Loma Prieta Earthquake Anniversary Week - The New Irvington Tunnel

Happy Friday

This week marks the anniversary of the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake. 

We've been blogging about the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission's efforts to seismically upgrade our water system for many years now. The $4.8 billion Water System Improvement Program is more than 96% complete as of this writing. The water system that supplies water to 2.7 million customers in four Bay Area counties is much more earthquake ready today than it was 5 years ago. 

In honor of the Loma Prieta Anniversary week, we wanted to remember a post from October of 2013 when a crucial seismic project for the Water System Improvement Program achieved a huge milestone. Final hole through. 

Miners worked long hours in the New Irvington Tunnel .

The New Irvington Tunnel Project ,which went into service in February 2015, is a new 3.5 mile long seismically designed tunnel. We mined the tunnel from different directions, and the moment the two teams met underground to complete the digging is called Final Hole Through.

See the October 2013 Story here.

One of the three road headers that excavated the New Irvington Tunnel.

Have a great weekend, everyone.

See you around the Valley!

Happy Infrastructure Week 2018

The Week of May 14 to May 21^st is national Infrastructure Week! This is the week where public agencies across the nation highlight the importance of our nation’s infrastructure, and the need to maintain it.

At the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, our ratepayers had the foresight more than 10 years ago to allow us to pass the $4.8 billion Water System Improvement Program (WSIP). The program has 87 projects, spanning seven counties, to repair, replace, and seismically upgrade aging portions of the Hetch Hetchy Regional Water System. To date the program is more than 90% complete.

A tremendous amount of work was done in the Sunol Valley to ensure a seismically reliable water supply for our Bay Area customers.  The Calaveras Fault runs right through the Sunol Valley. The Calaveras Dam Replacement Project is the largest WSIP Project in construction, but there have been many others. Here are the highlights:  

Alameda Siphon #4. A high tech pipeline crossing of the Calaveras Fault designed to survive an earthquake. Completed 2013.

New Irvington Tunnel. A new seismically designed tunnel to connect the new Siphon with new pipelines in Fremont. Tunnel brought into service in 2015.

Upgrades to our Sunol Valley Water Treatment Plant to enable the plant to provide minimum demand to all of our 2.7 million customers on its own for up to 60 days. Completed 2015.

A complete new Bay Division Pipeline #5 to connect the New Irvington Tunnel to a new Bay Tunnel and the Peninsula. Completed 2016.

We've been posting videos on Facebook all week to highlight the SFPUC's efforts to upgrade your infrastructure. And at Twitter: #TimetoBuild. See the Facebook posts  here.  

See you around the Valley!

Capturing Construction in Photos

To our construction teams, Robin is a familiar face who frequently visits the active construction sites to shoot some candid photos of construction and our hard workers. Little did we  know that Robin not only works to document the construction progress but she gains much deserved national recognition while she is at it. Right here in Sunol Valley, Robin’s photo of the New Irvington Tunnel Project made the Top Ten for the Engineering News Record (ENR) 2015 Year in Construction Photo Contest. This is a prestigious international construction photography competition, and we are extremely proud that Robin’s photo of our own tunnel was a winner!

About Robin

Robin Scheswohl moved to the Bay Area in 2003 from Philadelphia, PA where she studied photography and later worked with corporate and wedding photographers. She’s been with the SFPUC since 2007, working in the Construction Management Bureau and the Engineering Archives. She is responsible for cataloging and preserving thousands of historic images dating back to the 19th century, as well as documenting the Water System Improvement Program (WSIP) construction projects. SFPUC Engineering Archives Photography has curated public exhibits at City Hall, at the San Francisco International Airport, and the SF American Institute of Architects (AIA) Headquarters. The images are used extensively by the SFPUC and appear in books, periodicals, environmental and engineering studies.

Here is Robin filming at the Bay Tunnel, which is the first tunnel constructed under San Francisco Bay.  Congratulations, Robin!

Construction Activities Resume

Construction activities for the Calaveras Dam Replacement Project (CDRP) and the New Irvington Tunnel Project (NITP) will resume today, February 16, after observing the President's Day holiday. 

Construction Advisory: New Irvington Tunnel

To our Irvington Portal neighbors:
We wanted to inform you of some very important construction activity affecting your neighborhood.

