Business & Tech
Slight Setback for Library Construction
Heavier-than-usual rains caused delays for the new library. Construction is back on track, though the completion date has been pushed back a bit.
While the of the last few months may be a blessing to the parched area, it caused some headaches for construction crews working at remodeling the
Robert Genzel, director of construction and maintenance for the O.C. Public Libraries, said it took some extra effort to install the anchors for the foundations because of the weather.
"The rain caused a lot of problems for the project. The soil was collapsing around the caissons because it was so wet, so we had to wait for an engineer to come up with a different plan," Genzel said.
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Caissons anchor the foundation of a building to the bedrock below. Holes are drilled about 35 to 40 feet into the ground, then steel is inserted into the holes and concrete is poured around the steel. This provides a solid anchor for the foundation so that it won't settle and move over time.
Genzel said that the engineer worked around the wet soil by putting steel casings into the ground as the construction workers drilled. This kept the soil from collapsing back into the hole as they progressed. All of the caissons have been installed, and construction is moving forward.
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According to Genzel, the underground electrical and plumbing installations are both complete, so the foundation slab should be poured by next week or possibly even as early as this week, and then the framing will begin.
"I'd say we are about 35 percent complete at this point," said Genzel. "The original completion date was for October, so we're probably looking at November now."