Ground rumbles, as Sellwood Sewer Outfall Pump Station construction gets underway

By David F. Ashton

The Bee, Jul 7, 2010

David F. Ashton / THE BEE

A gray “soil nail wall” holds back the earth, while a drilling rig sinks holes for shoring that will protect the wet well excavation process.

The once-wooded area between the Waverly Landing Condominiums and Portland Rowing Club now looks like an industrial construction zone, as the Bureau of Environmental Services begins construction of its new Combined Sewer Outfall Pump Station.

The new wet weather pump station in the Sherrett Street right of way, and on Portland Rowing Club Property, will control “Willamette Outfall 2”, explained David Allred, Community Outreach Representative for the Portland BES. It will divert stormwater from overflowing into the Willamette River during heavy rain, after the “Big Pipe Project” is completed next year.

Now the excavation for the “soil nail wall” is underway — that will hold the earth back, while workers carve out the land on which they’ll build the pump station.

A large rig is drilling holes for the shoring steel that will protect the excavation during construction of the wet well. Installing the shoring will take about a month, said Allred. Some noise and vibration can be expected during work hours between 7 am and 6 pm, Monday through Friday.

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