The 1063 Block Replacement Project has reached another milestone: It has gone vertical.

On Tuesday, Feb. 2, concrete was poured for the first of three cores that will eventually span the new building vertically from the ground level to the top of the five-story structure.

A building core typically includes restrooms, ventilation shafts, electrical distribution, elevator shafts and/or stairwells. Cores are usually constructed near the center of a building, bringing added stability and rigidity to a multi-story structure.

The core poured last week, which is on the Capitol Way side of the construction site, will eventually enclose a stairwell, and communication and electrical rooms. For now, the core is constructed up to the first-floor level. All three cores will be constructed up to the first floor and then, once the post-tensioned concrete, first-floor deck is completed, continue to be built upwards one floor at a time.

Another milestone is tentatively scheduled to occur the week of Feb. 15-19 with the pouring of concrete for the first columns. The columns are going in at the southeast corner of the work site. While this work will bring extra truck traffic to the construction site, it is not expected to require any temporary lane closures. Like many multi-story structures, the new office building will have a frame made of steel and concrete, with columns providing vertical support and beams giving it horizontal strength.

Foundation stabilization work nears completion

While construction work has begun moving upwards, installation of the new building's structural foundation support system continues below ground level.

Sellen Construction, the general contractor on the project, reports that the installation of the "Geopier" structural system is about 95 percent complete. The system will help support the building load and lessen settlement. A Geopier is a 24-inch-wide shaft drilled to around 30- to 40-feet deep under each footing of the building. More than a thousand Geopier shafts are being drilled at the construction site. The installation of the system should be complete by the week of Feb. 15-19. Learn more about the Geopier structural system.

Watch the project

A camera mounted on the roof of the General Administration Building is pointed at the work site allowing viewers to watch the progress of the construction on the project website. The camera image is refreshed every 15 minutes.

Send written comments and questions about the project to: EASmail@des.wa.gov

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