Environmental Archives - Page 5 of 13

Conference Roundup: Forging Relationships During Spring Conference Season!

We’re officially rounding out the end of Spring conference season in Oregon, where we’ve continued to form lasting partnerships, meet the clients we serve, and showcase what we’re about. We love the opportunities conferences give us to support and connect with organizations rooted in the communities we call home.

OAME and APWA Oregon, the two most recent conferences we attended, are organizations we have a long history of partnering with. Read on to find out more about each conference and hear the why behind what makes each of them so special!

OAME Conference

The 35th Annual Trade Show hosted by the all-inclusive organization, Oregon Association of Minority Entrepreneurs (OAME) provided us with the opportunity to exchange ideas, talk to fellow partners and potential clients, and most importantly support the growth of minority-owned businesses.

We value having a presence at this conference, because enables us to show up directly for minority-run businesses and forge lasting partnerships – from prospective clients to new friends in the industry.

Complete with a booth and Otakians from engineering, architecture, marketing in full attendance, we got the chance to bring who we are to the table: a firm that listens to our communities and their local businesses and uses those connections to improve the project work we do daily.

APWA OR Conference

The American Public Works Association (APWA) is one of the most influential professional organizations in the public works field, dedicated to raising awareness about the vital role public works plays in the communities where we live. Fun fact, our own Ashley Cantlon, senior water resources engineer, is the Oregon chapter President – meaning we have a deep appreciation for our relationship with the organization.

Similarly to the OAME conference, this event allows us to be involved in one of the premier organizations for public works in the state, enabling better connections, better relationships, and better understanding of best practices and industry trends.

With a strong presence from Otak engineering leaders like Kevin Timmins, Amanda Owings, Henry Alaman, and Trista Kobluskie, we spoke with potential clients, new friends, and learned more about how we can enrich neighborhoods through the power of quality design. To mix things up a bit, we brought along a special APWA OR picture frame to encourage some photo opts!

Thank you to both these organizations for hosting us, and we can’t wait to come back next year!

North Creek Trail

Including five boardwalks, a bridge, and 20 retaining walls, North Creek Trail extends 2.5 miles outside Bothell, Washington to traverse sensitive wetlands and a canyon that holds North Creek itself. In leading the project, Otak provided trail and roadway, stormwater, and structural design as well as construction support services for the first phase of construction as the design of phases two and three were completed. That effort included review and responses to RFIs and close coordination with the County project manager and construction inspection staff.

An Urban Trail and Structural Design to Minimize Impact to Sensitive Wetlands

This urban trail segment connects an existing segment near SR 524 with North Creek Park. To minimize environmental impacts and simplify permitting, micropiles support the boardwalks that carry the regional trail over sensitive areas. An addition of on-street parking utilizes porous pavement and a rain garden for bioretention of stormwater, benefiting trail users as well as the surrounding community with green infrastructure. A 1,383-foot, 14-span prestressed concrete girder bridge crosses the canyon where North Creek runs, including 800 feet of surrounding wetlands. In accommodating ADA grades along the crossing, several portions of the bridge are 30 to 40 feet in the air. Because of the difficulty and sensitivity of constructing a long pedestrian bridge through the wetlands, a detailed alternative analysis was performed evaluating varying span lengths, foundation types, construction methodologies, access, along with pier and superstructure types.

APWA Project of the Year: 180th Street Corridor Improvements

Otak is excited to announce that our work on 180th Street SE Improvements for Snohomish County just won Project of the Year at the APWA Washington’s annual Spring conference in the $5 million – $25 million Transportation category!

Read on as we take a deep dive into what this award means, and why we’re so grateful to be recognized among many other deserving winners from across Washington state.

What’s the Project?

The impact of improvements to the 180th Street corridor makes the area safer for pedestrians, bicyclists, drivers, and critical habitats in the surrounding natural environment.

The unincorporated area between the cities of Mill Creek and Bothell is one of the fastest growing in all of Snohomish County. The east/west 180th St SE corridor runs through the heart of the community, and along with the north/south corridors of State Route 527, 35th Ave SE, and Seattle Hill Rd, is one of the main routes for navigating the southwest area of Snohomish County.

