Q2 2018

Concrete Pavement Progress www.acpa.org 22 B O U R B O N S T R E E T R E C O N S T R U C T I O N blocks,” McLellan says, adding, “But as we finished up in fall 2017, we had to close up to three blocks at a time to meet deadlines.” Each block housed between 10 and 15 businesses that included retail stores, restaurants and hotels. The narrow streets and constant heavy traffic in the area presented a few challenges. “We had to get creative to get our concrete into the area,” says McLellan. “We had to tailgate the concrete on a couple of pours, but were able to pump on most of them.” Scheduling work was also a challenge due to the heavy pedestrian traffic in the area. “We’d start work at 7 a.m. and by noon, the foot-traffic in the area is crazy,” says McLellan. “We had to make it possible for visitors to safely reach businesses on the street, so we fenced in areas until we restored the surface and built ramps over the sidewalks.” Just as the utility companies working alongside Hard Rock discovered pieces of history as they uncovered utility vaults, McLellan says that his crews found a mix of materials in the old pavement. “We found railroad ties, cobblestone and concrete with an asphalt overlay,” he says. The new pavement is 8-inch concrete with color added to darken the surface. There are several reasons for the cobblestone color added to the pavement, he says. “Some streets that had been white-topped with no color added show stains from vehicles and spilled drinks,” he says. Maintaining a cleaner appearance along with matching surrounding streets with asphalt surfaces were good reasons to “tone the brightness of the concrete down,” he adds. In addition to upgrading the road pavement, Hard Rock also constructed an 8-foot wide raised sidewalk that was brick paver on top of a concrete base. Adding to the aesthetics of the project was the reuse of the old 6-inch ex- posed granite curb pieces that Hard Rock had to set into the new curb. “This required us to modify our gutter system, then set the granite block into the recess,” explains McLellan. The contractor had to remove, retrofit, clean, and place the granite into the new curb. “It took extra time because the granite is difficult to maneuver, but it looks great.” The toughest part of the job was to manage schedules and construction so that impact to visitors and businesses was minimized. “It’s not fun being the bad guy who closes a major artery in a city that relies on tourists and a thriving commercial area year-round,” McLellan says. “Fortunately, everyone work- ing on the project—Hard Rock, the city, and the utility companies—worked well together to communicate with the community and with each other. The good news for the community is that the concrete pavement will not require major maintenance again for a long time.”  » continued from page 21