The Challenge
The La Jolla High School Expansion Project needed to realign Fay Avenue with seismic and aesthetic considerations in mind. The Project opted to install a permanent soil nail wall with a sculpted finish to blend in with the surrounding environment and engaged Daley Construction who subcontracted with Condon-Johnson and Associates (CJA) to produce the soil nail wall.

The Solution
The wall was up to 15’ high and was retained by a two tiered system of soil nails. The upper wall was constructed on a 1:6 batter and the lower wall on a 3/4 :1 batter. Three rows of soil nails provided soil structure interaction strengthening for the wall which was over 300’ long. Structural shotcrete, reinforced for seismic stability, was installed to bridge between the soil nails.

The finished facing on the wall was sculpted to look like adjacent sandstone outcrops. The textured face was stained to a natural sandstone color and then sealed.

The Result
The project won the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) 2001 Award of Excellence.

Featured Expertise:

Shoring/Soil Nailing