With the steadily increasing population and plans for additional transit options coming to the area, improvements to the arterial transportation system are a top priority for Snohomish County.

Otak partnered with Snohomish County Public Works to deliver transportation, structural, and environmental services for the project’s Phase I improvements, and we’re beyond proud of the final result.

What’s the APWA?

The American Public Works Association is an international educational and professional association of public agencies, private sector companies, and individuals dedicated to providing high quality public works goods and services. Originally chartered in 1937, APWA is the largest and oldest organization of its kind in the world, with headquarters in Kansas City, Missouri, an office in Washington, D.C., and 67 chapters throughout North America. APWA provides a forum in which public works professionals can exchange ideas, improve professional competency, increase the performance of their agencies and companies, and bring important public works-related topics to public attention in local, state and federal arenas.

The Washington Chapter’s 1,400 (+/-) members come from the entire state of Washington. The Chapter as a whole meets twice a year at spring (Western Washington) and fall (Eastern Washington) conferences and there are several other formal and informal annual events throughout the year.

We’d like to formally thank APWA Washington for bestowing this award on such a deserving and community-driven project. Stay tuned for more conference and award news as this season gets into full swing. We can’t wait to connect with more of our partners and clients at future events, and maybe win some more awards along the way!

180th Street Corridor Improvements

For one of the fastest-growing areas of Snohomish County, plans for additional transit options and improvements to the arterial transportation system were considered a top priority. As a main route in the county’s southeast, the 180th corridor would be reconstructed with a multimodal design that addresses capacity needs while also enhancing multiple adjacent wetland habitats.

Increased Roadway Capacity, Fully-Mitigated Environmental Impact

In meeting the county’s five-lane urban arterial design stands, improvements to the 180th Street corridor includes the widening of the road with two new lanes to improve capacity and reduce congestion. Sidewalks on both sides of the road and bike lanes are part of multimodal design. With much of the work occurring at the confluence of two fish-bearing streams, significant changes to that system were needed. Realigning a portion of Thompson Creek and the removal of a roadside ditch creates a more natural channel and habitat. A new stormwater conveyance system adds modular wetlands for stormwater treatment, and stormwater detention vaults for flow control. The removal of hydrologic barriers along with wetland enhancements through grading, soil amendments, and planting were part of fully-mitigating all impacts on site. Otak designed two culvert replacements, a restored stream channel, stormwater facilities, retaining walls, and utility relocation to support the County’s roadway improvement goals.

Little Boston Road Pedestrian Trail

Adjacent to Little Boston Road, a 0.75-mile section of trail was designed and constructed as the principal nonmotorized connection to the Tribal Administrative Campus for the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe.

A Pedestrian Trail Designed for Tribal Administrative Access

The pedestrian trail consists of a ten-foot-wide paved trail with a number of amenities that also includes three pedestrian bridges, five stream crossings, and 7,600 square-feet of retaining walls. In limiting impact to to the area, the project included environmental mitigation as well as utility relocations, driveway and frontage restoration along 15 homeowner sites. As the prime consultant for design and construction Otak provided civil and structural engineering, landscape design, geotechnical investigation, environmental mitigation design, community engagement, construction document preparation, permitting, and construction management.

McGilchrist Street Arterial Improvements

As a major east/west arterial, McGilchrist Street carries significant traffic volumes for the area surrounding Salem, Oregon. The corridor, which provides a vital connection to downtown access as well as I-5 via Highway 22, would undergo multiple phases across three segments of roadway improvements aimed at traffic, railway, bicyclist, and pedestrian use. In leading the roadway design, Otak prepared a corridor analysis and feasibility study, as well as the engineering design and stream analysis to accommodate multiple creek crossings.

