Cost-Saving Solutions for 33 Logistics Park

Karst topography and unstable soils notoriously put land development at risk for sink holes. While these obstacles aren’t new, the way developers and their project teams handle these types of sites has evolved.

By implementing creative stormwater management and grading solutions, the project team for 33 Logistics Park addressed the sinkhole-prone terrain while saving the client, developer Duke Realty, more than $1 million.

In a peer review of conceptual designs for the site, Bohler identified numerous opportunities for cost-saving and constructability improvements. Taking over full design and permitting, the team developed grading and stormwater management solutions for the 130-acre industrial park that avoided significant conflicts with bedrock, prevented the need for costly blasting, and addressed the risk of post-construction sinkhole formation.

Additionally, the team provided a four-phase construction sequencing plan to support the client’s aggressive schedule, and seamlessly incorporated revisions to keep the project moving forward. Featuring three huge buildings, the park offers 1,650,000 SF of warehouse space, 350 trailer parking spaces, and 188 loading docks.

Creating Stormwater Solutions to Reduce Risk

Located in karst topography, the site sits on soluble rocks that are at risk for sinkhole formation and, as a result, traditional stormwater management systems are prohibited. Instead, the project team designed and permitted more than 30 Class V stormwater injection wells to bypass the unstable soils. This creative solution saved the client more than $1 million in subsurface infiltration practices that would otherwise be necessary, such as adding stone beds or basins beneath landscaped or paved areas.

Balancing Earthwork to Avoid Bedrock Conflicts

The site’s unstable soils also challenged the team’s grading design. By coordinating ground penetrating radar that identified bedrock elevations and subsurface voids, Bohler’s grading plan balanced nearly 750,000 cubic yards of earthwork, creating an opportunity for more cost savings. This innovative approach not only avoided the need to blast bedrock, it essentially saved the client from transporting some 31,000 dump truck loads of fill.

see related: topographical challenges have you headed for the hills?

Phasing Plans to Support Aggressive Construction Schedule

Determined to turn the site around in just four years, Duke Realty held the team to an aggressive schedule. Along with Bohler’s diligent coordination with permitting agencies to quickly incorporate plan updates, an efficient four-phase sequence of construction plans kept the project moving.

Developing a site located on karst soils is challenging, but 33 Logistics Park proves it is possible to develop within (or under) budget and on a tight schedule. By creating cost-saving design solutions and diligently keeping the project on track, Bohler enabled the client to deliver a quality industrial warehouse park in an accelerated timeline.