Project Update
The New Irvington Tunnel is now in service delivering water to our 2.6 million Bay Area customers.  With the new tunnel in service, we were able to take the old Irvington tunnel out of service for inspection and repairs. Both tunnels will remain in service during normal operations. The construction team has begun restoration of the above ground facilities. The contractor has demobilized and restored the southern portion of the property. The contractor has removed the sound barriers (shown in yellow) on the south section of the site.  (See map)

Starting as early as June 15, 2015, the contractor will begin the process of removing the remainder of the sound barriers at the Irvington Portal project site.  The sound barriers will be removed at the locations shown on the map in blue. The sound wall removal work is estimated to be completed by early July 2015.

Map of sound walls to be removed

What to Expect:

-       The work involves removal of the panels and digging around the concrete foundation. Workers then remove the foundation and cut or pull the steel beams out. The excavated area would then be backfilled.

-       Noise associated with sound barrier removal will include the operation of heavy equipment, back up alarms, and concrete breakup. The soil backfill will also require compaction where the steel beams and foundations have been removed.

 

Removal Hours:
Sound barrier removal will only take place Monday through Friday from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM.  We will continue to monitor noise and vibration in this area to ensure full compliance with strict noise and vibration standards set forth in the project’s Environmental Impact Report.

What’s Next

-      Installation and burial of permanent portal facilities and security improvements will be completed by the end of June 2015.

-      Once the sound walls are removed, topsoil will be trucked in and spread throughout the disturbed areas of the site.

-      Site restoration for the remainder of the site will be throughout the summer and be completed by early Fall 2015.  This includes paving, fencing and hydro-mulching of the disturbed areas. 

-      An iron wrought fence will be installed at the Mission Road entrance sometime in Fall 2015.

-      Full project completion for the New Irvington Tunnel is currently scheduled for Fall 2015.

Questions?
We sincerely appreciate your patience and cooperation.  Please call our 24-Hour Answer Line at 866-973-1476 if you have questions or comments or email mle@sfwater.org

 

Last of the Pipe Installed at New Irvington Tunnel

The crews have reached a major milestone and installed the last of the pipe for the New Irvington Tunnel.  A 35 ft section of steel pipe was prepped and mortar lined at the surface before being lowered into the Vargas Shaft. This officially completes the entire 3.5 mile water transmission tunnel.  Final steps are being made the next week to disinfect the tunnel and bring it into service to provide a seismically designed connection to provide water to our 2.6 million Bay Area customers. 

Construction Advisory: New Irvington Tunnel Neighbors

We are preparing to bring the New Irvington Tunnel into service!
In order to do so, our crews need to fill and disinfect the tunnel and connecting pipelines in preparation for it to carry drinking water. Disinfection is a 24/7 process, and therefore, you will notice nighttime work at the Irvington Portal. Here’s more information:

Completion of Tunnel Cleaning and Installation of Dish-head
The Contractor will need to work inside the tunnel during night hours on Friday, Feb 13^th. They will also install the dish-heads starting this weekend inside the new portal structure located off Mission Blvd. in the City of Fremont.

Disinfection/ Flushing activities start week of February 16, 2015 
Beginning on Tuesday, Feb 17^th we will pump highly chlorinated water through the tunnel to disinfect it. Crews will be running pumps 24 hours a day and will be flushing the pipe for an estimated 5 to 7 days. Adjacent neighbors at Irvington Portal may hear the operations of the equipment. Passersby will notice lights and increased activity in the area. We will be installing sound blankets on the pipes to help minimize the water injection noise located near Mission Blvd entrance.

Future Work: Restoration work at Irvington Portal

After the tunnel is in service, the next step will be to construct a concrete structure around the existing tunnel portal up by the valve houses. Once the major construction work is completed, the Contractor will remove the remaining sound barrier walls. We will give the neighborhood advance notice before taking down the sound walls. Final grading, paving and installation of the wrought iron fence will be installed at the Mission Boulevard entrance by this summer.

Project Background

The New Irvington Tunnel Project is part of the $4.8 billion Water System Improvement Program (WSIP) to repair, replace, and upgrade our system’s aging pipelines, tunnels, and dams. The new 3.5 mile long tunnel will provide a seismically-designed connection between water supplies from the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the Alameda Watershed to our Bay Area water distribution systems.  We anticipate being completely done in fall 2015. 

Questions / Concerns?

We greatly appreciate your patience. Contact us with any questions by calling our 24 hour answer line at 866-973-1476 or emailing mle@sfwater.org

The Final Stretch: Mortar Lining completed for the New Irvington Tunnel

This week the construction crews completed the final stages of mortar lining in the tunnel. Mortar lining is one of the final stages of constructing a water tunnel before we bring it into service.  

