Why is a fully-functioning culvert crucial?
A culvert allows for safe road passage by reducing flooding risk, and improves water flow. Without a functioning culvert, a road could fail – just like it did on Sandra Lane in Manitou Springs.
That’s why, when we tackled the Sandra Lane Culvert replacement project for the city of Manitou Springs, we believed that by creating a functional and safe environment, our success translated to everyone’s success.
Here’s what the team was up against—the road had repeatedly flooded over the culvert due to clogging. Whenever it rained or a storm rolled through the area, the already active creek would flood and wash over the road, resulting in hazardous conditions for travelers and residents. As a result, the road was closed and needed to be reopened before the winter weather ended the construction paving season.
We ground ourselves in taking ownership of the entire project, understanding that one successful project can affect the safety and daily routines of many different people in a local area. 633 Construction’s nimble team self-performed 90% of the complex culvert replacement project on a tight deadline, reaching the asphalt paving stage in November before the winter weather set in.
The road to a successful end is not necessarily easy. We encountered some surprise variables that caused us to carefully strategize an alternate plan.
The scope of the project was to remove the existing culvert and replace it, while also realigning the sewer line, which ran directly through the middle of the culvert.
The site itself proved challenging, with 11 utility crossings that we had to carefully navigate. We also dealt with an active creek flowing through the site, and spent significant time building a diversion.
Pictured below is the diversion culvert after we had installed the culvert and were removing parts of the diversion, which we used filled super sacks for.
In addition to the challenging infrastructure, the original design was missing a grading and erosion control plan. This is a critical design component to ensure it’s permitted. Thankfully, our team has a civil engineer on staff, and because of this, we were able to action it ourselves. This expedited the entire process, resulting in the project getting started and finished sooner!
We had the opportunity to strategically problem-solve when the original plan included a culvert that was larger than the site would allow. After working through different solutions, we discovered we could replace the culvert in-kind, and we provided cost savings to the client on the project overall, which were then rolled into other infrastructure improvements. This was a win for everyone involved!
Additionally, when we found that there was an existing sewer service that needed to be reconnected, we removed and reinstalled it at no cost to the owner.
We strive to be transparent in every project and every detail, understanding that honesty always wins. Since the alternative plan was now less expensive, we were able to give the city of Manitou Springs a discount, resulting in cost savings for them. With the extra money found through project savings, the city was able to allocate additional spending towards asphalt paving—extending the impact and value of the project.
Throughout the entire project, we stayed on schedule with the plan or slightly ahead of it. All in all, the project took 2 months. It feels good when everyone is happy and celebrates not only a successful project, but all the details in between.
Every project success story starts with a simple conversation. Want us to add yours to the list?
Give us a call at: (719) 287-0680
Send us an email at: [email protected]
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(719) 287-0680
Colorado Springs, CO
