Location
Cincinnati, OH
Owner/Client
J. J. Gumberg Company
CEC Services
- Geotechnical Engineering
- Construction Quality Assurance
- Construction Administration
- Civil/Site Engineering
- Surveying
- Stormwater Management
- Erosion & Sedimentation Control
Owner Objective
J. J. Gumberg Company, owner of West Town Centre that includes The Home Depot as one of the anchor tenants, had experienced ongoing settlement of the pavement within a section of a main access road, requiring regular maintenance and repair. Because the road primarily supported site access to The Home Depot Garden Center and loading dock, the pavement damages and ongoing repairs were a disruption for J. J. Gumberg’s tenant. The general vicinity of the ongoing pavement repairs coincided with an approximate 200-foot-long by 15-foot-tall segmental retaining wall (SRW) that bordered the outside edge of the access road.
As a result of the ongoing pavement distress, J. J. Gumberg requested that CEC perform a forensic investigation to determine the cause of the apparent ground movements and any necessary remedial actions. J. J. Gumberg’s primary goals were to identify the cause of the ongoing pavement problems; develop a remedial solution; and to minimize disruption to The Home Depot’s operations.
CEC Approach
CEC developed and implemented a site investigation program that included review of available construction documents, an engineering reconnaissance, subsurface explorations, installation and monitoring of inclinometers and piezometers, site surveys, and laboratory testing. After review and analysis of the developed data, CEC identified that a deep-seated landslide was occurring.
The extent of the landslide failure included the entire SRW (also referred to as global stability failure of the SRW) that supported the edge of the access road. It was also determined that the SRW may have been under-designed, requiring additional support or replacement.
To address the landslide, CEC evaluated several remedial solution options and their estimated construction costs and presented them to J. J. Gumberg. The selected option was a reinforced concrete drilled pier retaining wall, which allowed for a single structure to be built in front of the existing SRW that would arrest the landslide movements, provide a new wall in-place without removing the existing wall, and minimize disturbance to The Home Depot store operations. CEC then utilized integrated engineering design and construction capabilities to design the retaining wall and prepare construction documents. This process included preparation of site civil construction documents (site grading, drilled pier layout and design details, underground utility repairs, stormwater management, pavement rehabilitation, etc.) and acquisition of required permits.
For construction of the retaining wall, CEC serves as J. J. Gumberg’s representative to facilitate administration of the bidding process, contractor selection, submittal review, and construction inspection. CEC also provided Construction Quality Assurance (CQA) services to confirm that the wall construction met the design and geotechnical engineering requirements, as well as the Special Inspections required by the building permit.