Our workers used specialized equipment that sprays cement on the pipe’s interior to prevent corrosion of the steel pipe and prepare it for water conveyance. This completes a major milestone for the tunnel. The tunnel is anticipated to be in service by the end of this month and will soon deliver water to our 2.6 million customers. We are definitely getting excited for the final stretch!

Construction Advisory: New Irvington Tunnel Project

Dear Neighbor:
We wanted to inform you of some very important construction activity affecting your neighborhood at the Irvington Portal site off Mission Boulveard.

 

Irvington Portal work starting November 2, 2014: As part of the process of preparing the tunnel to be brought into service, we will need to provide additional tunnel ventilation to our construction crews at the Irvington Portal site. The equipment will begin mobilizing in the area on November 2, 2014, and work should be complete in approximately one week. The ventilation equipment, which includes a fan and generator, will operate 24 hours a day. Cooling air is needed for crews who are lining the tunnel with a cement mortar to prepare it for being put into service. The sound barrier walls will keep the noise to a minimum and the contractor will install additional noise reduction measure.

Project Background: The New Irvington Tunnel Project is part of the $4.6 billion Water System Improvement Program (WSIP) to repair, replace, and upgrade our system’s aging pipelines, tunnels, and dams. The new 3.5 mile long tunnel will provide a seismically-designed connection between water supplies from the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the Alameda Watershed to Bay Area water distribution systems.  Final construction is expected to be complete in 2015.

Questions / Concerns? We greatly appreciate your patience. Please call our 24-Hour Answer Line at 866-973-1476 or email mle@sfwater.org or blauppe@sfwater.org if you have any questions. Follow us online at sfwater.org/sunolvalley.

Sunol Valley: Getting Prepared – Seismic Upgrade Work Continues

Much has already been done as mentioned in our last post, but more important work lies ahead in Sunol Valley.  Our teams continue critical work to seismically upgrade our infrastructure. As we remember the Loma Prieta earthquake this week, here are some highlights on our ongoing projects:

New Irvington Tunnel Project
The new tunnel will provide a seismically upgraded connection between water supplies from the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the Alameda Watershed to Bay Area customers. It will extend 3.5 miles and have an internal diameter of approximately 8.5 feet. Final completion is expected in mid-2015.

Calaveras Dam Replacement Project
Work continues to build a replacement dam that will be seismically safe and restore the Calaveras reservoir to its historic capacity. The reservoir provides half of the Hetch Hetchy Regional Water System’s local Bay Area water storage. To date, over 5 million cubic yards of materials have been excavated and major work is being done on the new spillway. Final completion is expected end of 2018. 

San Antonio Backup Pipeline Project

The San Antonio Backup Pipeline (SABPL) project will include several new facilities and improvements in the Sunol Valley to help provide for the reliable movement of Hetch Hetchy water for planned and emergency discharges under future conditions. Completion is expected in March 2015.

We are extremely proud of our hard working teams in Sunol Valley, helping all of us become better prepared for the next earthquake. For more info, please contact us at our 24 hour answer line 866-973-1476.

Construction Advisory: New Irvington Tunnel Irvington Portal

We wanted to inform you of some very important construction activity affecting the neighborhood at the Irvington Portal site off Mission Boulevard. 

Irvington Portal work August 27 – September 15: 
As part of the process of preparing the tunnel to be brought into service, we will need to provide additional tunnel ventilation to our construction crews at the Irvington Portal site. The equipment will begin mobilizing in the area on August 27, 2014, and work should be complete by September 15, 2014. The ventilation equipment, which includes a fan and generator, will operate 24 hours a day. Cooling air is needed for crews who are lining the tunnel with a cement mortar to prepare it for being put into service. The sound barrier walls will keep the noise to a minimum and the contractor will install additional noise reduction measures.

Disinfection Process starting October 2014: 
Starting the first week of October, we will begin the disinfection process to bring the New Irvington Tunnel into service. In order to disinfect the tunnel, crews will need to stage generators and lights for the 24 hour a day filling/disinfection. The set up will occur during day light hours. The filling/disinfection process will take 2-4 days to complete once it begins. The expected night time activities should be limited to three nights.

What Happens Next?
The New Irvington Tunnel is anticipated to be in service delivering water sometime in November. The above ground work and restoration will continue into early 2015. These include final installations and burial of the new portal facilities, construction of a new security bunker at the existing tunnel portal (on top of the hill), and site restoration work, planting and fencing. The remaining sound walls will be removed after the entire site is restored.

