The Hard Stuff

The bridges are being manufactured and the poured-in-place concrete abutments for the 5 new bridges have been approved by the City.  The longer the concrete allowed to sit, the stronger the abutment will be.  So the contractor is taking advantage of the holiday lull to get ready to pour concrete.  The photo above shows crew members marking out where the abutments will go.

The point bar is starting to take shape as cobbles are brought in and placed.

There are a few places along the stream where we want to let visitors get right up to the water, but we also need to provide some extra-strong protection for the bank.  In those places, the contractor has placed large, angular boulders that lock together to form a solid structure.  There is no grout or concrete holding the boulders together, just gravity and friction--two things that will outlast the strongest grout.