existing stage area with an amphitheater that can host community concerts and events and serve as a gathering area.

Representing Otak on both of these projects is Project Manager, Keith Buisman, and Project Coordinator, Mandy Flett. Otak has a single team working on both projects in tandem and the ability to coordinate a team in-house that has the wide array of skills and experience needed for the project was instrumental in being selected for this work. Every discipline in Otak is being tapped from planners to surveyors, architects to engineers. Revitalizing this riverfront aligns perfectly with Otak’s mission to create communities where people can live, work, and play.

“Planners came in first and provided an idea of what could be done with the parcels and how to lay them out for future development,” Mandy says.

The utility and roadway design and the design for gateways and pedestrian facilities are underway and expected to be completed this coming fall. Construction management will then follow and is tentatively scheduled to wrap up in 2023.

“Our work is to create a sense of ‘there’ in a town that has so much potential. We want to make it a destination for those who live there and also for visitors. When you enter the City, the river draws you in and we want to take advantage of that,” Mandy comments.

2nd Street Bridge Brings A Community Back Together

The design of a bridge reflects not just a path over an obstacle, but also the joining of two areas of land that are separated. For Otak’s designers, the 2nd Street Avenue bridge in Lyons, Colorado, had a third purpose, which was to put a community back together after it had been devastated by the 2013 floods.

The previous bridge was heavily damaged by floodwaters and debris.

When the floods hit, water beat on the bridge for several days and a fallen log hit one of the key structural supports. Flood debris covered the bridge’s piers causing water to infiltrate the town’s wastewater treatment plant, destroy a storage building and equipment used by the town’s Public Work Department, and damage a downstream bridge. Eventually, the damaged and unsafe bridge took away the connection between the town, two housing subdivisions, a church, a school, a park, and a recycling center.

Otak was hired by the town to do emergency repairs to the bridge and to design the new structure. Zak Dirt was brought in as the contractor. Various engineers worked on the project throughout its lengthy design process, with Otak’s Structures Group Manager Dan Beltzer finishing out the job. “We had a great team to guide this work. The design really shows how simply rebuilding isn’t always enough. This bridge was built back better as a sustainable structure that will last well into the future,” Dan says.

The new single-span bridge is 139 feet, crossing the St. Vrain Creek. The design was approved in the fall of 2019 and construction started in 2020 with a cost of about $4 million funded in part by FEMA with assistance from the Colorado Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Relief program. The new bridge was built six feet higher than the original structure, to convey the 100-year storm event to allow for future floodwaters and debris to safely pass under it. It was also built to withstand a 500-year scour event. Dan says scour is the number one reason bridges collapse.

A ribbon cutting celebrated the new bridge and memorialized the town’s former engineer.

The project was unique in that it was the first bridge in the state to use the Colorado Department of Transportation’s new Bulb-Tee concrete girder shape. “Colorado’s new standard provides more girth, which allowed us to further minimize the required bridge depth as compared to the previous standard – which helps the hydraulic conveyance while minimizing the required raise in roadway grade. The new standard became available very late in the design process and none had yet been built. In fact, only one fabricator had the ability at that time to construct the girders. Still, pricing and learning-curve concerns gave way to the design benefits.” Dan comments.

A ribbon-cutting was held on July 8 to celebrate not just the completion of the bridge and one of the last FEMA flood recovery projects in the community, but the resiliency of Lyons. Dan says the ceremony also stood as a memorial to Jim Blankenship who served as the town’s engineer for over a decade, and worked with Otak on several projects, including the Main Street Reconstruction project, which won the APWA Colorado’s overall Project of the Year award. The event drew dignitaries, such as Colorado Senator John Hickenlooper, Congressman Joe Neguse, and Lt. Governor Primavera. The officials touted the ability of not just Lyons, but of any community, to build back better and ensure a safer future.

Otak Welcomes Millicent Williams as New Regional Director OR & SW Washington

As Otak celebrates its 40th year, we’re setting our sights firmly on the future and the work we still have to do in the communities we serve. We’re excited to announce to everyone here at Otak, our clients, and our community partners, that Millicent Williams, former Deputy Director at the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT), has joined the Otak team as the new Regional Director for Oregon/SW Washington focused on the public sector.

