June 20, 2012

Brightwater, school win top ASCE awards

Photo by Ben Benschneider [enlarge]

Brightwater wastewater treatment plant.

Brightwater wastewater treatment plant and the reconstruction of Whatcom Middle School won top awards from the Seattle Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers for projects completed in 2011.

ASCE said the winners were picked for civil engineering, sustainability, cost effectiveness, materials and aesthetics.

Brightwater in Woodinville is an advanced wastewater treatment and reclamation facility that is the hub of King County's $1.85 billion Brightwater Regional Wastewater System.

The system includes an offsite influent pump station, conveyance tunnels, reclaimed water distribution, and a marine outfall in Puget Sound.

It was designed by a partnership of CH2M-Hill, and Brown and Caldwell for the King County Wastewater Division.

The Bellingham project involved seismic upgrades and reconstruction after a fire in a 1903 middle school. The structure was used as formwork for a shotcrete shell that was constructed outside the original building. The damaged interior was replaced with a new structure.

Photo courtesy of Dykeman Architects [enlarge]

Whatcom Middle School.

The team includes Reid Middleton, Dykeman Architects, Dawson Construction and Hargis Engineers. Bellingham Public Schools is the owner.

Two projects received honor awards in the small project or non-construction study category:

• Silver Beach Creek stormwater improvements on Brownsville Drive to East 16th Place in Bellingham. The team includes Osborn Consulting, Colacurcio Brothers Construction Co. and Land Development Engineering. The owner is Whatcom County.

• Valley Estates bank stabilization and culvert replacement in Redmond. The team includes Otak, GeoEngineers and CRC, Inc. The owner is the city of Redmond.

Two projects received honor awards in the water resources category:

• Madison Valley NW diversion and Washington Park stormwater storage project in Seattle. The team includes MWH Americas, Aspect Consulting, IMCO Construction & Northwest Boring, and Staheli Trenchless Consultants. The owner is Seattle Public Utilities.

• Youngs Creek hydroelectric project in Sultan. EES Consulting worked on the project for the Snohomish County Public Utility District.

For more information go to http://www.seattleasce.org.