A. PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Kentucky Lock is located in western Kentucky at Mile 22.4 of the Tennessee River. A feasibility report completed in 1992 recommended a new 110' x 1200' lock adjacent and landward of the existing 110' x 600' lock. The project was authorized for construction in WRDA 96. FY 98 funding of $4M was used to continue WES model studies, the Lock DM, Transmission Tower DM, subsurface exploration, and initiate the Railroad DM. Construction on the project was initiated with the construction of an access road on the powerhouse island that was completed in August 1998. Due to fiscal reprogramming efforts within the Corps, the FY 99 funding plan of $12.6M is:

• $3.3M -- Lock DM
• $2.7M -- Railroad DM
• $1.9M -- Highway DM
• $0.7M -- Cofferdam DM
• $0.16M -- Materials DM
• $2.2M -- Transmission Tower Relocation
• $0.6M -- Lock and Navigation Models at WES
• $0.2M -- Environmental Studies
• $0.4M -- Construction Contracts
• $0.44M -- Management/Miscellaneous.

Subsurface exploration costs are included in the costs for the DM’s above.

B. GENERAL

Homepage -- Additions/improvements to KY Lock’s Homepage, www.orn.usace.army.mil/pao/kylock/ , continued over the last month. A notable addition is updated pictures of the lock model. An updated artist rendering showing the proposed pedestrian/bike bridge over the locks is complete and will be shown on the site in the near future.

Expenditures for the Fiscal Year -- Through 31 August, the KY Lock expenditures were at 96% of scheduled expenditures. We are on track to expend approximately $12.4M of the $12.6M allocated to the project by 30 September, the end of the fiscal year.

Groundbreaking Ceremony (15 October at 2:00 p.m.) -- The last scheduled planning session for this event is to be held 15 September at 11:00 a.m. in Nashville.

Significant issues raised and decisions made during the month on the project include:

• Pedestrian/bike corridor - The preferred corridor across the dam was selected. This path will be on the to-be-abandoned RR bridge across the powerhouse and spillway bays.
• Powerhouse island access ramp -- The alignment for this ramp was selected. It will result in the relocation of a TVA warehouse.
• Highway embankment side slopes -- The design side slope of 3H:1V was chosen by the design team -- allowing the design of many critical features to proceed.
• West bank bridge approach embankment construction contracts -- It was originally planned to advertised for a construction contract just for the joint Hwy/RR embankment on the west bank in the January 2000 timeframe. Due to delays in this embankment’s contract P&S, advertising for the entire Hwy/RR west bank embankment in the March/April 2000 timeframe through the advancement of the highway embankment design effort is being considered.

C. PROGRESS FOR THE MONTH:

Environmental

Environmental Coordination -- A meeting is tentatively scheduled for 13 September in Cookeville, TN to meet with the US Fish and Wildlife Service regarding the recently submitted biological assessment. In-house efforts are continuing in the development of the Environmental Assessment for the highway relocation.

WES Visit - A meeting at WES (Vicksburg) to view existing conditions in the navigation model and to discuss upcoming tests was held on 19 August (minutes available the week of 7 Sept). Representatives of the KY Dept. of Fish and Wildlife and the US F&W attended along with Corps and TVA personnel. Significant observations/discussions/decisions made include:

Mussel velocity measurement sites -- Seven transects were identified for measuring flow velocities on 250’ centers for existing versus proposed conditions.

Mooring cell locations -- It continues to be apparent that locating the two proposed mooring cells will be difficult without significantly impacting the mussel resource. This issue will require continued analysis and discussion with all the parties involved before resolution.

Gas supersaturation -- Although the model cannot measure these levels, it can be used to assess the mixing characteristics between the powerhouse discharges and the spillway discharges through dye tests. Preliminary dye tests were observed by the participants and these will be refined by WES personnel.

Tailwater eddy -- This eddy that can draw recreational craft into the dangerous spill area was accurately reproduced by the model.

Training dikes -- Different configurations for these possible dikes were discussed. If selected for incorporation into the project, it is hoped that this dike(s) will be beneficial to not only navigation conditions, but will also enhance mixing, reduce the negative effects of the tailwater eddy, and provide additional fish habitat.

Mussel mitigation -- A discussion was held on possible mitigation plans for the loss of mussel habitat due to the project.

Cultural Resources Assessment -- The planned coordination meeting with the Kentucky State Historic Preservation Officer was cancelled due to an earlier visit to the site by the SHPO’s office. A site visit by Duvall and Associates is scheduled for the month of September.

Exploration

The Nashville District’s Drill Crew has completed 36 of the 39 holes to be drilled on the east bank (EB) Hwy 62 alignment. The remaining 3 holes will be drilled by a contract crew. The Nashville District crew will return to the site the week of 20 September to obtain additional rock information at two holes at the abutments of the Hwy bridge over the RR.

