Press Release - March 19, 2012

City of Atascadero Administrative Services Department

On March 9, 2012, a major milestone in the reconstruction of Atascadero’s Historic City Hall was completed, the stabilization of the building’s foundation. This step is a major one towards the project’s total rehabilitation. The complex and sensitive work was completed by Wysong Construction of Atascadero and took a total of eight months.

With this work completed, the new foundation underneath the original structure is now done and the building is safely resting on its new foundation. The stabilization work included the installation of 248 steel and concrete piles, each averaging 56’ deep, with a total drill length of over 16,000 feet. There were 110 concrete pile caps installed underneath the existing spread footings and on top of the support piles. The pile caps included 600 yards of concrete and approximately 80 tons of reinforcing steel.

The remaining tasks for structural mitigation and repair work include the installation of shotcrete walls for lateral support, installation of additional structural steel and structural framing in the upper rotunda and fiber reinforced polymer fabric for lateral support, also in the upper rotunda. The structural work is on schedule to be completed by the end of April 2012 according to Dan Huff, Project Manager from Bernard’s, the construction management firm hired to manage the project for the City.

Completion of the Historic City Hall project in the City’s centennial year remains one of the City Council’s top priorities. Said Mayor Pro Tem Tom O’Malley, the City is "literally building the foundation for our Centennial Celebration and paving the way to a successful future for our City."

    After nine months of foundation stabilization, the next phase of building reinforcement will begin this week as the shotcrete starts in the basement. The shotcrete will continue up to the top of 3^rd floor.  At the top of building in the upper rotunda, the new structural steel has been installed. This completes the major strengthening of the existing steel frame that supports the top of the building. The added steel also ties the outside walls to the interior steel frame. Diani Building Corp. is installing new connections at the upper dome wood 　framing to give it seismic resistance. They are focusing on re-building the upper dome and roof areas to have the upper part the building complete and water tight before next winter. We are quickly approaching the start of interior space construction which includes new walls, ceilings, mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire sprinkler systems. Once the shotcrete is complete, Taft Electric, Santa Margarita Construction, Terry Otis Construction, Scott Murray Plumbing and Alpha Fire Protection will mobilize to start installing these new systems. Ceiling and wall construction will also begin. The pace of construction is steadily increasing with the next 12 months being on track for substantial project completion.

Wysong Construction has completed 93 pile caps so far with 27 remaining. The basement walls have been excavated around the exterior on the north and south sides of the building for the pile cap installation. These huge piles of 　dirt are stockpiled on the site and can be seen over the fences. All pile cap installation and foundation stabilization will be completed by mid-February. The next phase of work in the basement will be the shotcrete concrete installation next to the existing foundation walls. This 8" thick concrete wall will reinforce the existing foundation walls and be the starting point for reinforcing the entire building shell from the basement to the top of the 3^rd floor. Eagle Shotcrete is installing the reinforcing steel and epoxy dowels in the brick walls along the perimeter of the 1^st, , 2^nd and 3^rd 　floors as they prepare for shotcrete at those levels of the building. Structural reinforcing work continues at the top of the building inside the white shrink wrap cover. Diani Building Corp. has completed a concrete bond beam at the top of the brick mezzanine wall. This new perimeter beam will reinforce the top of the wall and create a connection point for the existing steel frame that supports the upper rotunda and roof framing. Diani will continue to install new wood framing connections and begin to rebuild the upper part of the building. Preservation Arts has been cleaning and preparing the exterior brick that was removed during demolition for re-installation. They have started to remove, repair, and replace the earthquake damaged exterior brick surfaces at the 1^st floor level on the Lewis Avenue side of the building. The project remains on schedule with completion expected in mid-2013. 

The foundation micropiles are now complete and the next phase of work to stabilize the building foundation has started. Wysong Construction is installing a shoring system in the basement using heavy wood timbers to temporarily support the building while they install new concrete pile caps under the existing building footings. Once the shoring is installed, Wysong will carefully excavate under the existing footings, install reinforcing steel(rebar), and place new the concrete pile caps. The new pile caps will also be connected to the micropiles by encasing them in the concrete cap. When completed, the entire building weight will be transferred to the new pile caps and micropiles that are embedded in the bedrock 60 feet below the surface. The top of the building is now covered in a heavy plastic sheeting referred to as shrink wrap because as it was installed, it was heated to make it taut. This cover will provide weather protection for the structural reinforcement 　work that is underway at the top of the building. The multi-phase reinforcement includes brick removal, a new concrete beam that will tie the perimeter of the roof dome together and new structural steel members to strengthen the upper portions of the structure. Inside the building, the abatement work is complete up to the 2^nd floor. Shotcrete, a system of applying concrete through a hose at high velocity, will be used to strengthen the interior perimeter of the building. The existing wood framed walls and ceilings have been removed already on the 1^st and 2^nd floors to expose the interior brick surfaces. Rebar is being installed next to the brick and attached at regular intervals with high strength epoxy. A minimum of 8" thick shotcrete will be applied to interior walls from the basement to the top of the 3^rd floor. All work is progressing on schedule. 