Jim Hamann, Otak’s CEO, reflects, “Millicent’s wide-ranging experience and background will help us address tomorrow’s challenges with fresh, creative approaches. Millicent leads our business in Oregon and SW Washington with a focus on public sector clients and projects. The challenges that communities are facing call for fresh approaches and solutions that reflect a responsiveness to the needs of the whole community. She will make a significant contribution in how we respond.”

With over 20 years working in the public sector at all levels from grassroots community service to providing agency leadership, Millicent brings a fresh perspective to Otak. “My life and professional experiences have shaped my perspective and influenced the way that I engage. I grew up on the east coast and attended Florida A&M University. My sense of obligation to serve communities and bridge gaps led me to a career in public service which formally started in Washington DC and has taken me to jurisdictions across the country. I’m an innovative problem-solver and, because of my approach, have had the opportunity to work across a broad spectrum of disciplines. Here in Oregon, transportation has been my focus. It was my pleasure to work to align PBOT’s goals with the needs of community members who understand the importance of having a transportation system that serves them well. I look forward to bringing my understanding of local, state, and national government operations, and community partnership to Otak as we seek to grow public sector relationships.”

Millicent is excited about her role at Otak and continuing the work she has been doing in the public sector from a new perspective. “I have an opportunity to work with an incredibly talented team of planners, engineers, architects, project and construction managers, who work collaboratively to design and build projects that reflect a sensitivity to what clients and their communities are looking for. I believe Otak can excel at delivering on their vision and look forward to supporting its broad organizational goals.”

Kronberg Park Multi-Use Walkway

The multi-phase Robert Kronberg Nature Park Master Plan involved the construction of a multi-use trail connecting the Kellogg Lake Bridge to the existing crossing of McLoughlin Blvd. at River Road and the regional Trolley Trail. For the portion of trail that runs through a forested area, an elevated structure was designed with an emphasis on minimizing disturbance to its natural surroundings.

An Elevated Structure that Preserves the Environment and Promotes Active Transportation

In designing the 12-foot-wide structure, finding an alignment and construction method for the elevated section was done in close collaboration with the City to minimize the removal of existing trees. An illumination plan was prepared to be consistent with the Kellogg Lake pedestrian bridge. The Walkway provides a safe, off-road bicycle and pedestrian connection between the south side of the City of Milwaukie with downtown. The active transportation design means bicyclists, pedestrians and wheelchair users no longer need to travel on the shoulder or in the traffic lanes of McLoughlin Blvd. to access the full trail. The multi-use walkway is a combination of at grade pathway and 600 feet of bicycle/pedestrian elevated structure and includes an elevated combination viewpoint, acting as a rest stop midway along the corridor. Otak led the design, including the elevated structure, as well as bidding, negotiation, construction, and inspection support to completion.

Collaboration and Coordination Bring Skyview Station to Construction

Skyview Station in Salmon Creek, Washington was an underutilized, light industrial site that sat amidst a fast-growing community. Hurley Development saw an opportunity to turn this piece of property into a retail center to serve the local population. To accomplish this goal, Hurley realized the need and importance of an experienced and sophisticated consultant who could handle the development complexity and myriad permits required. Hurley turned to the Vancouver office of Otak, and the leadership of Tim Leavitt, PE, Regional Director of Civil Design.

Otak’s multi-disciplined team of planners, surveyors, engineers, and landscape architects offer the experience and depth to efficiently solve the site challenges and design a project that was readily approved by the presiding agencies. “We offered our client recent experience with another project adjacent to this site, as well as solid and collaborative working relationships with the numerous agencies having jurisdiction here,” said Leavitt, who also served as the Otak Project Manager for the Skyview Station project.

Projects like Skyview Station, located in unincorporated Clark County, required coordination with multiple jurisdictions.“This was a real team effort. Agency staff were supportive and proactive. The permitting process was quite constructive, from start to finish,” according to Leavitt. The labyrinth of permitting included reviews and approvals by Washington State Department of Transportation, Clark Public Utilities, Clark Regional Wastewater District, Clark County Fire District #6, and Clark County.