Project Background
The New Irvington Tunnel Project is part of the $4.6 billion Water System Improvement Program (WSIP) to repair, replace, and upgrade our system’s aging pipelines, tunnels, and dams. The new 3.5 mile long tunnel will provide a seismically-designed connection between water supplies from the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the Alameda Watershed to Bay Area water distribution systems. Final construction is expected to be complete in 2015. 

Questions / Concerns?
We greatly appreciate your patience. Please call our 24-Hour Answer Line at 866-973-1476 or email mle@sfwater.org or blauppe@sfwater.org if you have any questions.
Follow us online at sfwater.org/sunolvalley

 .

Why we should all be excited about Cement Mortar Lining

The really big news from the team constructing the New Irvington Tunnel – a seismically designed crucial tunnel between Sunol Valley and Fremont and our 2.6 million Bay Area customers – is that installation of the cement mortar lining has begun!  Although this may seem like a good time to yawn, this is actually really exciting news! Here’s why.

It is one of the final stages of constructing a water tunnel before we bring it into service.  The New Irvington Tunnel is 95% complete, and we hope to bring the new tunnel into service this fall.  Now are you more excited?

First we excavated the tunnel from four different locations using road headers and drill and blast methods. Then we inserted steel pipe final liners into the 3.5 mile long tunnel. We welded the pipe together and injected grout in the space between the pipe and the tunnel to seal it off from groundwater intrusion along the entire 3.5 mile length. 

There is still work left to be done before water delivery can begin, but cement mortar lining application is a key step to prevent corrosion of the steel pipe and prepare it for water conveyance.  Our workers will use specialized equipment that sprays cement on the pipe’s interior and creates a very smooth surface.   

Mortar Lining being applied in the New Irvington Tunnel

Installation of the mortar lining should take about two months. After that we will complete the pipeline connections on both ends of the tunnel and install rounded dishhead caps on the end of the pipe. Then SFPUC Operation crews will disinfect the entire pipe, flush it and bring it into service by the end of October 2015.  Surface work and restoration will then take up the remaining months of the project. We anticipate being done in summer 2015.

So although the words “mortar lining installation” might not stop traffic, it is music to our ears! 

The WSIP Turns 10!

This year the Water System Improvement Program (WSIP) turns 10! One of the largest infrastructure projects in the nation, the WSIP is repairing, replacing and upgrading our aging water infrastructure to ensure we can deliver water to customers following an earthquake. We’ve gotten a little nostalgic about how far we’ve come in the last 10 years, and we would like to share this video with you.



Now 80 percent complete, the WSIP has already provided increased reliability to the water supply for customers as a result of the completion of some of the program’s major projects. The program has created over 6 million construction craft hours to date, employing more than 11,000 workers since 2007. Nearly half of those workers live in our four-county service area.

Neighbors Catch up on the New Irvington Tunnel

Thank you to all of the community members who dropped by the New Irvington Tunnel Open House at the Mission Coffee House last week!  It was really great to see you.  For those of you who weren’t able to attend, here are the highlights as shared by the project team.

• The New Irvington Tunnel Project is currently 95% complete.
• The steel liner of the tunnel has been installed. We are welding and grouting the space between the tunnel lining and the outside of the tunnel to seal the tunnel off from groundwater intrusion.
• The 3.5 mile New Irvington Tunnel will be brought into service sometime this fall 2014, allowing us to take the old tunnel out of service for inspection and possible repairs.
•  Overall project completion is anticipated in fall 2015, soon after we complete site restoration of all of the above ground work.
• The New Irvington Tunnel runs parallel to the existing tunnel (which was built in 1932)  between the Sunol Valley south of Highway I-680 and Fremont, California. It provides a seismically designed connection between Sierra Nevada and Alameda Watershed water supplies and 2.6 million Bay Area customers.

We will be back out with another open house in a about three months, so we hope you can make the next one. 

Neighbors have some tunnel talk at the New Irvington Tunnel Open House

New Irvington Tunnel Project Open House on June 3rd

Construction on the New Irvington Tunnel is nearing completion! We anticipate commissioning the new tunnel sometime this Fall 2014. The new tunnel will provide a seismically-designed connection between water supplies from the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the Alameda Watershed, providing water to our 2.6 million customers. Work still lies ahead, with project completion expected in mid-2015. 

