Construction Roundup 2023 Infrastructure projects starting or finishing this year

By Katie Pesznecker

Any given year in Alaska, a skilled industry of contractors, architects, and engineers are designing and deploying projects across the state that will expand and improve on existing infrastructure. This annual roundup of airports, harbors, bridges, and roads is a high-level capture of some of the work wrapping or launching in 2023.

AIRPORTS Joint Base ElmendorfRichardson Runway Extension

The US Army Corps of Engineers Alaska District contracted Kiewit Infrastructure West Co. for this estimated $309 million project. The north-south runway, currently 7,500 feet long, is being extended to 10,000 feet, and the southern threshold is being shifted 400 feet to the north to meet airfield design requirements. According to the Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center, this project is the largest Pacific Air Forces construction project awarded to date.

This project involves moving 12 million cubic yards of dirt and installing runway and airfield drainage. There is a significant paving component, with hot mix asphalt and poured concrete. Kiewit is installing new airfield lighting that includes a state-of-the-art instrumentation landing system and glide slope technologies. The project is also extending two JBER parallel taxiways, adding an arm/disarm pad, rerouting Airlifter Drive around the north end of the extension, and relocating airfield perimeter fencing and utilities. Notice to proceed was issued August 24, 2022; target completion is August 27, 2025.

Project equipment includes twenty new Caterpillar 777 100-ton heavy- hauler rock trucks to augment Kiewit’s fleet of ten Cat 777s. Up to 130 Kiewit staff are expected onsite in summer 2023, joined by 130 craft laborers.

Shifting more operations to this extended runway will reduce conflicts with civilian aircraft operating through Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (ANC), Lake Hood Seaplane Base, and Merrill Field. Departures to the north may also reduce noise in neighborhoods adjacent to the base.

Northlink South Campus E-Commerce and Express Cargo Terminal

MCG Explore Design is working with Northlink Aviation to develop a 120-acre parcel at ANC. This facility will provide for more efficient cargo transfer, refueling, and maintenance to support cargo operations at the airport. CRW Engineering Group, RSA Engineering,

Corvus Design, and Coffman Engineers are also contributing to architecture and engineering, and Cornerstone General Contractors is building the $200 million project. Site work begins in summer 2023.

The South Campus Cargo Terminal is meant to enhance the competitiveness of ANC as a global cargo hub and sustain future cargo volume growth. With more efficient turnaround times, the transfer facility will minimize time on the ground for carriers. “We’re excited about this project and its potential for Anchorage, further establishing our state as a global hub for aviation cargo,” says Jason Gamache, principal architect at MCG Explore Design. “This terminal will be one of the greenest aviation projects in the country and a model for sustainable design. It will be the first at ANC to employ an onsite glycol recovery and recycling system, dramatically reducing the environmental impact of airplane deicing operations.”

Kaltag Airport Improvements

The Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities (DOT&PF) is resurfacing the 4,000foot runway in the Yukon River village of Kaltag. The $10.7 million project also includes reconstructing the taxiway, apron, and access road; constructing a new snow removal equipment building, and replacing the airport lighting system. DOT&PF hired Brice Incorporated as the general contractor, and Stantec is the engineer of record, as well as the architect of record for the snow removal equipment building. Most airport and building construction materials were barged to Kaltag on the Yukon River, with other supplies flown in on cargo flights. The project is approximately 90 percent complete, with completion scheduled for June 2023.

Bethel Airport Main Runway Reconstruction

DOT&PF is rehabilitating Bethel’s runway 1L/19R; re-grading runway and taxiway safety areas; replacing runway and taxiway lighting, signs, and markings; and adjusting Federal Aviation Administration Navigational Aid (FAA NAVAID) equipment. Knik Construction is the general contractor, and R&M Consultants is the engineer on the $31.9 million project. The target date for completion is November 1, 2023.

New Stuyahok Airport Resurfacing

DOT&PF is resurfacing the runway, taxiway, and apron in the Nushagak River village of New Stuyahok; replacing the lighting system; adjusting

FAA NAVAID underground utilities; abandoning a runway culvert and ditch; replacing wind cones, beacons, and signs; and applying dust palliative. ASRC Civil Construction is the general contractor, and R&M Consultants is the engineer on the $6.3 million project. Completion is estimated for fall 2023.

Cold Bay Snow Removal Equipment Buildings

DOT&PF is replacing a derelict fire hall at Cold Bay Airport with a new snow removal equipment building and chemical storage building. The project includes a new preengineered metal building to house the airport’s MB-2 heavy-duty snow removal vehicle, plow, and tracking broom and to accommodate de-icing chemical bulk storage and mixing. Site improvements include new water and sewer utility services, a new 30-footwide cantilever slide gate, and new electrical service utilities. Olgoonik Construction Services is the general contractor, and R&M Consultants is the engineer on the $9.38 million project. Work is to be completed in 2023.