Overwater drilling commenced by Harza/H.C. Nutting on 10 August. Holes completed as of 3 Sept. include all 8 for the overwater Hwy bridge, all 5 for the downstream cofferdam, both holes for the possible, temporary truss bents, and 2 of 3 holes for the upstream approach walls. It now appears that the Hwy and RR pier holes located near the bank will be drilled from the barge instead of the previously anticipated land bridge.

Testing -- A task order was awarded to FMSM on 24 August to perform all the geotechnical testing for the remainder of the drilled samples.

WES Navigation Model

August meetings - Two meetings were held at WES to view the model, review the existing condition results, and discuss future tests. The first meeting on 19 August concentrated on environmental interests (see description in Environmental above). The second meeting on 20 August involved navigation interests (minutes available the week of 7 Sept). There was a consensus by the industry representatives that the model accurately depicts existing navigation conditions. It was proposed in this navigation meeting that one of the five TW/flow combinations be dropped from study and two combinations be added. This proposal is being evaluated by LRN and WES and will be distributed for review by all interested parties prior to a decision. The location of the two proposed mooring cells was also discussed. A location downstream of I-24 seemed to be preferred. A proposal to replace the two mooring buoys downstream of I-24 with the mooring cells will be considered in the modeling but may be too far downstream to be accurately modeled.

Next meeting -- After the many changes/additions to the testing schedule proposed in the 19 and 20 August meetings, the model testing schedule will have to be revised. The best guess now is that the next meeting will be scheduled in the January 2000 timeframe. The next visit will view proposed conditions with possible training dike configurations in conjunction with the piers for the two new bridges.

WES Lock Model

Testing of the new upstream topography and the upstream floating guardwall are the last planned tests for this model. The tests are anticipated for this fall. New pictures of this model are on the KY Lock website.

Lock Design

In-house efforts continue to focus on the support of WES’s Lock and Navigation Model work, new lock stability, miter gate design, culvert valve design, preliminary electrical/mechanical design, east bank permanent embankment, and the development and managing of task orders.

Electrical/Mechanical Design. A 20% progress conference call was held on 18 August for this design effort. Harza’s 25% submittal and a progress meeting are planned for late Sept/early Oct.

Site Design -- In lieu of one task order on this effort, three are now underway in an attempt to expedite this feature. Two task orders have been negotiated with Gresham Smith & Partners (GS&P) to development DM level designs for the site development and for the site architecture. The third task order will be negotiated with Harza the week of 7 September for the architecture of the proposed operations building and the operator stands. A kick-off site visit for this effort was made on 1 Sept. In-house efforts are underway to define the cut lines for the excavation during lock construction. This information is expected to be sent to GS&P the week of 7 Sept for their use in siting structures.

Visitor Center -- A conference call that involved TVA, Corps, and GS&P representatives was held on 3 Sept. The purpose of the call was to coordinate design roles and discuss partnering possibilities for the proposed visitor center. It was agreed that a limited meeting will be planned at the KY Fish and Wildlife Department’s visitor center in Frankfort, KY for the purpose of exploring partnering possibilities with the KY F&W Dept, probably in late September. A second meeting will be held later at KY Lock with all other possible entities that will have an interest in the center. Avis Kennedy of LRNCO-T is continuing in her efforts to obtain guidance from higher Corps authority on whether and how the visitor center can be included as part of the project.

Lower Guidewall -- A 70% review meeting on this DM level effort was held on 1 September with Harza Engineers in Chicago (minutes not yet available). Significant discussions include:

Foundation treatment -- In the 95% submission, Harza will include additional analyses and treatment schemes for the anticipated limestone cavities to be encountered by the drilled shaft and diaphragm wall foundations.

Tremie concrete QC -- The 95% submittal should include plans and costs for minimizing/locating voids for tremie concrete placement.

Construction techniques -- Discussions were held on possible construction techniques for the drilled shafts (no permanent steel casing to allow for soil side friction development), diaphragm wall (panel lengths and excavation methods), and lower fender section (pre-cast panels are to be examined for minimizing forming/placement of concrete below water levels).

RCC strengths -- Preliminary results of the roller compacted concrete mixes are showing lower than expected compression strengths and higher than expected modulus of elasticity. Harza will provide recommendations to deal with these issues in the 95% submission. Although these unexpected results are not expected to significantly impact the design of the lower guidewall, they could have ramifications for the possible use of RCC in the lock walls.

Cost estimates -- The cost estimate and contingencies in the 95% submittal will reflect the concerns, unknowns, and construction techniques discussed in the meeting and noted in the comments.

TVA Board of Consultants -- A presentation on this wall’s design will probably be made to the TVA Board of Consultants’ meeting the week of 16 November. A meeting with TVA staff will be incorporated into the 95% meeting in Nashville planned for October.

