QSM Provides Drainage to Shavers-Whittle on Lake Pontchartrain Seawall Project
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When officials broke ground on a $6.2 million project to strengthen storm protection along 4,000 feet of the seawall on Lakeshore Drive in New Orleans, Shavers-Whittle Construction knew who to call.
The project is designed to improve erosion control and prevent storm water flooding on Lakeshore Drive. As such, Shavers-Whittle needed drainage and erosion control materials. QSM provided Shavers-Whittle with the drainage products it needed for construction at the Lake Pontchartrain seawall.
“Water comes over the seawall and washes away the ground behind the structure,” said Joe Coates, project superintendent. “It hits the dirt behind the seawall, and washes all of that dirt onto to the roadway, making it impassable for weeks and costing tens of thousands of dollars every time to clean up the debris,” he said
Our task is to prevent erosion from happening. To do that, we are installing sheet piling and making improvements to the drainage system. The continuous sheetpile wall will run the length of the project behind the seawall.
“That will prevent the water from penetrating between the joints,” said Coates.
The Lake Pontchartrain seawall, built in 1930, was the first frontal hurricane protection system constructed for the city of New Orleans.
This project, funded by the Louisiana Flood Protection Authority – East, also will provide benefit to joggers, cyclists, fishers and picnickers who make the area a popular recreation spot.
It will improve drainage, add new benches, trees and new lights along the seawall.
Construction began in the Spring of 2013.
Phase 1 is supposed to be finished within a year, and around then the second of the three phases will get underway, each costing about $6 million.
When asked about his experience with QSM, Coates said, “they’re great to work with. We went to them for our drainage products. They even helped us find an innovative pipe seal that I’ve never worked with before. Josh Loeske, the owner of QSM, personally guarantees delivery and frequently makes it to the job site to see how we’re doing, and to make sure we’ve got exactly what we need. That’s the type of service you can rely on. It certainly helps our job run smoothly.”