Chefornak Airport Rehabilitation

DOT&PF is reshaping the airport embankment and resurfacing the

Chefornak airport runway, taxiway, and apron operating surfaces. The project also includes resurfacing the access road and replacing the airfield lighting system, as well as replacing culverts, signs, wind cones, and the rotating beacon; constructing drainage ditches; applying dust palliative; and re-leveling the snow removal equipment buildings. Knik Construction is the contractor and R&M Consultants provided engineering work for the $26.7 million project, which is slated for completion in October.

Kipnuk Airport Rehabilitation

DOT&PF is expanding the runway embankment; resurfacing the runway, taxiway, and apron; and replacing the airfield lighting system at the Kipnuk Airport. Other improvements include replacing wind cones and the rotating

Before Huna Totem Corporation completes a new cruise ship passenger terminal for Whittier, the Prince William Sound town is getting a 1,650-foot double berth dock large enough for 4,000-passenger vessels. Concept art shows the dock jutting into Passage Canal.

Turnagain Marine Construction beacon and applying dust palliative. Knik Construction is the general contractor, and R&M Consultants is the engineer on the $14 million project. Work is to be completed by October 15, 2023.

Harbors And Seasides

Cordova Harbor Improvements

The City of Cordova contracted Turnagain Marine Construction as a design-builder to replace the existing floats and improve the uplands parking area near the South Boat Harbor. The project includes approximately 1,100 feet of soldier pile and concrete bulkhead, a pile supported concrete fixed dock, 80-foot by 80-foot drive down float, and timber surfaced

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• Repair broken pipes harbor floats built by Transpac Marinas. AJD Engineering is also contributing to the $40 million project. Onsite construction is scheduled to start September 2023 after fishing season ends, and the project is to be substantially complete prior to the next fishing season that begins in April 2024.

The Turnagain concept developed for the uplands improvements removes significant in-water construction, which could have released contaminants to the environment, and it avoids modifications to the currently in-place marine revetment. That approach would have required a fullwave model analysis, US Army Corps of Engineers review process, and approval prior to installation, delaying the project through an additional fishing season. The approved concept accomplishes the needed work while expanding the uplands parking and staging area.

Eareckson Air Station Fuel Pier

The US Air Force contracted a joint venture of Turnagain Marine Construction and Brice Environmental to update the fuel pier at Eareckson Air Station on Shemya Island in the Aleutian Island chain. Temporary repairs through the years have failed to maintain the dock in working condition, and it has been repeatedly damaged by storms, most recently and significantly in 2021. It cannot receive barges in its current state. With additional engineering by Stantec, the existing pier is being encapsulated with an interlocking pipe pile wall around the full perimeter, filled with cyclopean concrete for fortification. The shoreline west of the pier is being reinforced with new interlocking CORE-LOC dolosse.

Due to the potential for WWII-era military munitions to be present, all in-water work is being performed with cranes and excavators that Turnagain and Brice are modifying to operate remotely. Design is ongoing. Construction is scheduled seasonally between March and September of 2024 through 2026. The $177 million project will be completed by September of 2026.

Whittier Cruise Ship Berth

Huna Totem Corporation contracted Turnagain Marine Construction to build a double-berth marine facility in Whittier. The contract encompasses design, permitting, and construction. In-water work starts in spring 2023 and is scheduled to be complete by the fall.

The $65 million project features a world-class cruise ship berthing facility to complement Whittier’s new 38,000-square-foot passenger terminal, opening in spring 2024. The project entails a 1,650-foot double-berth dock to accommodate Norwegian Bliss and similarly sized ships. The Head of Bay Cruise Ship dock was designed in-house by Turnagain Marine’s engineering department and will be constructed by two of Turnagain Marine’s crane barges. The dock consists of a 500foot by 70-foot pontoon float designed by AJD Engineering and fabricated by Transpac Marinas, two mooring dolphins and two float restraint dolphins fabricated by T Bailey, Inc., and a mooring trestle and transfer span fabricated by Jesse Co., along with a 500-foot approach trestle.

JD Fields is supplying nearly 13,000 linear feet of pipe pile in 36-inch and 48-inch diameters. The longest pile to be installed is estimated to be more than 300 feet long. Turnagain Marine is working with subcontractor GMC Contracting to groom the uplands to accommodate the building terminal. Solstice Alaska Consulting is overseeing environmental permits and providing marine mammal observers.

