Project Location Map

Eighth and Virginia
Seattle, Washington


The 8th & Virginia site is located at the north end of downtown Seattle in a congested urban environment. Pile-supported commercial buildings are located on the South and East sides of the excavation. The shoring system for the project consisted of temporary soldier pile and tieback walls. Because of the depth and proximity of the builing to the East, several innovative design and construction methods, such as a truncated no-load zone for the tieback anchors and a two-phase shoring system for the east side of the excavation, were employed to successfully complete the excavation.


Eighth and Virginia

505 First Avenue South
Seattle, Washington


The Sodo district in Seattle comprises commercial and industrial properties constructed on reclaimed ground which was previously covered by the waters of Elliot Bay. The 505 1st Avenue site is two blocks from the current water front on approximately 30 ft of fill placed in the early 1900’s over glacially-consolidated till and glacial outwash, lying near sea level with a consequent high water table. The 505 1st Ave building is the first structure in the Sodo District of Seattle to tackle the challenges associated with a deep excavation below the water table for the construction of multiple levels of below-grade parking. In partnership with Condon-Johnson, Ground Support PLLC designed anchored soldier piles to be installed in conjunction with cutter soil mixed (CSM) walls to support the excavation and act as a water barrier.


505 First Avenue South

The Bravern
Bellevue, Washington


Ground Support PLLC designed temporary soil nail walls for the Bravern project, a mixed-use tower complex comprising three city blocks in downtown Bellevue. The excavation for the project was very large, requiring more than 155,000 square feet of shoring with walls up to 87 feet high, resulting in what is considered to be the deepest known temporary soil nail wall in the United States. Not only was the excavation extremely deep, the Meydenbauer Convention Center was adajcent to the excavation, and was supported during construction of the Bravern with vertical elements and prestressed soil nails, resulting in less than 1/4-inch of deflection of the existing structure.


The Bravern excavation

Microsoft Block C Garage
Redmond, Washington


Ground Support PLLC designed permanent soil nail walls for the Microsoft Block C Garage project, located in Redmond, Washington The 45-ft deep below-grade parking garage excavation was one of the largest of its kind in overall extent, with plan dimensions covering roughly 1100 feet in length by 400 feet in width, requiring roughly 113,000 square feet of vertically shored wall face, up to 45 feet high. Because the garage was located interior to the overall property limits, all of the soil nails were designed to provide permanent earth support. This feature reduced the cost of the permanent structure since there were essentially no lateral loads to be supported by the interior decks and shear walls.


Microsoft Block C Garage

Newberry Hill Road Project
Kitsap County, Washington


Ground Support PLLC designed a permanent anchored soldier pile retaining wall for the Newberry Hill Road project located in Kitsap County, Washington. After winning the bid for the Owner-Design shoring wall, the Design-Build team composed of Ground Support PLLC and Malcolm Drilling Company Inc. presented a cost reduction incentive proposal (CRIP) to Kitsap County that saved over $500,000 compared to the Owner-design.


Newberry Hill Road

Spinner Building
Bellevue, Washington

Ground Support PLLC designed a permanent retaining wall for the Spinner Building office project located in Bellevue, Washington. The VENIS© system (patented by Ground Support) uses a combination of soil nails and vertical elements to support soils too weak for a conventional soil nail wall system. providing innovative and cost-competitive designs for all types of temporary shoring, permanent earth retention and ground reinforcement systems, as well as specialty foundation systems.


Spinner Building

Legacy Towers Project
Seattle, Washington

Ground Support PLLC designed a temporary shoring wall for the Legacy Towers project located in Seattle, Washington. Using the patented VENIS© shoring system allowed the first row of soil nails to be installed below utilities close to the excavation, avoiding costly utility relocation. In addition, in conjunction with the shoring contractor, Ground Support offered a design-build shoring option to the Owner, resulting in a 25% reduction in shoring costs for the project.


Soldier pile illustration

Bellevue Art Museum
Bellevue, Washington

Ground Support PLLC designed a temporary soil nail shoring wall for the Bellevue Art Museum in Bellevue, Washington. The excavation for the two-level parking garage was located adjacent to a two-story building, and stability of the excavation was of paramount importance.


Soldier pile illustration