Join us on June 3, 2014 from 4:30 pm to 6:30 pm at Mission Coffee House (151 Washington Blvd., Fremont CA). The project team will be present to answer any of your questions and discuss what to expect post-construction for our Groundwater Management Plan participants. 

View from inside a section of the New Irvington Tunnel

The Last Butterfly Valve for New Irvington Tunnel

You know you’re making progress on construction when you start celebrating your ‘lasts.’ Last excavation to be completed. Check!  Last steel liner inserted into the tunnel. Check! Now we have another: the last valve to be installed underground.

And not just ANY valve. This is a valve that is 8 feet in diameter that will eventually divert water from the existing piping connections into the New Irvington Tunnel.  This Butterfly Valve regulates flow within the pipe with a rotating a disc within the pipe. When closed, the disc, or butterfly, completely blocks flow.  When open , as seen in this sample of a butterfly valve from a dam in Japan, the disc rotates one quarter to allow flow to pass by.

And operating this valve is no easy task. If you were to manually crank it closed (or ‘actuate it’, as our operators say), you’d need a whopping 400 revolutions.  Our operators use electric actuators for this very reason, and will be able to operate this valve remotely.

We hope to actuate this valve to bring the New Irvington Tunnel into service this Fall!

New Irvington Team installs final valve

Sample Butterfly Valve
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Lined, Then Sealed, Then Delivered This Fall. The New Irvington Tunnel Reaches Another Milestone

Imagine an 8.5 foot in diameter steel pipe roughly the length of a tractor trailer. Now imagine gently placing it into a 14-foot tube the length of 1½ Golden Gate Bridges? Now weld each of them together from the inside of the installed pipe in less than two months.

Well, that is EXACTLY what we did. This week the New Irvington Tunnel contractor completed the installation of a total of 14,600 feet (2.7 miles) of the welded steel liner into the tunnel. The 50 foot segments were all installed from the Sunol Valley and transported with a customized pipe placer westward into the tunnel. This completes the steel lining for the entire 18,660 foot (3.5 miles) New Irvington Tunnel.

What’s next? More grouting! Our teams will mobilize in March to prepare the tunnel to place cellular grout into the space between the steel liner and the excavated tunnel. This will effectively backfill the space between the tunnel pipe and tunnel wall, sealing it off to prevent water from seeping into or out of the tunnel.

We plan to bring the New Irvington Tunnel into service this fall, when drinking water will officially be transmitted through the new tunnel. Final project completion of the New Irvington Tunnel Project – including above ground restoration - is expected in mid-2015.

The New Irvington Tunnel will provide a seismically designed connection for water supply for 2.6 million bay area customers. 

50 ft segments of steel liner being delivered
Photo credit: Robin Scheswohl

View of steel liner from inside of Alameda West Portal
Photo credit: Robin Scheswohl

Welding work taking place on steel liners
Photo credit: Robin Scheswohl

What’s on Tap for the Sunol Valley in 2014?

A few weeks into the New Year, our Sunol Valley Project teams are already very busy with the important work to seismically upgrade facilities which deliver drinking water to 2.6 million Bay Area customers as part of the Water System Improvement Program (WSIP) and other ongoing projects. Here’s a quick snapshot of the anticipated activities of the year to come. Please visit us often on our blog to stay up to date and learn more!

New Irvington Tunnel
In October 2013, we completed excavation of the new tunnel.  Recently, the project team began installing the inner lining for the tunnel. These are 50-foot-long, 8½ foot in diameter steel pipes that are inserted into the tunnel on a special train. Once in place, these pipe segments are welded together from the inside.  On average, seven pipe sections are installed daily.  Project completion is anticipated for 2015.

50 ft. pipe being prepared for installation at New Irvington Tunnel

Calaveras Dam Replacement Project

The largest project in the Sunol Valley continues with ongoing major excavation as well as drill and blast activities to stockpile materials in preparation for the construction of the replacement dam.  We are still clearing out loose soil and rock materials in the area to make room for the new dam. In the coming weeks, the project will begin construction of the new 1,550-foot-longspillway, all the while dealing with the continuing challenges of the site’s complex geology. Grouting work on the left abutment of the new dam will also begin soon.  As construction progresses, the environmental team continues to find and catalogue interesting fossils at the site. Projected completion is anticipated in 2017.

Aerial view of upper Left Abutment for Replacement Dam
(left side of valley when looking downstream)

San Antonio Backup Pipeline

Construction of the San Antonio Backup Pipeline, which will add operational flexibility to our Sunol Valley Water transmission system, has been moving forward towards completion in March of 2015.  The majority of the new pipeline has been installed and is in the ground.  The new slurry wall was also completed last year.  This year the project team will focus on construction of the small above-ground structures and discharge pumps at the quarry storage pond at the north end of the site.

