The challenges of rock excavation when developing a tournament quality softball complex

The Centre Region Parks and Recreation Authority is developing several new regional parks near State College.  The first to be constructed is a park that includes four tournament quality softball fields.  There have been a number of challenges related to the existing terrain including slopes that appear to be fairly level until one tries to design 10 acres of public facilities, resulting in multiple terraces.  The shallow depth to bedrock was a challenge and we had to entertain blasting versus hoe ram excavation during the bidding process.  With the limestone geology, we have to worry about limestone sink holes although we have not run into one yet.  We also had to find an area that did not have rock in the soil on the site to accommodate a septic field for the restroom/concessions building.

Leonard S. Fiore is the site general contractor and has agreed to do the excavation without blasting.  They have made great progress in constructing the fields this spring.  They have cut into the rock and after two months of excavation, you can see the four fields emerging from the ground.  Working with the contractor and client, we have found suitable locations to bury rock the size of Volkswagons and ways to insure that water could drain through a rock subgrade under the sports fields.  We have worked to integrate a surprising amount of topsoil to the benefit of the project while retaining the balance of cut and fill.

Excavation in rock can be a challenge but a good contractor, geotechnical consultant and a little bit of imagination can lead to a quality outcome that serves the recreation needs of the community while minimizing environmental disturbance.