The south ventilation building (via Appendix D) Credit: Seattle Tunnel Partners

The Stranger has obtained the winning proposal to build the deep-bore tunnel under downtown Seattle, submitted by Seattle Tunnel Partners. The Washington State Department of Transportation released the document in response to a public records request.

The south ventilation building (via Appendix D)
  • Seattle Tunnel Partners
  • The south ventilation building (via Appendix D)

I haven’t had a chance to dig in, so we can look together. See the full proposal—hundreds of pages in six files—in this 264 MB zip file. It’s got info about buildings that will be damaged, soil that settles under downtown, building a boring machine nearly 58 feet in diameter, and so much more. If you see something, say something.

Some background on the winning bid is here.

The South Portal
  • Seattle Tunnel Partners
  • The South Portal

Images and more after the jump.

Tunnel Cross Section
  • Seattle Tunnel Partners
  • Tunnel Cross Section

In section 5.4, STP points out, “The results of STP’s initial screening indicated that potential risk of damage from ground deformation would affect 47 buildings.” Here are what appear to be the worst-affected of those 47 buildings:

building_mitigation_1.jpg
  • Seattle Tunnel Partners
building_mitigation_2.jpg
  • Seattle Tunnel Partners

31 replies on “The Proposal to Build the Deep-Bore Tunnel”

  2. June 25, 2013 is when the DBT mining would actually begin according to that. Sell all your property above the route by June 24, 2013.

  3. Look at all those happy people, wandering around near the ventilation building. It’s where I’ll be hanging out when this bad boy gets drilled.

  5. Is the company that’s actually doing the drilling called Seattle Tunnel Partners—what a coincidence! or; are they simply an engineering group that drew up the plans? Since design/build is prohibited in Seattle, I’m a little confused about who submitted the proposal vs. who engineered the design vs. who’s doing the construction.

    I will accept both “not sure” and “don’t worry about it” as answers.

  6. Just think of all the dead polar bears and penniless Seattle citizens if we build this monstrosity.

    STP – it’s just oil, don’t mind our spills.

  9. @5, it’s a company set up specifically to manage this bid and project. It includes Dragados USA, whose parent is ACS of Spain, and HNTB Corp., of Kansas City.

    Once upon a time it was possible to build ventilation towers that were attractive to look at, like the Merseyside tunnel, and tunnel approaches that weren’t the equivalent of sixteen lanes wide (multiple examples in New York). Those days are apparently past.

    Notice how in the drawings the existing buildings are drawn blank as if they didn’t matter and barely exist; the new structures are a bland, inobtrusive gray, so you don’t notice them, and the only color in the entire scene is the lovely trees, which will bloom year-round, showering the happy citizens with the lovely aroma of money well-spent. These drawings are basically thought crimes.

    This thing is a multi-billion-dollar white elephant.

  11. The list of project guru resumés is interesting in that all but one have college degrees and only three have anything above a bachelor’s science/art.

    The three are the tunnel design manager who has degrees in civil engineering and geology, the environmental manager who has degrees in biology and ecology, and the community liaison person who has degrees in poly sci and public policy. The safety person is ex-Air Force and has been named to the Tunneling, Mining and Aggregates Management Chair of the Washington Governor’s Industrial Safety and Health Advisory Board, so maybe we’re gonna be safe in whatever happens.

    It’s certainly an interesting look inside government-business conniving.

  12. “Alexandria School District 206 is trying to cope with the unexpected death of an 18-year-old student.

    Lance Lundsten, a senior at Jefferson High School, died Saturday.

    According to preliminary autopsy results that were shared with the family, he died from cardiac edema, a condition caused by an enlarged heart.”

  13. @9 is my favorite Fnarf comment.

    Tomorrow I will make myself a hot toddy, sit in a big ol’ comfy chair and take a good long look at this shit.

  14. @11, I’ve been against the tunnel longer than you have, and ten times more intelligently. Nothing to do with billionaires, everything to do with concrete.

  17. @9 – thanks for so calmly explaining that after having gazed upon so many architectural renderings of lush, full-grown trees that may never exist.

    In related news, I’ve noticed recently—and I’ve lived here long enough at least to notice this hasn’t happened in the recent past—San Francisco has actually finished construction projects by installing adult trees very near what was promised in pre-construction renderings. The hows-and-whys of why that happens now I’ll ignore, and just be glad they’re there.

  18. @17, that’s lovely. I love the many splits and joins, presumably from the many intersections above. I’m pro-tunnel in principle, just not when it wipes out so much of the central city.

    Note that Madrid’s M-30 is a ring road, and putting it underground unblocks a gazillion streets and allows them to go through. Our tunnel does not, because there’s nothing on the other side except the bay. It will unblock only one or two streets, at the north end where Aurora cuts Lower Queen Anne off from South Lake Union. Whoopee.

    Note also that the approaches are no bigger than the road they carry, nor are they bigger than the freeway they’re replacing. I don’t know WHY ours have to be so big, but they are.

    I would also be interested in seeing a cost comparison; the Madrid project cost more, but it’s something like thirty times as long, and includes not only bored tunnels but cut’n’cover and (gasp) several viaducts. I’m also wondering how much of that came from the EU.

  19. On King 5 news they just talked about the tunnel having to go under the historic Old Federal Office Building, possibly causing structural damage. The Feds are having none of it.

  20. @19, I agree the artist’s rendition of what the approach design might be SUCKS.

    As to the other stuff, best I can tell from the web in Spanish, in a neat reversal of our present situation, before beginning the project Madrid asked Spain to sign over title and control of the M-30 to the city. It’s now the only one in Spain owned by a municipality. This presumably so Madrid could pay for its ambitious project using one of those wacky public-private partnerships, costs split 80/20 between the city and the Dragados group.
    http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/M-30 (in Spanish)
    http://www.knightpiesold.co.uk/projects/…

    As for what Madrid’s decided to actually DO with all its reclaimed space aboveground, well…I see trees of green…here’s a link showing lots of trees and plazas and such – more links at the end too:
    http://urbanscraper.blogspot.com/2010/06…

    P.S. Simone @20, Publicola broke that story yesterday by reading the comments WSDOT received on its DSEIS. Erica followed up today:
    http://publicola.com/2011/01/18/state-fe…

  22. @22, and such a surprise King5 didn’t credit Publicola. I love that Linda Brill summoned their helicopter to do a dramatic zoom shot.

    The King5 video showed how lovely that building is, and I’m glad GSA’s making sure it will be taken good care of.

  24. Hell, I don’t care if the ventilation building looks like a Satsop WPPSS cooling tower. In fact, it would add something interesting to the Seattle skyline for people to squawk about. Just dig the damn thing.

  28. ‘Gregoire also gave a nod to a state study that shows the tunnel will accommodate about one-third of the existing viaduct traffic, while the rest would choke downtown streets and I-5. That traffic would be worse without the tunnel, she argues, saying, “We will move cars through the tunnel and we will not displace them.”’ How is this an argument for replacing the Viaduct?

  29. The Ministry of Aesthetics and Modern Architecture has deemed the Viaduct a brilliant example of Post Modern Art Deco! One of the Best ways for Visitors to see the City and Bay with Exits to Pioneer Square, the Public Market, Art Museum and Downtown! The Ministery has decided to Retrofit and Strengthen the Existing Viaduct with Trolls, Lenin Statues, Rocket Ships, the Statue of Liberty and the Virgin of Guadalupe, etc. At a cost of Only 100 Million. This will bring visitors from around the World to See the Masterpiece bringing in Revenues, many times Surpassing the Cost, which will Be Shared by Everyone!

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