State Street Garage -- Going Vertical      A tremendous amount of work has been going on behind the fence at the State Street Garage construction site.  This week, crews finished installing 35 concrete columns on the ground floor of the site.  (The thickness of each column varies depending upon the location, the weight it will carry, and other factors.)  Extensive shoring materials are now in place, which sets the stage for work to rise up above the construction fence.  Starting next week, it's expected, we'll start to see the beams, decks and walls going up for the first of the five parking decks.  A live bird's eye view camera feed of the construction site is now operational and available 24/7.  Interesting viewing!   Click here to watch the live feed.  The Garage remains on schedule to be substantially completed by February/March 2015.

Crews installing construction forms around what ultimately will be an elevator shaft on the northwest side of the site.

Deep Injection Well - Big Delivery    A big delivery was received at the Utilities campus late last week with the arrival of an oversized crane.  The ongoing construction of the deep injection well system is at a point where new pumps and motors are being installed and old ones are being removed or repositioned for reuse. 

One hefty 700 HP pump and motor assembly was removed from service.  Three

Crews guiding a pump, which operates the reclaimed water system, through the roof.

other motors (250 HP and 150 HP) were lifted high over the campus and lowered into position through the roof of a Utilities structure which houses electrical components for the reclaimed water system. 

This was a big job, with crews guiding the equipment from the ground, roof and inside the building.  Sizeable pumps (20 feet long) were extracted from the building via the roof and temporarily placed on the ground while crews moved other equipment, then the pumps were lowered back into place. 

Amazingly, all this work occurred with the reclaimed water system still functioning, which is why project manager Steve Topovski likens this construction project to a complex jigsaw puzzle.  Each piece needs to be in place before the next.

Similar work will occur soon at the adjacent treated water system.  Both the treated water and reclaimed water systems ultimately will tie into the new deep injection well system, which will be capable of receiving up to 18 million gallons a day rather than being discharged into Sarasota Bay.  The project is on schedule to be completed in April.  

Crews guiding a large pump to the ground after lifting it through the roof of a nearby structure on the Utilities campus.

Sarasota:  Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador    The City of Sarasota is now an ambassador for the National Weather Service and its "Weather-Ready Nation" program.  Our Emergency Manager Todd Kerkering will join other ambassadors to boost consistency in messaging when it comes to weather preparedness and emergencies in our area.  By participating in the program, Sarasota is starting the voluntary process of becoming a FEMA Storm-Ready Community.  That means Sarasota can earn points in the National Flood Insurance Program community rating system (CRS), which ultimately could lead to flood insurance premium discounts in our community.  The City's next CRS review will be in five years and our goal is to be credited as a Storm-Ready Community.  Thanks, Todd, for continuing to look for avenues to ensure our community is plugged in at all levels and ready for any kind of weather event.

SPD NASA Waterborne Training   With so much water around our community, SPD officers undergo specialized training on how to respond to an aquatic situation or emergency.  Three officers (Sgt. Demetri Konstantopoulos, Det. Kenton Montegna and Officer Michael Skinner) recently attended a waterborne operations SWAT training course conducted by the Florida SWAT Association and NASA at the NASA Training Center on the east coast.

L to R:  Officer Michael Skinner, Sgt. Demetri Konstantopoulos and Det. Kenton Montegna.

The training included learning about tactics to use when approaching small vessels which could be engaged in criminal activity such as human trafficking or drug running.  Attendees also learned about water deployment techniques to gather information prior to a tactical assault.

All participants were expected to be strong swimmers, and before the course began each officer was required to pass a test which included swimming 100 yards in boots and uniform, towing another person for 100 yards, and swimming 400 yards with fins in less than 15 minutes.  We appreciate these officers successfully completing this rigorous training to help keep our community in a good state of preparedness.

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