January 2009

Mead & Hunt starts work at rest stops

To some people, maybe a rest stop is that simple, but to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation and Mead & Hunt Inc., a rest stop is critical because it ensures truckers and families are alert and ready to drive when they get back on the road.

But it’s the importance of rest stops that can complicate the construction of new ones.

WisDOT hired Mead & Hunt to design replacements for two of the state’s busiest and soon–to–be largest rest stops: rest areas 11 and 12 along Interstate 39/90/94 just south of Portage in Columbia County.

The rest stops, which are on opposite sides of the highway, are the only rest areas in the country located near three intersecting interstate highways.

Set for completion in December 2010, the $22 million replacement rest stops will meet driver needs in a number of ways.

But the old rest stops are too important to close during construction of the new ones, leaving Mead & Hunt with some staging issues, said Scott Hasburgh, project manager with Mead & Hunt.

“Originally, we planned to close both of the existing rest areas during construction of the new buildings,” he said, “but because they’re in use so often, they need to be open as much as possible.

“So we had to figure out how to keep them open, but still allow the contractors to work on the new buildings,” he said. “We ended up having to go beyond what we would normally do to make it work.”

A real problem would have occurred if the only entrances to the rest stops were the ones travelers use when exiting the highway.

But fortunately for Mead & Hunt, Hasburgh said, the construction team found side roads south of the project.

The roads give construction crews their own area for staging equipment.  As a result, the job has run smoothly so far. Hasburgh said travelers often stop to watch crews work.

Once completed, the rest areas will occupy more than double the land area of their predecessors — 40 to 45 acres compared to 16 to 17 acres — and will have double the bathroom facilities with more than 90 toilets and urinals.

The new buildings also will have family restrooms, which the current facilities lack, DOT project manager Reiny Yahnke said.

“They will be the biggest in the state,” Yahnke said.

Staying within the theme of keeping the rest stops open at all times, Mead & Hunt designed them to accommodate cleaning and maintenance crews without disrupting visitors.

Designed as two buildings in one, each rest area contains two separate men’s and women’s bathroom facilities, to allow one side to be shut down for cleaning while the other stays open. Each facility also uses separate mechanical systems, so if one side needs maintenance, workers can shut down that half of the building and leave the other side open for use.

“The idea is to provide rest,” Hasburgh said, “and allow truckers and other drivers to get off the road at night and increase safety on the roads.”

Project Specs

• Project Name: Wisconsin Department of Transportation rest areas 11 and 12
• Location: Rest areas 11 and 12 are situated along Interstate 39/90/94 between the exits to Poynette and Portage.
• Owner: Wisconsin Department of Transportation
• General Contractor: Michels Corp., Brownsville
• Architect: Mead & Hunt Inc., Brookfield
• Project Cost: $22 million
• Start Date: October 2008
• Scheduled completion: December 2010

Published in Wisconsin Builder Jan 2009, authored by Janine Anderson http://www.wibuilder.com/wb-jan-09/wip.html