1021 West Hastings Street
Project Overview
- Excavation: 24,000 cubic meters
- Shotcrete: 6,000 square feet of 4” shotcrete
- Underpinning: 5,500 square feet of 8” underpinning
- Anchors: 7,000 lineal feet of tensioned anchors
- Heritage Site: Supported the front façade during excavation to preserve the heritage site
This project showcases BelPacific’s expertise in handling complex excavation tasks while maintaining the integrity of historically significant structures.
Pandora Co-Live
Scope of work
The Pandora project consisted of multiple scopes of work for western grater including blasting, shotcrete shoring and tie-back anchors. The shotcrete shoring system consisted of H piles drilled in from the surface, horizontal whaler beams and tie-back anchors to further support the vertical shotcrete wall. Traditional blasting methods were used to complete excavation to the desired depth.
The Proxima
Scope of work
Like many sites on Vancouver Island, rock is rarely far away. The Proxima is situated almost entirely on solid bed rock, requiring quite a bit of blasting for Western Grater to achieve the desired depth to allow for ample off-street parking in two levels of underground parkade. Shoring Along the Lampson Street property line consisted of 4” pipe piles and tie back anchors to achieve a safe vertical shoring wall, and to maximize the full extent of the property.
Challenges
The Proxima is Located on the corner of two very busy streets (Lampson St. and Esquimalt St.) including a busy intersection. Like most Urban blasting operations great care was taken to ensure the safety of the public and surrounding structures while attempting to minimize the impact on the neighboring community.
The Wedge
Scope of Work
WGC’s involvement in The Wedge project spanned multiple scopes of work, including excavation, shoring, and structural shotcrete. The excavation process, which began in 2020 and lasted approximately 12 months, required urban blasting to manage the site’s challenging conditions, such as excessive groundwater and soft marine blue clay. H piles were used in the shoring system to achieve the necessary excavation depth and maximize underground parking. Following the completion of the shoring process, WGC transitioned to structural shotcrete, utilizing this innovative method for walls and columns, which was a departure from traditional forming methods. Notably, WGC is the only NorLand business unit specializing in structural shotcrete, showcasing its unique expertise in this field.
Challenges & Solutions
With the Wedge Building being located in the heart of Victoria, there are many logistical challenges to overcome, one of which is often the lack of site access. Due to the excavation depth, no site entrance road was available, requiring all materials to be craned in and out of the site. Fortunately, M.R. Cranes provided excellent assistance in this challenge. Another challenge involved in the downtown setting is safe blasting procedures, WGC excels at our guarding and covering procedures to always ensure public and worker safety. A continuing challenge in the downtown Victoria region is the presence of soft marine clay, due to the proximity to the ocean and depth of excavation much of this material and groundwater was encountered, creating less than ideal working conditions but as usual, the workers endured and completed this project on time once again.