Hayward Baker and Wysong Construction continue to install piles around the exterior building perimeter and in the basement area. Over 120 of the total 248  piles have been installed so far. Historic materials have been removed on the first and second floor. Diani Building Corp. will move up to the 3^rd floor next week and start removals on  the upper floors of the building. Channel Coast Construction has sealed off the 1^st floor to remove all lead-based and asbestos containing materials as they demolish interior walls, ceilings and flooring. The hazardous materials abatement will be done throughout the building during the next two months. The second tier of scaffold will be erected around the upper dome next week followed by the clay tile roof removal. All of this removal work at the upper dome area is required for the major structural upgrades that must be done at the top of the building which will include a new concrete perimeter beam and structural steel reinforcement. Similarly, the interior wall demolition will allow access to the original building walls that must be reinforced to resist seismic forces. Starting from the foundation piles, the process of stabilizing the building from the ground up is underway. 

Diani Building Corp. started historic material removals this week inside the building and at the 4^th floor roof area. Every door, 　door trim, window trim, and baseboard is assigned an IIN (item identification number), which is used to track the piece from removal to reinstallation. In addition to the IIN, all historic material is photographed before removal to document its condition. The removal process requires extreme care and handling of these materials that are almost 100 years old. All of the materials are being stored off-site in secured locations. The original wood doors will be restored and re-fitted for new hardware before they are returned to project next year. The terra cotta caps have been removed around the perimeter of the roof. They are also treated has historic material and they will be re-installed later in the project. The first scaffolding on the project is now in place around the exterior of the upper dome area. The clay tile roof will be removed starting next week as the first step in dismantling the entire roof dome which will allow the seismic repair and upgrade work to begin. The original clay roof tiles will be blended with new replacement tiles to restore the roof to its original condition when all of the repairs and upgrades are complete. Micro pile installation will start around the exterior of the building next week. 64 micro piles have been installed so far in the basement.

40 micro piles have been installed so far under the building foundations. We are averaging 4 to 5 piles per day. The drilling conditions have been fairly consistent with the bedrock at 40 to 50 feet below the building. The challenge has been to clean up the large quantity of muddy water from the drilling operation that accumulates quickly in the basement area. Wysong Construction is pumping the muddy water into holding bins and using small Bobcat excavators to haul the mud out of the basement. The micro pile installation is expected to be complete by mid-October.

The two remaining trees closest to Palma Ave. are being cut down. Jim Wilkins, president of the Atascadero Historical Society has big plans for the larger trunk wood. He plans to have the wood milled into various pieces of usable lumber to be used on projects that will enhance the Historical Society grounds and the City Hall Project. Some of the wood is to be made into collectible souvenirs which will be sold to offset the expenses incurred to move and mill the wood. The Atascadero Historical Society's proceeds from the August 9, 2011 Tuesday in the Park BBQ will be utilized to begin the milling process so please join them by purchasing dinner tickets.

Diani Building Corp. has completed the historic building component marking. They will start to remove these items next week and prepare the building interior for abatement work, which is the next phase before actual interior demolition begins. Alpha Fire Protection completed the dry stand pipe repair and the Atascadero Fire Department approved the installation. The fire sprinkler system has been shut down and it will be removed as part of the interior demolition work. Alpha will install a new fire sprinkler system that provides complete coverage of all building areas in the new construction phase.

Micro pile installation started in the basement area on July 13^th. Hayward Baker and Wysong Construction are focused on installing the new piles under the existing foundations that support the center or rotunda area of the building. Some of the greatest building loads are concentrated in this area because the highest part of the building sits on these foundations which includes the grand dome roof. The sequence of micro pile installation is based on carefully re-supporting the building foundations without risking any building movement during the foundation phase.

Diani Building Corp. is now inside the building marking all historic building components that will need to be removed and saved. Some of these components include the original wood base, wood doors, and wood widow trims. All of these items will be carefully cataloged, removed, stored, and re-installed in the new construction phase. Alpha Fire Protection has started to repair the dry standpipe system to insure there is proper fire protection during construction. Alpha, Scott Murray Plumbing ,Taft Electric and Santa Margarita Construction will remove piping, mechanical and electrical systems through out the building and basement once demolition gets underway in August.