Jay Field
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CORPS BRIDGES MISSILE BASE

Vandenberg AFB – After months of critical repair work by Army Corps of Engineers contractors Rockwood and A.J. Diani, Vandenberg Air Force Base’s 13th Street Bridge is once again operational, ensuring a faster and safer route to the base’s southern installation.  The Air Force Space Command base along California’s Central Coast launches ballistic missiles and unmanned satellites.

The bridge originally contained support piles that were constantly being hit by running water, and the resulting erosion was causing instability to the bridge substructure, according to Jim Mills, Corps of Engineers Contract Representative at Vandenberg.  The solution was to drill through the surface of the bridge into the support structure and insert 50-foot micropiles.  Holes had to be drilled into the bridge surface, and later filled in, to allow the 50-foot spans to be dropped into place.  The result is a bridge with exceptional stability, he said.

Repair work finished one month ahead of schedule under a tight timeline due to environmental issues.
“The bridge is above an active streambed with inhabitants that could not be disturbed during certain times of the year,” Mills said.  “To protect the habitat, biologists and ecologists were on hand making sure the area was undisturbed.”
The seven-month project began in September 2003 and is considered only a temporary solution for crossing the Santa Ynez River.  Construction on a new structure, located downstream from the current bridge, is planned to begin in fiscal year 2006, Mills said.

According to Mills, the 13th Street Bridge has been repaired in the past.  The new renovations should ensure the bridge is operational until it’s no longer needed.

“We recognized that the repair of this bridge was mission essential because it’s a straight route to south base,” said Mills.  He said along with the environmental concerns they had to deal with, the contractors also wanted to make sure the job was done early and correctly.  “They did a great job under very difficult circumstances,” he added.

“The importance of this bridge is immeasurable, and I’m sure it’s going to hold anything that comes across it,” Mills said.

Along with the current revision, Team Vandenberg plans to put a diversion upstream to retard debris flow.  It will also channel river water to flow evenly under the bridge, causing less erosion on its support structure.

The 13th Street Bridge is expected to remain open until construction on the new bridge is complete.