Roadway Design Intersects Stream Analysis for an Improved Corridor and Fish Habitat

The roadway design of McGilchrist Street traverses existing railroad tracks along with crossings at Clark Creek as well as the East and West Forks of Pringle Creek. Widening throughout the corridor with additional turn lanes at major intersections featuring new traffic signals – including the realignment of the 22nd Street intersection to a four-leg intersection – aim to reduce traffic congestion while bike facilities including a 10-foot-wide protected cycle track and pedestrian crossings encourage active transportation. In facilitating multiple creek crossings as well as widening of an at-grade track crossing for a Union Pacific Railroad mainline, stream analysis also identified solutions to alleviate bank over-topping and chronic flooding from the creek channel onto adjacent properties and over the existing roadway. Two culverts – including three-sided culvert with a natural bottom to accommodate the road widening – along with large wood debris add to this approach while also improving fish passage and habitat.

NE 171st Street Urban Parkway

An alternatives analysis process led to a selected concept for three roundabouts along the existing alignment of NE 171^st Street in Woodinville, Washington. The design alleviates congestion created by zoning changes aimed at encouraging economic growth in the city’s downtown area. In leading the analysis, Otak also provided a variety of services including the full design and construction support that followed.

Converting an Arterial to Improve Capacity, Flooding, and Fish Passage

Zoning changes enacted within the downtown master planning area of Woodinville were expected to result in congested intersections at key entrances into the downtown core. Roundabouts at one existing intersection and plans for two others – at locations that would be constructed as the area became more densely developed – provided the basis for the identified best solution. The alignment for each intersecting roadway was determined while incorporating a roadway diet, from five lanes to two, between roundabouts to channelize the traffic safely and efficiently. These improvements came with several other benefits by substantially reducing paved areas, replacing two culverts to fish-passable standards, alleviating flooding, and adding stormwater quality improvements, and a multi-use trail.

Orange Line – Swift Bus Rapid Transit

As part of Washington State’s first bus rapid transit (BRT) line, the 11-mile Orange Line route connects portions of Snohomish County along with the cities of Lynnwood and Mill Creek. Otak led the design and permitting while also providing construction engineering support for this transit-oriented development.

Expanding Bus Rapid Transit Corridors and Facilities for Improved Public Transportation

The design of this corridor connects service to Edmonds College, Lynnwood city center, Alderwood Mall, Mill Creek, including four park-and-rides and three future Sound Transit Link light rail stations. Project elements include a new transit center for the western terminus at the Edmonds College, construction of 17 BRT stations along the new Orange Line corridor and one additional BRT station along the Blue Line Swift Bus route, retrofitting five Green Line stations to also function as Orange Line stations, reconstruction of the existing transit center at the McCollum Park Park-and-Ride, and roadway and signal improvements at approximately 14 intersections to improve transit speed and reliability. Otak team efforts include alternatives analysis, preliminary and final design, environmental permitting, PS&E preparation, and jurisdictional coordination and permitting for the proposed BRT stations and termini including all associated roadway, signal, and pedestrian improvements.

Old Young’s Bay Bridge Permitting

The relocation of fiberoptic cables crossing the Old Young’s Bay Bridge in Astoria, Oregon required a wide range of permitting. Otak provided a full array of permitting services for the development of this complete permit acquisition and strategy.

A Complete Permitting Strategy to Ensure Environmental Protection

Mitigation of construction impacts to stream and estuary functions also necessitated compliance with local City of Astoria shoreline requirements along with restoration and compensatory mitigation planning documents. Given the structural elements and surrounding natural environment, the permit strategy included cultural resources compliance for NHPA Section 106, ESA compliance documentation per a programmatic Biological Assessment, a Joint Permit Application in support of required cut and fill permit from Oregon’s Department of State Lands and the Corps Section 404 permits.

Bull Mountain Regional Stormwater Strategy

In the West Bull Mountain area of Washington County, Oregon, planning for future land use aimed at expansion. The goal of would be creating a highly livable “community of distinction” within the designated Urban Growth Boundary (UGB), including a custom stormwater strategy.

Outcomes-Based Concept Plan for a 500-Acre Expansion

An outcomes-based concept plan was developed for the 500-acre expansion area as well as an adjacent 212-acre rural area to be potentially added to the UGB. Innovative solutions were integrated into the planning to also account for complex engineering and transportation management elements. Otak would lead overall project management, planning, urban design, stormwater, natural resources, GIS, and public involvement services.