Homer Harbor Cathodic Protection

The City of Homer contracted R&M Consultants for engineering services in the design of a cathodic protection system at Homer Harbor. The project commenced last October and is anticipated to be completed in May 2023.

Homer Pioneer Dock Fender Repair

The City of Homer also contracted R&M Consultants for engineering services to repair fenders at Pioneer Dock. A general contractor had not been awarded at press time; bidding closed in January. The project timeline is anticipated for March through July 2023.

Ninilchik Revetment Replacement

The US Army Corps of Engineers Alaska District contracted Tutka of Wasilla to demolish existing shoreline revetment at Ninilchik and construct a new multi-layer rock revetment of various gradations and thicknesses for continued protection of Ninilchik Harbor. The estimated project cost is $6.8 million.

Bridges And Trestles

Quartz Creek Bridge

Removal and Replacement

DOT&PF contracted Tutka to remove and replace the Quartz Creek Bridge (No. 1020) in Cooper Landing. The $8.1 million project includes grading, drainage, paving, guardrail, signing, and striping. The target date for completion is October 2023.

Water Street Trestle No. 1 Improvements

DOT&PF contracted R&M Consultants for surveying and engineering design services to replace the Water Street Trestle No. 1 in Ketchikan. The 117-foot timber trestle built in 1922 connects access along Second Avenue, also known as the Second Avenue trestle. Damage to the structural timber elements caused by a failed uphill retaining wall—as well as age and weathering— have limited allowable loads. The $3.4 million project replaces the trestle with a Mechanically Stabilized Earth retaining wall. The project also involves relocating or replacing utilities, improving drainage, modifying adjacent retaining walls, and improving pedestrian facilities, such as stairs. Dawson Construction of Ketchikan is the general contractor.

Steep terrain, complex utility systems, and homes close to the right-of-way require close coordination with the

City of Ketchikan, local utilities, and residents. Work is scheduled from spring to fall 2023.

Roads And Highways

Dalton Highway Milepost 18-37 Reconstruction

DOT&PF contracted R&M Consultants as the engineer of record for a federally funded upgrade to 19 miles of the Dalton Highway between mileposts 18 and 37, around Hess Creek. The project will improve the highway’s horizontal and vertical geometry; provide a widened, consistent top width; and improve drainage. Great Northwest Inc. of Fairbanks is the general contractor on the $83.4 million project. Work is scheduled to begin in spring 2023, and completion is not anticipated until fall 2025.

Muldoon Road Pavement Preservation

DOT&PF contracted R&M Consultants as the engineer of record for pavement preservation on Muldoon Road in East Anchorage, from Debarr Road to East 36th Avenue. The project includes resurfacing 1.6 miles of Muldoon Road, lining sections of the storm drain system, and upgrading curb ramps to meet accessibility guidelines. Granite Construction is the general contractor on the $4.8 million project. Work is scheduled from spring to fall 2023.

Sterling Highway Milepost 45 to 60 Early Work

DOT&PF contracted R&M Consultants for Stage 3 and 4 of the realignment of two miles of the Sterling Highway, Sunrise to Skilak Road, between Cooper Landing and Quartz Creek. A joint venture of Colaska, QAP, and Traylor Bros. was selected as general contractor on the $100 million project. The job involves large excavations, rock blasting, slope stabilization treatments, retaining walls, passing lanes, 2 miles of new pathway, and large diameter culverts.

The work from spring 2023 until fall 2025 is part of the larger Sterling Highway Mileposts 45-60 project, creating a 14-mile bypass around Cooper Landing. The early phase work informs the design of later phases.

Cheri Lake Drive, Karen Avenue, and King Arthur Drive Upgrade

The City of Houston contracted with Stantec’s Anchorage office as a design consultant on roadway upgrades as part of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough 2021 Transportation Infrastructure Package. Anticipating continued growth of subdivisions around Milepost

56 of the Parks Highway and associated increases in traffic volumes, the $3 million scope of work includes subgrade improvements, drainage, and paving. A general contractor was not selected at press time, though construction is anticipated to begin in 2023.

SCHOOLS Kivalina Replacement School

The Northwest Arctic Borough School District contracted with Burkhart Croft Architects to design a new school for Kivalina, which is relocating approximately 8 miles inland from its current site. ASRC SKW Eskimos is the general contractor for the $53 million project. The contract was awarded in March 2020, and substantial completion was expected this past winter.

The project includes the 33,437-square-foot school building; a 2,369-square-foot mechanical building; a 1,440-square-foot wastewater treatment facility and piping, water storage, and distribution; and bulk fuel tanks.

Structural steel buildings were constructed on piles. The remote location created logistical and physical challenges that required phased construction; because the new school is located inland, extra time was factored in for getting all air and barge freight back and forth.