Restoring coastal ecosystems
A home to sensitive plants, as well as resident and migratory wildlife, the San Elijo Lagoon is a valuable coastal wetland resource for the San Diego region. Due to infrastructure that traverses the lagoon, as well as encroachment and pollution from development in the watershed, the ecological function of the lagoon had been compromised through a reduced tidal prism and degraded water quality.
This necessitated a major restoration project—one in which AECOM played a key part.
The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) and the San Elijo Conservancy (now Nature Collective) enlisted the AECOM team to support the project by developing alternatives to enhance and restore the biological and hydrologic functions of the lagoon. We developed three alternatives reflecting a balance of habitat types and considering regional historic losses while minimizing impacts to public access and recreation. The restoration alternatives were also evaluated for their resilience against sea level rise.
Engaging the public, winning awards
Because the restoration occurred adjacent to a highly developed area with intensive public recreation use, the project has been high profile and has had a high level of public engagement. The complexity of balancing these considerations, as well as the dynamic nature of the lagoon system, required AECOM’s close cooperation within the project’s diverse stakeholder group—including the public, non-profit organizations, regulatory and wildlife agencies, and the various owners and managers within the lagoon.
AECOM has served as an active team member since 2006, providing critical consistency to the project and client. The restoration was implemented in 2021 but our efforts continue into 2023 and beyond with post-construction monitoring and adaptive management. The work has since garnered acclaim as part of the North Coast Corridor Program which was named Project of the Year by the APWA San Diego Section and recognized at the Annual ASCE Awards Ceremony.
AECOM Civil Construction specialty contractor SCCI Electric performed the Traction Power Substations Installation project along the Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) Trolley Orange and Blue lines. The work included the installation of 14 1.5 megawatt and two 2 megawatt, 12kV AC, 650V DC TPSS and the decommissioning and removal of eight existing substations.
The scope included site preparation; existing facility removal and decommissioning; grading; utility work, including water, storm drainage, fiber, electrical and signaling relocation; site improvements, including access roads, fencing and wall construction; TPSS foundation pad construction and associated duct work and ground grid; OCS modifications; and procuring all materials and performing all other work necessary to complete construction in accordance with the project plans and specifications.
The project was completed in 2015.
As part of their continued effort to meet federally mandated energy efficiency and water conservation goals, SPAWAR Systems Center Pacific (SSC PAC) selected AECOM to develop and implement an Energy Savings Performance Contract (ESPC) of their facilities in San Diego, California. This ESPC is contracted through the Army Corps of Engineers Support Center in Huntsville, Alabama. SSC PAC is the U.S. Navy’s premier research, development, testing and evaluation, engineering and fleet support center for ocean surveillance, command and control, and communication systems. SSC PAC has an extensive footprint in California and Hawaii, operating approximately 224 buildings with a combined workspace of 3,032,000 square feet.
To help SSC PAC achieve their energy and financial goals, AECOM developed a turn-key project solution that included 100% up-front project financing for the effort and enough energy and operation savings to pay for itself– the result was SSC PAC spent no money throughout the entire process, thus preserving its own budget monies for its core operations. In fact, the project’s energy and water savings were large enough to pay for a variety of other much-needed infrastructure upgrades which could not be funded from SSC PAC’s budget.
AECOM delivered the project two months ahead of schedule with zero safety mishaps. SSC PAC also reduced its energy consumption by 37 percent and met federally mandated energy goals two years early.
Project Highlights:
- Facility Audits
- Energy and Economic Analysis
- Project Design Engineering
- Utility Incentive Procurement
- Project/Construction Management
- Savings Measurement and Verification
- Project Commissioning
|
|
Town & Country is a repositioning project of a 954-room hotel and convention center located in Mission Valley, San Diego, CA by Lowe Enterprises and AECOM Capital in partnership with Atlas Hotels. The reposition includes upgrades to the hotel and convention center; as well as development of residential apartments. Town & Country is adjacent to Fashion Valley Mall and ten minutes from most major San Diego area destinations including the San Diego International Airport, Old Town, Sea World, the San Diego Zoo, and Qualcomm Stadium. The light rail stop adjacent to the property provides direct access to downtown San Diego.
San Diego’s Mission Valley topography and wandering San Diego River leaves the area with limited opportunity to enhance public transportation via roads and highways. Thus, light rail extensions to the San Diego trolley system were designed and constructed.
AECOM participated in a multi-year effort that included studying, planning, designing and providing construction support and construction management for various aspects of the Mission Valley East and West corridor expansions. AECOM was a key member of the project team providing a transit ridership assessment, traffic impact analysis, revenue analysis and operation/maintenance evaluations.
Following preliminary engineering studies, AECOM led the final design engineering components for the tunnel, a signature transit station and a bus transit center at San Diego State University. AECOM was a key participant on the Mission Valley East Preliminary Engineering/Environmental Impact Statement phase. AECOM also provided construction management services for the 6.3-mile, $231 million, Mission Valley West extension, which now provides a significant improvement in quality of life for Mission Valley.