Upper Approach Walls - A task order to advance the upstream guardwall to DM level was planned for INCA Engineers. Due to the size of this task order and the proximity of the end of the FY, a decision was made to postpone it until the beginning of next FY.

Floating Caisson-- A 95% submission on this DM level effort by INCA is expected the week of 7 Sept.

Miter Gate Design -- Design efforts using a finite element model for the gates is ongoing by LRL. A 75% submission by LRL is expected soon. A task order to INCA to provide design checks was awarded by LRN. It is planned for LRL design representatives to attend the next Elec/Mech meeting in Chicago in early October to coordinate design efforts.

As-built Drawings -- A 50% submission by AIMSI Engineers on this task order is expected in September.

EB Permanent Embankment -- The in-house DM level design of this feature is still ongoing and is being refined to develop excavation cut limits.

Project Utilities -- A task order is planned for next FY to prepare the designs for all the utilities affected by the project that are not currently assigned to a design team.

EP-D New IDT’s - Contracts have now been awarded to all four of the new lock A/E’s. They are 1) Black and Veatch, 2) a joint venture of INCA/RW Beck/Stone & Webster, 3) a joint venture of Bergmann Associates/ Ben C. Gerwick, Inc., and 4) Harza Engineers.

Disposal/Contractor Laydown Areas

Vulcan Materials Disposal Site -- Activities necessary to acquire the real estate rights for this 46-acre site located about ¾ mile from the proposed lock on Hwy 453 have been initiated. These include:

• A task order has been scoped and will be negotiated the week of 7 Sept to Bergmann Associates/Ben C. Gerwick (BA/BCG) to develop necessary designs for this disposal site. This includes access roads, storm water and erosion control measures, volumetric determinations, staging arrangements, assessment of impacted utilities, and final site characteristics.
• A site and boundary survey was initiated by American Engineers the week if 9 August and will be completed this month.
• A decision has not yet been made on whether to acquire this 
  property in fee or to obtain a long-term easement from Vulcan 
  Materials Corp. No discussions between TVA and the Corps have 
  been held on this issue since the 4 August meeting with Vulcan 
  officials. Since it is planned for TVA to obtain an appraisal for this 
  property this fall, it may be beneficial to postpone this decision until 
  after receipt of the appraisal.

Cofferdam DM

Downstream cofferdam -- A 70% submission on this DM level effort is expected from Harza by the end of September. An economic report recommending a top elevation of 342’ for this cofferdam was received from Harza on 3 September. A review of this report by the design team will be necessary before a final decision can be made on this design top elevation. A presentation on this design is expected to be made to the TVA Board of Consultants at their meeting the week of 16 November.

Upstream cofferdam -- Scoping efforts on this DM level design effort are complete and negotiations for this task order to B&V are expected the week of 7 Sept.

Independent Technical Review -- A draft scope has been developed and coordination efforts are underway by LRN’s Structural Section and Geotechnical Branch to assemble this review team.

Value Engineering Study -- To support the downstream cofferdam VE team, a task order has been negotiated for BA/BCG to provide the technical designs for at least two alternative concepts to those presented in Harza’s 30% D/S Cofferdam report. BA/BCG is examining both a float-in wall/cofferdam section and a full-width, braced cofferdam that will have a precast interior wall panel.

Materials DM

Testing of the sand and rock samples are ongoing at the Waterways Experiment Station (WES) and completion is expected in October.

Hwy/RR

Quarterly Design Meetings -- The highway and railroad quarterly design meetings were held on 16-17 August (minutes available soon). Significant discussions at the joint meeting include:

• All drilled shafts will probably be constructed in a plumb configuration.
• Circular pier cap -- Hanson was asked to change the RR’s rectangular cap to circular to match the Hwy design. However, recent cost concerns over the circular cap have caused this issue to resurface.
• Wider boat basin -- Preliminary thoughts about the bridge contractor using the existing boat basin on the left bank as access to the river were diminished when it was determined that sufficient width and draft were not available during low water periods. It was agreed that widening and deepening this basin will be examined for its cost/feasibility. If this widening is feasible, then this will probably postpone the construction of the recreational boat ramp planned for this fall by TVA forces. However, the planned paving of the downstream parking lot will be pursued next FY if funds are available.
• Hanson and ACE should provide pier/drilled shaft designs to LRN by October so they can be incorporated into the Navigation Model.
• LRN will be responsible for additional horizontal and vertical control analysis at the project site.
• The EB highway alignment will not require retaining walls at the transmission towers as thought earlier.

Temporary bents in navigation canal -- After analyzing various possible truss erection bents in the navigation canal, it was determined that an acceptable configuration had not been developed. The specifications for the construction contract will not allow any type of falsework that will negatively impact navigation; therefore, the truss will likely have to be floated into place. Preliminary indications are that this will add a 30% premium to the steel erection costs as compared to using falsework.