Permitting was one complexity. The other challenge was the existing conditions. One access point to the commercial center is from the NE 139th Street overpass, constructed and owned by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT). This overpass was constructed on Geofoam, a nontypical foundation system that allows large and heavy structures to be constructed in undesirable soil conditions (e.g., wetlands). Otak’s structural engineers, civil engineers, and the geotechnical engineer-of-record designed an access ramp that ensured the new improvement would not impact the complex overpass foundation system and would be acceptable to WSDOT. Another existing conditions complication was the site elevations, which dropped over 20 feet across the property. To ensure accessibility and flat building pads, Otak’s structural engineering team designed a gabion retaining wall along the eastern property line, with heights ranging from 2-18 feet.

The project received final agency approvals in December 2019. But…it wasn’t quite time to begin construction. In lieu of a new signalized intersection at the main site entry, Clark County Public Works and Transportation requested that Hurley instead consider a roundabout improvement. Hurley agreed, and after the execution of a Development Agreement, Otak was asked to design a roundabout and related site and frontage improvements.

As Leavitt described, “The footprint of a roundabout is larger than a signalized intersection. Our initial challenge was to locate and design a roundabout that did not impact neighboring properties and minimized impact to the Skyview Station site layout. Working closely with Clark County transportation staff, we quickly solved that challenge, and moved forward with the permit documents.”

Although approving of the change in plans, Hurley wanted to minimize the design and permitting timeline for the roundabout improvement. Otak was ready for the challenge of bringing together a complex change under a tight timeframe. With agreement from Clark County, regular update meetings occurred to review the design advancement and address comments, questions, and concerns in real-time. “This public road improvement is extremely important to both the County and Hurley, so the attitude was “all hands on deck”, said Leavitt.

Otak’s in-house development professionals enabled a quick transition to the new design and permitting effort. Design efforts were led by Phil Hymas, PE (roadway), Scott Nettleton, PE (structures), Rose Horton, PE (stormwater), Brad Swearingen, PE (site engineering), and David Haynes, PLA (landscape architecture). All told, 15 Otak professionals dove into this project headfirst and worked together to bring the project to fruition, resulting in what will be a vibrant new commercial center for local residents, as well as an important local improvement to the public roadway system.

Innovative Pedestrian Bridges Connect University of Colorado Campus to Neighborhoods and Nature

With the opening of the 19th Street & 23rd Street pedestrian bridges in Boulder, the University of Colorado (CU) has not only created better ADA compliant connectivity between the campus and the surrounding community but now has an iconic landmark that will help define the campus’s identity for decades to come. These two innovative pedestrian bridges, designed by Otak Colorado’s structural team, in coordination with CU Facilities Staff and Design Review Board, are the culmination of engineering ingenuity and practical problem solving incorporating lessons learned as the first of the two bridges (23rd Street) was being constructed.

CU’s main Boulder campus is separated from areas containing student housing and residential neighborhoods by Boulder Creek, the Boulder Creek Trail, a riparian corridor, and a 30 to 60-foot-tall elevation differential. Otak was retained by CU to design two bridges at 23rd and 19th Streets, with a primary goal to provide ADA compliant, user-friendly connections, between the main campus and areas north of the creek. The design team was also charged with the need to integrate bridge design with the surrounding natural environment and provide a level of aesthetics commensurate with CU’s flagship university.

What the university envisioned was a “bridge through the canopy,” weaving pedestrians through trees and connecting them to the natural beauty and wildlife in the area, while efficiently getting them to where they need to go. These bridges replace steep pathways that required pedestrians to literally huff it up a lung-pumping 20% grade, which was difficult to maintain and dangerous during winter conditions.

