The overall contract is broken into three major options: Option W for long-lead materials procurements made as the design progressed, Option X for earthwork and staging, and Option Y for bridge construction. Detailed scope for the newly awarded Option X includes mobilization of equipment, setup of a remote worker camp in an existing National Parks Service material supply area, construction of contractor facilities and initial staging areas along the environmentally and culturally sensitive Denali Park Road, pioneering access to the site and across the landslide, performing earthwork and blasting of adjacent rock slopes, and rock bolting for slope stabilization.
The Polychrome Area Improvements project is located at the Pretty Rocks Landslide which intersects Denali Park Road near its midpoint at Mile 45.4. The project scope includes construction of an approximately 475-foot-long single-span steel truss bridge, which will span the active landslide. Supporting the bridge and improving ground conditions is a combination of earthwork, micropiles, rock anchors, precast concrete abutments, and thermosyphons. Thermosyphons are part of a passive heat exchange system designed to prevent permafrost from thawing and creating instability as temperatures increase due to climate change.
“Being awarded this package allows us to continue a highly dynamic and successful relationship with Denali National Park, Western Federal Lands Highway Division of the FHWA, our subcontractors, suppliers, and the design team to bring back public access to one of our national treasures,” said Granite Vice President of Regional Operations, Derek Betts. “Every aspect of this challenging project required robust participation by every team member in a highly collaborative CM/GC process.”
Granite recently began construction on the Earthworks Package. The Polychrome Area Improvements project is scheduled to be completed by July of 2026.