Workers excavating and shaping the hillside in preparation
for the outfall structure that will be going into Pond F3-east

Town of Sunol Fire Suppression System Project

2014 will see the start of construction of this important public safety project in the Town of Sunol.  The SFPUC will upgrade the water distribution system for the Town of Sunol since the current system is inadequate.  The SFPUC will add additional fire hydrants in commercial and residential areas of the Town of Sunol, replace pipelines on County roads to improve the flows from the fire hydrants, and also replace two to four of the Town's existing water storage tanks on the hill.  Construction for this project is anticipated to start spring/summer of this year.

Alameda Creek Watershed Center and Sunol Yard Upgrade

Plans are underway to design and construct the Alameda Creek Watershed Center located near the Sunol Water Temple, as part of its efforts to improve the existing facilities in the Sunol Yard. The proposed Watershed Center would provide a place for people to gather and learn about the Alameda Creek Watershed, its natural resources and its role as part of the SFPUC water supply system as well as connect with the history of the Sunol Valley.  This project is in its early planning and design stages with construction anticipated to begin in 2015. 

Bioregional Habitat Restoration
Construction activities for the Bioregional Habitat Restoration (BHR) program will start winding down this year. We will, however, continue to monitor the success of these projects through 2024. The projects that are nearly completed within the Sunol Valley  -- Goldfish Pond Restoration at the southern end of Calaveras Road, San Antonio Creek Restoration, Sheep Camp Creek and Goat Rock – have restored or enhanced a combined total greater than 1,500 acres of sycamore and oak riparian woodland, oak woodland and savannah, and serpentine and annual grasslands.

This project includes restoring 5,000 feet of the existing Sheep Camp Creek.

Completed Projects

As we start 2014, we can also continue to celebrate the completion of the Sunol Valley Water Treatment Plant Expansion and Treated Water Reservoir project in September 2013. This water treatment plant now enables us to filter and provide 160 million gallons of water per day to our Bay Area customers for up to two months should our Hetch Hetchy Reservoir supplies become unavailable due to an earthquake or other emergency.

We look forward to working with you this year and all the good things to come to Sunol Valley!

Milestone Breakthrough for the New Irvington Tunnel

Roadheader breaks through for final hole-through on October 8th

On October 8, 2013 at precisely 9:00 a.m. two crews of miners from the New Irvington Tunnel project met underground with their roadheader digging away at the last final feet of rock.  Miners celebrated the final hole-through excavation of the 18,660 foot tunnel.  The 3.5 mile New Irvington Tunnel will transmit water between the Sunol Valley and Fremont to our 2.6 million Bay Area customers. Work is still not quite done yet, our miners will prepare the new tunnel for installation of 8.5 ft diameter steel pipe, installed in 50-foot sections and welded together inside of the tunnel.  This will be followed by the placement of cellular concrete between the steel pipe and tunnel wall to complete the project in mid-2015. 

 

Hole-Through Challenge Winner: Priya Iyer
With that, we also would like to congratulate our Hole-Through Challenge contestant.... Priya Iyer! Priya selected the winning time and date of the hole-through and will be receiving our prize package.  Congratulations to Priya!

Our hardworking New Irvington Tunnel crew

                                      Tunnel Superintendents Jim Mulkey and Jack Bowling from 

                                      Southland Contracting share a handshake after the hole-through.

New Irvington Tunnel Project Staff celebrates Hole-Through

New Irvington Tunnel Neighbors compete in the Final Tunnel Hole-Through Challenge at Open House

Last week, neighbors of the New Irvington Tunnel project stopped in for a cup of coffee and to hear the latest updates on tunnel progress at Mission Coffee House in Fremont.  Attendees were able to discuss construction progress, see new project photos, handle some rock samples collected from tunneling, and participate in the final "hole-through" challenge. 

 Residents participate in the Tunnel Hole-Through Challenge

We are still anticipating the exciting moment when the miners will meet underground between the tunnel segment from Vargas East to Alameda West Portal.  The winner will be notified to receive their gift basket of local goodies as soon as the day comes.  Thank you to all who have participated in the New Irvington Tunnel Hole-Through Challenge!  

Our final guesses are shown here:

For more project info, please email mle@sfwater.org or call our 24 hour answer line 866-973-1476.