The overall project involved the design and construction of the 23rd Street Bridge, completed in 2018, and the 19th Street Bridge, completed in 2020. Project manager, Dan Beltzer, P.E., in Otak’s Colorado office, oversaw the design of the two bridges, guiding the project from inception through successful completion. David Graff, P.E., served as the project engineer and oversaw the bridges’ construction. The two bridges offer practical solutions for pedestrian traffic, while also preserving the natural environment and wildlife along Boulder Creek—two primary concerns for CU. The two bridges were constructed sequentially, each taking about 10-months to complete; both were on time and on budget.

One of the unique aspects of the project was the progression of the design and engineering over the course of the two bridges. As they were constructed sequentially, rather than concurrently, the team was able to refine the design for the 19th Street Bridge and incorporate changes based on lessons learned from the 23rd Street Bridge. Since the design of the second bridge occurred during the construction of the first, the team was able to get real-time feedback and make modifications that would be better suited to the challenges of the second location.

For both bridges, the design team considered different alignments to find the optimum balance between cost, aesthetics, ease of construction and minimizing site impacts, especially along the steep and marginally stable hillside. As they were also charged with mandates to avoid significant tree removal, preserve historic rock walls, and create a path that was pleasing to the user, the resulting design essentially weaves across the creek and up the hillside through the abundant canopy of trees. Keeping the bridge at a height that is not overly tall and vertically imposing also steered the alignment.

To minimize fabrication efforts and construction costs, a series of identical straight 30-foot steel beam spans were designed at the maximum ADA compliant slope to climb grade as quickly as possible. Each pier provides an ADA landing that also serves as a turning point for the pathway to provide a sinusoidal effect, creating an overall curve shape out of a series of straight lines. The piers are supported by a single concrete column founded on either a caisson or a micropile foundation, depending on the terrain. Custom railings were developed using stainless steel handrails; weathering steel plates, pipes, tubes; and stainless-steel cables to minimize materials and limit obstruction to views of the natural beauty of the surrounding environment. The resulting effect has given the bridges a “light and airy” feeling and allows users to connect to the nature surrounding the bridge.

Bridge lighting is provided by LED lights mounted flush in the handrails that shine down onto the deck surface. This configuration directs light only towards the pathway where it is needed and minimizes glare into the riparian surroundings. Sensors at the ends of the bridges increase lighting intensity when pedestrians are present and dim lighting otherwise.

The 23rd Street Bridge connects the Buff Walk (the path between Folsom Field and the athletic center) to the Boulder Creek Path and Parking Lot 169, a popular tailgating area on game day. At the top of this bridge is a large landing that allows people to gather for game day activities and view the Flatiron formations west of the city and riparian corridor below. To provide an ample landing area atop the steep hillside, a retaining wall with high-density styrofoam blocks was used as backfill to reduce earth pressures and provide the necessary wall stability.

One key difference and a lesson applied from the 23rd Street Bridge to the 19th Street Bridge are the configurations of the pier landings. The 23rd Street Bridge incorporates thin concrete bearing seats for the bridge spans to sit upon, while the 19th Street Bridge provides a sleeker profile by eliminating this bearing seat and framing the bridge spans directly to the concrete landings via a steel landing connection frame. This configuration also allowed for easier fit-up of the bridge spans and railing.

Construction of the 19th Street Bridge also presented a unique set of challenges, different from the bridge at 23rd Street. The natural environment around both bridges is home to a plethora of wildlife, including foxes, deer, and numerous species of birds. In fact, the canopy surrounding the 19th Street Bridge has the highest number of bird species in Boulder County, so the design needed to also appease bird watchers. A large landing with a bench is included at the mid-point on the bridge to facilitate bird-watching or to just take a rest and enjoy the surroundings. The portion of the bridge spanning Boulder Creek also contains patterned markings in the concrete slab to celebrate the flow of the water below.

History played its part in the design process as well, presenting both preservation challenges and opportunities to celebrate the area’s past. A previous bridge crossing at the 23rd Street Bridge location was historic but had to be removed to achieve necessary hydraulic improvements. The historic masonry abutments were allowed to remain, and interpretive signage has been added at this bridge’s location so the community can see pictures of and read about the site as it once existed. Many historic elements are also visible from the 19th Street Bridge, including an old warming hut used when the area between Boulder Creek and the hillside would be intentionally flooded in the winter for ice skating. Historic stonework is also visible along the banks of Boulder Creek, placed there from 1938–1940 by workers associated with the Works Progress Administration (WPA), a New Deal program created by the Roosevelt Administration to give unemployed Americans the opportunity to help with public works. The stonework is easily observed from the new bridge, reintroducing pedestrians to these historic elements that were previously difficult to access and obscured from view.

