McGuire and Hester
Grass Valley Dorsey Drive Interchange
What makes it interesting?
The project was one of the largest public works projects in Grass Valley’s history. The project was in the design/planning/funding stages for over 20 years and we broke ground soon after the contract was executed and all work was completed on-time in November 2014.
How HCSS Software assisted with this project
McGuire and Hester utilizes HeavyBid, HeavyJob, and The Dispatcher on all of our projects. We find it to be the most comprehensive solution to our project needs, especially a project that was as complex as the Dorsey Drive Interchange project.
Project Description:
The City of Grass Valley in partnership with Nevada County Transportation Commission and Caltrans awarded McGuire and Hester the contract to construct theDorsey Drive Interchange in the amount of $15,191,874. The project converted the existing Dorsey Drive overcrossing of state route 20/49 to a diamond interchange that now allows access to the Golden Center Freeway in Grass Valley. Dorsey Drive Interchange also improves access to Nevada County Sierra Community College, Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital, as well as provides improved traffic flow at the adjacent two interchanges.
The project was also designed to handle future growth in the surrounding areas. Major components of the Dorsey Drive Interchange project consisted of: widening Dorsey Drive overcrossing from two to three lanes; construction of on-and-off ramps to SR 20/49; adding auxiliary lanes on SR 20/49 freeway from Dorsey Drive to the Idaho-Maryland Road exit and north to the Brunswick Road Interchange; widening Dorsey Drive to East Main Street and to Pampas Drive with improvements for pedestrians and bicyclists; modification of a portion of Joerschke Drive to a one-direction off ramp for southbound SR 20/49 traffic.
The project was one of the most memorable and challenging that McGuire and Hester’s Sacramento group has completed. McGuire and Hester had the opportunity to self-perform a majority of the disciplines including: widening of a 165-foot span CIP bridge over live freeway traffic, cut/fill slopes at 1.5/1 extending 40-foot high with 18,000 cubic yards of export, 1,600 linear feet of Structural Retaining Walls up to 12 feet high, 1,300-linear-foot CMU Sound Walls up to 10 feet high, over 800,000 square feet of grading, and 20,000 tons of asphalt paving. The project also had an extremely aggressive schedule which included $8,300/CD liquidated damages and self-performing the majority of the work allowed McGuire and Hester to manage the sequence of work from trade to trade.
Though they faced many challenges along the way McGuire and Hester also had successes. There were zero lost time injuries in over 69,000 man-hours.Upon substantial completion of the project in October 2014 the City of Grass Valley along with its partners commemorated the completion of one of the largest public works projects in Grass Valley’s history. The long term success for McGuire and Hester comes from a successful event that drew nearly 100 attendees and media throughout the region and included a speaker program, a 40-student marching band as well as an ambulance that drove up the new northbound off-ramp as the symbolic first vehicle to use the interchange. It was refreshing to hear the Mayor along with many other speakers continue to comment on McGuire and Hester’s respectful crews, management team, overall professionalism and quality workmanship they presented on this project.
The Mayor’s parting words: “McGuire and Hester is ALWAYS welcome in Grass Valley.”
