Oakland Global Newsletter for May 2015

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  • by BPC Staff
  • on June 1, 2015
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Brought to you by the Oakland Global Trade & Logistics Center and California Capital & Investment Group

OAKLAND GLOBAL NEWS

Monthly Updates on the Oakland Global Trade & Logistics Center Project

May 2015
Issue 32
IN THIS ISSUE
Electrical Power
Frank Kennedy
Storm Water
 QUICK LINKS
Oakland Global Website 

  Dear Reader,

Oakland Global News is a monthly newsletter for readers interested in staying current as the Oakland Global Trade & Logistics Center (former Oakland Army Base) project evolves. We hope you enjoy our May 2015 update.

New Power Utilities Amp Up Project

In May the Oakland Global project completed the first major phase of under-grounding and energizing power lines and other electrical infrastructure. The work will eventually lead to under-grounded electrical utilities throughout much of the Port of Oakland and the former Oakland Army Base and provide enough amperage to power modern warehouses, a new marine bulk terminal and related logistics facilities.

Under-grounding  overheard power lines comes with several advantages, including removing potential hazards for the numerous rail lines that traverse the base and clearing obstructing power poles and lines that could interfere with new warehouse development.

In order to deliver additional amperage Pacific Gas & Electric added service from a power hub near Jack London Square, which will exclusively serve the former Army Base property. Until now, the base shared power from a substation located on port property. That Davis Street Substation fed power to the Port of Oakland, and its tenant Ports America, as well as Treasure Island – by way of an under-the-Bay cable.

Once completed, the new Oakland Global Trade and Logistics Center will need approximately 20 million volt amps, pushing the power demand well beyond the capacity of the Davis Street Substation, given its other draws, said Pat Saxton, who is handling the Oakland Global project’s power infrastructure construction for the Morrow-Meadows Corporation.

Frank Kennedy Fulfills Unique Role

Frank Kennedy has performed a central and unique role on the Oakland Global project almost since its inception, serving as the

City of Oakland’s Engineer specifically assigned to the project, which is remaking the former Oakland Army Base into a modern trade and logistics facility.

Kennedy is not a City of Oakland employee. Instead, he is a consultant hired by the project because of the enormous scope of the project’s engineering work. Had the City of Oakland’s Engineer, Michael Neary, been tasked with the Army Base, he would not have had time to do anything else.

Kennedy has worked as public works engineer-for-hire since 2000 and has a staff of five at his Walnut Creek-based firm, Kennedy and Associates. Previously he served as a City of Walnut Creek engineer starting in 1986. The City of Oakland has hired Kennedy on several projects since 2004.

On the Oakland Global project Kennedy was intimately involved in planning, environmental review and construction drawings before the project ever broke ground. His role was to make sure that all plans were consistent with city standards related to everything from storm drains to traffic circulation. Since then he has reviewed on-going changes to the project and conducted inspections to ensure that construction conforms to plans.

Kennedy said the project includes some unique challenges: Correcting the unstable condition of the former Army Base soil, much of which is Bay mud or fill; completing a construction project in and around a fully-operating port (including replacing utilities while maintaining water, power and communication services); and the tremendous volume of existing port truck traffic, which the construction project must accommodate.

Kennedy’s final task on the Oakland Global project will be to write the notice of completion for the project and present a project completion report to the Oakland City Council. That final step is expected to occur at some point in 2017.

Storm Water System Vastly Improved

Within the next two weeks, the Oakland Global project will begin constructing a new storm water outfall under a wharf at the Port of Oakland’s Outer Harbor. The outfall will connect with new storm drain lines intended to divert filtered rain water into the Bay.

The new storm drain lines and outfall are being built taking into account seal level rise and rain runoff that is not captured by existing, undersized and obsolete plumbing. Until now, storm water has flowed directly into the Bay and flooded parts of the former Oakland Army Base. The project is replacing the majority of the former base’s storm water drainage system.

The new outfall at Wharf 5 at the port’s Outer Harbor will consist of a five-foot by six-foot box culvert. It will connect with pipes that drain approximately 180 acres of land. Before rain water enters storm drains it will be filtered by bioswales, consisting of sand and vegetation that also serve as landscaping, according to James Heilbronner who is managing the storm water planning and construction.

Creating the outfall is complex. First, about 3,000 feet of wharf deck will be sawcut and removed in sections. A 25-foot wide by 200 foot long cofferdam will then be constructed and de-watered so that the outfall can be built.

Heilbronner, who is the principal and founder of Oakland-based Architectural Dimensions, said it has taken the project a lot of work just to get to the point of outfall construction. Because the outfall will be located at the Bay waterline it needed review from several government agencies including the Army Corps of Engineers, the Bay Conservation and Development Commission and the state and regional water boards.

 


 

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about the Oakland Global Trade & Logistics Center development. I believe that the Oakland Global Newsletter will prove to be a useful tool for staying informed and current on this important project going forward.

 

Sincerely,

Phil Tagami

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