Together, the bridges provide much-needed connectivity between CU’s main campus, the neighborhoods to the north, and the rest of Boulder via the creek path. But the bridges also provide the desired connection with nature and history. Pedestrians now have both a pathway to get to where they need to go and an opportunity to be immersed in the creek corridor’s wilderness along the way. In the end, Otak and CU were able to deliver two iconic bridges that will be a part of the University’s identity for generations.

Kevin Dooley Turns Transportation into an Art Form

Transportation to many is simply the process of getting from one place to another. However, for the growing transportation team in Otak’s Colorado office, it is much more. Creatively combining the perceptions of “what is known” and “what could be” these engineers and designers turn standard transportation designs into engineering wonders.

One individual bringing exceptional creativity and technical know-how to the transportation group is Kevin Dooley, senior project engineer, and project manager. Kevin has spent about 12 years with Otak, although he took a year away to give life on the east coast a try. Despite his exodus from the west and Otak, he has been welcomed back with open arms.

“Kevin’s choice to return to Otak was hugely beneficial for the company for a number of reasons,” Chris Bisio, regional manager for Otak’s Colorado office explains. “First, as a seasoned Otakian, he was familiar with Otak, our people, clients, and culture, making his return and reintegration into the team seamless. Second, Kevin is an outstanding transportation/civil engineer with an uncanny ability to quickly engage in a project and figure out exactly what needs to be done. Kevin’s departure left a big hole in our Transportation Engineering Group that could only be filled by… Kevin! Otak is stronger with an engineer and person of Kevin’s caliber.”

Kevin breaks the mold of the engineer who carries a slide rule and calculator in his pocket and can’t see beyond the numbers. His co-workers call him a “renaissance man” who fishes and rafts, then turns around and breaks out his guitar or banjo. He can be counted on to know what music event is happening at any given time and if he can’t find music, he plays it.

That artistic aptitude and passion for the outdoors is something Kevin brings to all of his projects and something he says he is free to do in working for Otak. “We don’t work on run-of-the-mill transportation projects,” he asserts, adding that “none of us are typical engineers as we’re thought of. We think outside the box, pay close attention to aesthetics, and come up with cool ideas because we love what we do. We use the trails we design so we’re invested in making sure they come out great.”

A background in construction management where he was in the field daily, seeing firsthand how things were built, has given him a strong understanding of how contractors think and interpret plans. This understanding guides his approach to design and enables him to relate well to the people who put his plans to the pavement.

He’s currently working on two projects that allow him to help beautify areas he frequents. The first is the Paepcke Transit Hub Project in Aspen, CO. that includes an updated bus shelter, more accessibility for pedestrians, and safety and drainage improvements. Otak is the project lead working with a large team in a tight urban corridor with a design and character that is vehemently protected by the community. Extensive public outreach has been required to ensure all opinions were heard and the end result will be a source of community pride. Kevin sees the project as adding beauty to the area and loves that he gets to see Otak’s handiwork when he’s around town.

Kevin is also project manager for the 30th Street and Colorado Avenue Underpass project for the City of Boulder, CO. which has just gone under construction. It’s a double underpass for the nearly 1,500 pedestrians and bicycles that use the intersection daily. The project will provide safety, accessibility, mobility, and drainage improvements to the community of Boulder and students at the University of Colorado. “It’s a once in a lifetime project. There just won’t ever be another project like this,” he commented.

However, with Kevin’s creativity and passion for designing unique, fully functional, and beautiful transportation corridors, he may be wrong that he’s already experienced his “once in a lifetime” project. As Otak continues to grow, Kevin will further cement himself as a foundational building block for the Colorado transportation team.