MLK Interchange Project Wins Honor Award from DBIA FL Region

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Nov. 7, 2014 - PRLog -- On November 6, 2014, the project team of GAI Consultants, Inc. (GAI), Archer Western Contractors, LLC, and the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) District Two received recognition for the Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) Parkway (SR 115)/21st Street Interchange project, which was chosen for an Honor Award in Transportation by the Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA) Florida Region.

Highlights/Key Facts
• The $31 million effort involved the design and construction of improvements to the Interchange to enhance corridor safety and improve truck access to Jacksonville Port Authority’s (JAXPORT) Talleyrand Marine Terminal.
• Enhancements included the realignment of SR 115 between Phoenix Avenue and East 15th Street, a new interchange between SR 115 and 21st Street, and improvements to the existing Phoenix Avenue Interchange.
• The project also enhanced a neighborhood park—Kooker Park—by turning an 80-yard football field into a regulation size 100-yard football field, and adding a 90-space parking lot.
• To allow safe access to the park, a new, lighted, multiuse pedestrian path was built on the north side of the project to direct walkers to the new signalized intersection/crosswalk that leads to the park’s entrance.
• FDOT District Two’s MLK Parkway/21st Street Interchange project in Jacksonville began in November 2011 and was completed in May 2014.
• The award was acknowledged at the 9th Annual Conference of the DBIA Florida Region awards luncheon at the Caribe Royale All Suites Hotel in Orlando, Florida.
• GAI’s Lead Design Engineer on the project, Senior Engineering Manager Bob Baxter, P.E., was in attendance at the awards luncheon, in addition to teammates Greg Nettuno, P.E., Project Principal, Kevin Leadbetter, P.E., Project Manager, and Bobby Jamieson, P.E., Project Design Engineer.
• GAI also provided CEI services on the I-295/Collins Road Interchange and Road System Design-Build project, which was presented with a Merit Award at the DBIA Florida Region awards luncheon.
• Each year, the DBIA Florida Region Design-Build Awards program recognizes top design-build projects in Florida. Projects are honored for design and construction that meets or exceeds owner expectations.
• Projects receiving an award are also eligible to receive Best Overall Project Award, which is formally announced during the award ceremony and luncheon.

Quote
• Bob Baxter, Senior Engineering Manager, GAI Consultants:
“The MLK project incorporated a combination of the most unusual, complicated, and diverse features of any FDOT District Two project in the last 10 years. The biggest challenge was working in the historical residential Springfield neighborhood of Jacksonville. We had to work the construction around the neighbors and keep them happy. Our team designed spread footer foundations, which greatly eliminated or lessened any type of vibrations to the homes during construction. So through our design, we were a good neighbor.”

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