The Gateway Slope Project is underway in Lansdowne! It will create a beautiful and welcoming “Gateway” to our wonderful town. “Gateway Slope Notes” are notes by Parks and Recreation Board Member Carol Martsolf, who is a professional civil engineer in Pennsylvania. In these notes, Carol shares educational updates and some basic insights so Lansdowne residents can be updated on the project.
Gateway Slope Notes #18 - “More Clearing and Grubbing!”
So much clearing and grubbing is required on this project, especially in the wooded area between the sidewalk and the Walsh Road driveway (within borough right-of-way). “Clearing and Grubbing” may sound a bit foreign so just to mention it again in case you missed it in a previous Gateway Slope Note: Clearing and grubbing is the removal of all unwanted material at the surface or slightly under the surface on the construction site such as brush, grass, weeds, downed trees, stumps, buried logs or other debris. You can see the rolled up clumps of twigs. Damaged trees that need to be removed are marked with orange paint. For the more than 25 years since I’ve been in Lansdowne, it’s been an area of thick vines and dense brush. It’s neat to see more sunlight come through the thick shrubbery. #GatewaySlopeNotes
Gateway Slope Notes #19 - More Surveying Stakes and Flags!
The latest update is there are now stakes denoted with white flags, instead of just the pink flags. Typically white flags mark the limits of disturbance or the proposed excavation limits. They are far back beyond the control points, so they may be the limits of disturbance. Limits of disturbance are the outermost boundaries of the area planned to be disturbed by construction, grading, clearing and grubbing, excavating, or stockpiling. Limits of disturbance are shown in the construction plans. We must be very close to breaking ground if the limits of disturbance are being marked! Stay tuned for more updates and hopefully some exciting pictures of the engineering design becoming reality! J #GatewaySlopeNotes
Gateway Slope Notes # 20 - Site Work and “Rocky” Soil
Site work ease really depends on the type of soil on the site and how much rock there is. For every site that has easily excavated loamy soils, there are many rocky soils for which excavation is a bit more challenging. The soil on this project is quite rocky (see attached picture). There are attachments for bulldozers that can expedite excavation in rocky soils. According to the PA Dept of Conservation and Natural Resources geology map, that indicates rock types, there is mostly schist in our area generally (see the website screen shots). And from a previous Gateway Slope Note, we know the specific soil is Manor Soil, 36 to 60 percent slopes. Preliminary excavation reveals evidence of lots of rocks so it will be neat to see the type of construction equipment used for excavation! #GatewaySlopeNotes
Gateway Slope Notes # 21 - More Limit of Disturbance (LOD) Stakes
From a previous Gateway Slope Note, you may remember what the limit of disturbance is: It’s the boundary within which all construction, materials storage, grading, landscaping, and any other activities related to site preparation, construction, operation, and maintenance take place. Basically, it means that nothing for any reason will be disturbed beyond that boundary which is staked by an accurate field survey. This is particularly true concerning grading limits near streams, contaminated areas, or at property lines. These stakes cannot be seen from Baltimore Avenue, nor Scottdale Road; but they are visible from the Walsh Road driveway. From what I can tell, there are LOD stakes along the entire project now, so more construction should be in progress soon. #GatewaySlopeNotes