Photo courtesy AGC of Washington Structural renovations at the Seattle Aquarium included a new east-end concrete slab to support the Window on Washington Waters exhibit.

The Seattle Aquarium on Pier 59 was supported by 760 rotting wood piles, and the creosote used to protect the decaying wood was polluting the bay.

The initial design called for giant trusses to be added under the existing building, which proved to be unsuitable. Through a value engineering process, a replacement pile system was proposed that ultimately saved $3.5 million.

Turner used a special vibratory hammer to drive the piles, which was crucial to protecting the animals and aquarium operations. By using glass paver panels and stronger steel piles, the project allowed more daylight to reach under the pier, which created a better habitat for the sea life below.

The Parks Department had planned to close the aquarium for more than two months to accommodate construction. Turner worked with the owner to reverse pedestrian flow, relocate ticketing and use custom gangways to move patrons between piers. This resulted in a minimal one-week closure.

There were no lost-time incidents in more than 130,000 worker hours on the project.