Date:  Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Contact:
Travis Phelps, Alaskan Way Viaduct and Seawall Replacement Program, 206-267-6004, 206-462-0554 (cell)

KaDeena Lenz, Alaskan Way Viaduct and Seawall Replacement Program, 206-267-3836, 206-795-1876 (cell)

SEATTLE – Crews have started demolishing a 120,000-square-foot warehouse at Pier 48 on Seattle’s waterfront to make room for equipment and supplies during construction and replacement of the Alaskan Way Viaduct.

“Space in this area is very constrained,” said Ron Paananen, WSDOT’s Alaskan Way Viaduct and Seawall Replacement Program Administrator. “Demolishing this warehouse will provide much needed room to stage construction.”

The $460,000 demolition project, which is more than 35 percent below WSDOT’s estimate of $750,000, is expected to take approximately four months to complete.

The pier sits on wood piles severely damaged by time, weather and marine organisms. The warehouse is unsafe and prohibitively expensive to maintain.

The contractor, R.W. Rhine, Inc. of Tacoma, will recycle approximately 50 percent of the demolished building. Recyclable materials include wood, metal siding and roofing.

WSDOT purchased the pier from the Port of Seattle in 2008.

Crews working for Skanska USA Civil, the contractor selected to replace the southern mile of the viaduct between S. Holgate Street and S. King Street, will be the first to use the new staging area.

Crews will stage equipment on the “upland” portion of the pier - the area on dry land east of the warehouse.

For more information about the Alaskan Way Viaduct and Seawall Replacement Program, visit http://www.alaskanwayviaduct.org/.

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