HDR Architecture and their team of engineers have spent the past month studying the existing baggage building structure and retaining wall support system in preparation for the demolition of the baggage building which is expected to take place in the Spring of 2014. The latest pictures show the geotechnical boring work which will provide the necessary details of the soil conditions throughout the project site, in order to complete the design of the retaining wall support and the new bus terminal area.

The baggage building roof abatement contractor mobilized on site in early May and has started to remediate the baggage building roof of existing asbestos. Their initial work was to prepare the site for the abatement activities, layout and identify the areas for abatement and begin to seal off the spaces. Next the contractor installed their temporary electric service to allow for their work to begin in earnest. Once all of this preparatory work was done and the temporary power was live, the abatement contractor started the process of building their containment areas on the roof and removing the roofing materials. This work is still ongoing and will continue for the next several months. The project team has worked closely with all regulatory agencies to ensure safe procedures and proper removal of these materials.

During the month of May the construction site fencing has been installed along Frank B. Murray Street. Installation of this site fence marked the first major construction milestone of the project. The fence has now closed off the section of Frank B. Murray between Dwight St. and Main St. This portion of Frank B. Murray Street will become the bus access for the bus terminal as well as the public access for passenger dropoff at the renovated terminal. The fencing will remain in place throughout the duration of construction and will create a safe and secure project site.

Daniel O'Connell's Sons completed an extensive amount of selective demolition and exploratory work in April and May. This work was located throughout the terminal and baggage buildings. This work was required to uncover hidden structural connections, conditions and other information for use by the structural engineer in completing their design drawings. This work was performed in dozens of locations throughout the buildings in the floors, ceilings and walls. Because of the nature of this renovation, it is critically important to have actual information from the as-built conditions of the building and to not rely upon the original, decades-old design documentation.

During April and May, the contractor worked along the upper portion of the site at the track level to locate any and all utilities that exist in this area. As the designers continue to finalize their design documents, having information about exact locations of underground utilities is an important component to ensure that no services are ever disrupted during the construction process.

The Project team finalized the geotechnical borings in February which allowed them to analyze the detailed soil conditions on site at depths up to 100 feet. These geotechnical investigations provided necessary soils information to allow the foundation and structural designs of the building to move forward. The structural engineer has now incorporated this geotechnical information into the foundation system design.

Petroleum at Hotel Charles

The City and SRA used a combination of an EPA Brownfields Cleanup Grant and MassDevelopment funding to address the petroleum contamination at the Hotel Charles parcel of the Union Station site. During December 2012 and January 2013, the petroleum contamination was excavated and transported off-site for disposal.  To access the contamination at depth, the excavation was dewatered and the contaminated soil was excavated to a depth of 22 feet below grade. Upon completion of the remediation, confirmatory soil samples were collected. Quarterly groundwater sampling is currently being conducted to monitor groundwater impacts at the site.

Terminal & Baggage Buildings

Asbestos and hazardous materials surveys were completed of both buildings located on the site.  Upon completion of the surveys, technical specifications were prepared and submitted to the SRA.

An Activity and Use Limitation (AUL) that had been placed on a portion of the Baggage Building was terminated to facilitate soil handling during demolition.  The AUL was no longer necessary based on the current Massachusetts regulations. 

30 Frank B. Murray Garage

A Phase I Environmental site Assessment (ESA) was conducted of this parcel.  During the Phase I it was identified that the site was historically the location of a gasoline service station and several underground storage tanks (USTs) had been located on the parcel.  Based on those findings, a Phase II ESA was recommended. The Phase II included the completion of a ground penetrating radar (GPR) survey, the advancement of 17 soil borings, four of which were completed as groundwater monitoring wells. During the Phase II, petroleum soil contamination was identified on one corner of the site at the location of a presumed UST grave. 

In addition to the Phase II, an asbestos and hazardous materials survey of the building has been conducted. The technical specifications for their abatement are currently being finalized.

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