About 30 miles northeast of Mount Hood, you’ll find the community of Odell, Oregon. Due to its proximity to Mount Hood, Odell needs to keep earthquake risks in mind. According to an Oregon Geology Hazards Risk study, earthquake threats in the area come from three primary sources: the Cascadia Subduction Zone, crustal faults, and volcanic activity. In the event of an earthquake, seismic waves radiate away from the epicenter. This makes it critical that commercial buildings in neighboring communities meet specific standards to prevent and minimize earthquake damage. That’s where the Mid Valley Elementary School seismic upgrade comes into play.
How we upgraded Mid Valley Elementary School
The purpose of retrofitting for earthquakes is to keep the building from being displaced from its foundation. Ultimately, this makes the building safer and less prone to structural damage. As with any seismic retrofit, there were many technical aspects our general contracting team needed to consider for this project. These included geo-stabilization of subgrade to allow for new footings, interior excavation activities 5’ below existing floors, underpinning existing footings to allow for additional loads, interior shotcrete walls up to 26’ tall, creating shear walls throughout the building, and installing new sheathing/seismic strapping to roof and gymnasium floor.
To tackle the Mid Valley Elementary School seismic upgrade, we worked alongside OPSIS Architecture to update the structure according to design and state grant specifications. This $1,825,544 CM/GC contract was part of the HRCSD 2016 Bond Project Scope requiring a high-level of communication and technical execution. We successfully worked through several challenges and completed the project in September 2020.
But don’t just take our word for it. Here’s what Mid Valley Elementary Principal Kim Yasui says:
“Griffin was incredibly easy to work with. Regular meetings to address concerns and a willingness to think creatively to get the most bang for our limited buck. Friendly, attentive, and most importantly, responsive to our needs. Beyond that, great work on our 1937 remodel. No easy task with lots of built-in surprises. They handled it with ease.”
With additional bond funding, the overall Gymnasium/Library/Classroom structure received a facelift and ADA accommodations as well. Previous activities were limited due to overall conditions and differing finish floor heights. 
Looking for seismic retrofit contractors for your job?
As a self-perform general contracting company, we have skilled tradesmen who can tackle even the most complex and technical seismic projects. With over four decades of combined experience, our team of true builders has successfully completed a number of seismic retrofit projects. Got a retrofit in your pipeline this year? Get in touch.