Courtesy of DPR Construction

Significant Progress!

The upper foundation pad after completion of pier drilling.

The contractors have finished drilling all 560 piers for the foundation of our new hospital! While more work continues around those piers, including concrete, pile caps, grade beams and the underground electrical and plumbing work, this is a significant step forward for the project. Very quickly, the crews will begin erecting steel at specific locations of the site (weather permitting). Later this week, perhaps as early as Friday if the weather permits, the largest crane yet on site will arrive to handle the steel loads. The crawler crane will reach a maximum height of 300 feet when it moves to the upper foundation.

Garage bridge

Work is also moving along for the ramp connecting the garage to the main hospital driveway. Rain has caused delays in this area, setting the opening back to the end of February. This new access route will greatly improve traffic flow and convenience for our patients and visitors.

The empty corridors of Laurel Grove Hospital

Also this week, the contractor took over Laurel Grove Hospital to begin abatement and deconstruction of the facility. A great deal of effort went into closing down the facility after the last patients were discharged at the end of December. Much of the equipment found new life at Eden, San Leandro Hospital and other Sutter Health affiliates. And many other organizations received supplies, equipment, furniture and more as staff cleaned out the last of the hospital before turning it over to DPR Construction. Some of the organizations that received supplies and equipment include MedShare (with much of the equipment going to Haiti relief efforts), Castro Valley Unified School District, Davis Street Family Resource Center,  Fairmont Hospital and UC Berkeley Vision Sciences, to name just a few. We’ll share more information on this effort in a post from Eden Project Director Bob Bosold later this week. Laurel Grove is now secured by fencing as crews begin their detailed work before removing the building in March.