Saturday, June 18, 2011

Rate of Movement Increasing



From: Jim Nordquist [mailto:nord@agecinc.com]
Sent: Saturday, June 18, 2011 6:14 AM
To: Dan Steurer
Subject: RE: schedule

Good morning Dan -

Based on our measurements yesterday -
  • Building "L"
    • The east side of the buliding appears to have moved 0.8" in the last three months.  It had moved about 0.7" in the prior 3 years.
    • The west side of the building appears to have not moved.
  • Bulding "M"
    • The only good reading we have in the area of Builidng "M" is on the south end.   It appears to be moving at only a slight increase (during the last 3 months) from what it has been doing over the past 2.8 years.
    • The other inclinometers by building "M" and "L" have sheared off, so that we are not able to measure the actual movement

My suggestion is still to place soil (or something else really heavy like concrete blocks, rocks, etc.) east of the retaining wall behind DQ and also east of the wall in the area of the motel.  This would be the fastest way to help improve the situation.  The more that can be placed the better.  I will try and do some analysis to see the relative impact of placing 5, 10 and 15 feet of soil.

Good luck today!

Jim


    


From: Dan Steurer [Dan@sunwestdev.com]
Sent: Friday, June 17, 2011 4:59 PM
To: Jim Nordquist
Cc: Bruce C. Jenkins; Jason Schall; Karen Hatch; Terry R. Brotherson; Chip Bair; Kimberly Graff - Community Association Mgmt.
Subject: RE: schedule
Ok… we’ll get started on the legal petitions with group A.   I assume that group B “static and seismic conductions” means that they are impacted only in the event of a seismic event?   Shoring up the 400 ft. that is actively moving and damaging group A property wouldn’t benefit B properties unless the shoring efforts extended eastward, correct?
It sounds like placing soil behind the retaining wall is something that probably should have been done when it was built.  It will involve the neighbors below.   The city agreed to let us run a temporary power line to restore power to “M” today and do the repair next week.  This will allow the residents to get through the weekend (several are elderly and not able to easily make other arrangements).   The water line should be repaired by tonight.  

From: Jim Nordquist [mailto:nord@agecinc.com]
Sent: Friday, June 17, 2011 3:34 PM
To: Dan Steurer
Subject: RE: schedule

Dan –

A.   The areas of immediate impact appear to be (as you listed) the following:
·         Garden South
·         Soon Wilmette Trust
·         EDG Group LC
·         Park Dae Won
·         Richard Ringwood

This group would be impacted if the area of current movement were to continue.


B.   The next level of potential impact includes:
·         Family Circle Limited Partnership
·         The Bluffs, Phase 1
·         Black Ridge Terrace A, Commercial Condominiums
·         Black Ridge Commercial Center Condominiums, Phase 2
·         Jenkins Oil Co., Inc.
·         South Bluff Plaza Condominiums

This group would likely “fight” inclusion into the SSD.  Their risk is under static and seismic conductions.

C.            The next level of potential impact includes:
·         The areas developed on the geologically mapped landslide.
·         Their risk is likely tied to seismic activity at a level required by current code.
·         This group would definitely “fight” inclusion into the SSD.

I hope that this will help you – in such an eventful time.

If you need to quickly reduce the potential for movement, soil could be placed in front of the retaining wall west of the DQ.  The more soil, the better.  An option would be to place jersey barriers to maintain some access, and then placing soil between the retaining wall and the jersey barriers.    This may not help a lot, but some help or assistance would be beneficial.

Thanks,

Jim



From: Dan Steurer [mailto:Dan@sunwestdev.com]
Sent: Friday, June 17, 2011 3:15 PM
To: Jim Nordquist
Cc: Jason Schall; Karen Hatch; Terry R. Brotherson; Chip Bair; Bruce C. Jenkins
Subject: RE: schedule

  
There is increased urgency and a need to really expedite the process.   We had another lateral main water line to Building M break (yesterday?) and it wasn’t discovered until the sidewalk collapsed this morning and water began surfacing below at the DQ.   The M building has moved about four inches more in the last month, more than in the past 15 years.   The sewer lines on the west end of M are back-draining because the building has dropped.  This morning the electric lines were pulled away from the transformer and the 600 amp panel on the building was fried.  We have 8 units without power and water.  
I tried reaching both you and Arnold this morning but couldn’t, so I called Dave Black from Rosenberg to take a look and see if there is immediate danger.   I haven’t heard back from him yet but he said he would grab Walt Jones and have a look today.   We don’t want anyone to get hurt.  The west 8 units of Bldg M are moving intact with the foundation secure and the building does not appear to be leaning as much or coming off the foundation like building L.   The east end four units of M have moved less and therefore there is a widening split occurring at the fire wall where the 8 units are separating from the 4 unit section.   It’s been a busy day.   We’ve got a plumber trying to find the leak and an electrician trying to restore power as I write this  The city repaired the transformer and will need to reinspect the service panel repair  before they will allow power back on which means we will have 8 more owners displaced if they decide to condemn the building.   Is mother nature going to win this one before we can get manpower and money together?  
Are we safe to assume that only the GSC, DQ, Hotel, Steak House, and tax strip properties are involved?   If so, we’ll start the legal process and petition the city and owners to form an SSD.   I think we should also notify formally the owners of M building how serious the problems are and prepare them for the fact that they may possibly be evicted if the units are judged unsafe.    We’re trying to be proactive and keep the communication lines open to avoid stupid lawsuits.

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