Waterfront Infrastructure

Art Anderson Associates provided all overwater design for the Port Orchard Intermodal Terminal, which includes the design of a new passenger only ferry terminal and transit transfer facility that is accessible to the handicapped.  The terminal serves Kitsap Transit's Bremerton-Port Orchard passenger ferry route, and is the berthing location for the agency's ferries and Kitsap Harbor Tours vessels.

The concept design phase included the selection of float and pier types, float moorage systems and access to the floats and boats. Constraints included minimizing shading of the water, providing access through a 20-foot tidal range to people who have difficulty with stairs or steep ramps, waters unprotected from the wind (from the north) and the ability to build the facility without shutting down ferry service or impacting the adjoining guest moorage.

The Port Orchard ferry has no terminal employees, so access had to be provided without assistance at all tidal ranges. A system of ramps and an elevator were both studied as a means of providing handicap access with the elevator being viewed as far superior to the ramps. Follow-on work included a retrofit of the terminal's fendering system to reduce wear and tear on the historic ferry Carlisle II.

Working with Kitsap Transit, Aqua Express and the Port of Kingston, Art Anderson Associates completed the planning, permitting and engineering design for the construction of a new terminal that services passenger-only ferry service from Kingston to Seattle. This effort was accomplished in an unprecedented time frame of seven months.

Our LEED-Accredited Professional forged the relationships and incorporated the required codes and statutes into the design and construction phase of the project to ensure the Building Permit Certification occurred without problem. Our team provided fluid flow for the permitting process by establishing beneficial relationships with multiple regulatory agencies. Our team's thorough understanding of regulatory agency requirements pertaining to vessels and overwater structures was utilized in making the permitting process as seamless as possible. Our team also helped negotiate the first-of-a-kind building permit for Kitsap County.

We were able to "shoe-horn" the new facility between a major Washington State Ferries auto ferry terminal and an environmentally-sensitive area of productive eelgrass beds. The innovative approach met all project goals, minimized risks for damaged eelgrass beds and actually reduced construction costs over the initially proposed concepts. The project mitigation approach developed for this project led the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to establish quantifiable criteria for project mitigation, an outcome that can be used to streamline the permitting of similar projects.

Art Anderson Associates provided civil and structural engineering services to develop a marine outfall for King County's new Brightwater wastewater treatment system.  Our scope included the preparation of plans, specifications, a basis of design report and calculations for plastic pipe weights and a reinforced concrete pipe anchor in support of our design/build partner Triton Marine Construction.  We also designed the temporary construction trestle.  The purpose of the anchor is to resist axial loads on the twin 63-inch HDPE pipe system caused by seismic or landslide events.  Both of the mile-long pipes and the anchor system are now resting 600 feet below the surface of Puget Sound.

In response to increased growth in the region, King County is constructing a new $1.6-billion regional wastewater treatment plant, called Brightwater.  Construction started in 2005 and is scheduled to be completed in 2010, with operations starting in 2011.  Brightwater will serve portions of King and Snohomish counties and support the County's mission to protect public health and the environment.  The new facilities will include a treatment plant, conveyance (pipes and pumps taking wastewater to and from the plant), and a marine outfall and will feature the largest membrane bioreactor system in the United States.

The Brightwater Outfall project was featured in the September 28, 2008 issue of Engineering News Record.  Read the article.

Engineering News Record also recognized the Brightwater Outfall project with the "Best of the Best" award in the heavy/civil construction category.  Read the King County Press Release.

Engineering News Record also awarded the project its "Best of 2009" Award in the heavy/civil category.  Read the feature story on the ENR website.