WB Joint embankment contract -- The advertising for this contract will be delayed from its planned January 2000 date due to various delays in the design process. It will probably be delayed on the order of several months.

Hanson’s contract will be modified to allow for the submission of the US Coast Guard permit ASAP. TVA still has information to send to Hanson before they can complete the 303(b) analysis.

LRN and TVA will develop a wetlands mitigation plan whose scope will be dependent on the final footprint of the Hwy and RR relocations.

The next quarterly design meeting is scheduled for 1-2 November at the Lake Barkley Resource Managers office. The RR-only meeting is scheduled for the afternoon of 1 November. The joint Hwy/RR meeting is scheduled for the morning of 2 November and the Hwy-only meeting that afternoon.

Highway DM

Quarterly Design Meeting -- Significant discussions at this 16 August meeting include:

• The plate girder alternate for the navigation span is now being designed as a counterbalanced structure to reduce costs.
• Seismic criteria will be reevaluated and refined.
• FMSM will provide a schedule for geotechnical test results.
• It is expected that TVA will only assume maintenance responsibilities for the highway embankment that has dam safety implications. This is only a short reach near the west bank tie-in. The maintenance for the remainder of the embankment will be the responsibility of the KTC, which usually does not perform regular mowing of high embankments such as this.
• ACE will analyze the costs of 3:1 and 4:1 embankment side slopes in an effort to reach a design decision.

Pedestrian/bike bridge type -- After discussing three different bridge types, it was agreed that a cable-stayed alternative would be developed for final design. Its alignment will probably be downstream of the middle wall maintenance bridge due to the location of the stoplog slots.

Pedestrian/bike corridor -- After discussing the deficiencies in the existing Hwy 62 bridge across the dam and the costs of alternative alignments, it was agreed that the pedestrian/bike path should be constructed on the to-be-abandoned RR bridge across the spillway and powerhouse.

Pedestrian/bike safety -- ACE agreed to investigate alternative fencing/barriers that will provide for the safety of users and those below the bridges and also be aesthetically acceptable.

Powerhouse Island Access Ramp -- ACE presented 6 alternative alignments for consideration. After concerns about retaining wall heights were raised, it was agreed to select the alignment with the widest curvature for final design. This alignment will result in the relocation of a TVA warehouse to a location downstream of the switchyard.

Middle wall maintenance bridge -- A site visit to the lock was made to develop design constraints for this bridge whose centerline has been moved downstream due to concerns about its interference with the placement of chamber stoplogs. ACE will develop additional designs based on these new constraints.

DM Design -- In addition to those designs presented at the quarterly meeting, activities performed during the month by American Consulting Engineers (ACE) include:

• Navigation Span
  • Developed and prepared quantities for three truss configurations.
  • Continued development of counterbalance plate girder design with estimated savings of $1.6M over previous concepts.

• Continued analysis of 304’ vs. 152’ viaduct spans.
• Continued seismic analysis of deep water foundations.
• Continued development of middle wall access bridge.
• Researched and developed preliminary designs for isolation bearings.
• Completed field survey of cross sections and profile.
• Completed side slope and guardrail analysis and submitted to KTC on 19 August. On 30 August, received approval from KTC for 3H:1V side slope with guardrail section.
• Completed revisions to approach roads recommended at quarterly meeting.
• Continued work on US 62 plans including the incorporation of the 3:1 side slopes.
• Continued on generating computerized rendering of the site. Navigation span alternates are now complete.

Coordination with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. LRN has submitted a first draft of a betterment sharing agreement with the KyTC to TVA for review. An exhibit to this agreement will be the computations that determine the cost share between the Corps and the KTC. The KTC has been contacted and is sending their computations developed last year to the Corps. ACE has also been asked to develop these cost share percentages based on the design to date.

Railroad DM

Quarterly Meeting -- Significant discussions at this meeting (draft minutes available) include:

• Foundation and pier types for both of the navigation span piers were determined.
• Approach span pier foundations -- The four 6’-6" diameter drilled shaft arrangement was preferred by the P&L RR over the single shaft design.
• RR Bridge over Hwy 282 -- Three alternative designs were presented for this bridge. After a discussion of the pros and cons, the thru-plate girder alternative was selected for final design. A 6" vertical clearance variance will be sought from the KTC for this alternative.
• Parameters, options and model testing of the proposed protection scheme for the island pier were discussed.
• A side slope of 2.5H:1V with grassed slopes was chosen for the embankments.
• Vulcan Materials Haul Road Box Bridge Modification -- Representatives of Vulcan Materials Corp. attended this session of the meeting to discuss this feature on which they may want to betterment share. The current double box under the P&L RR does not provide sufficient horizontal and vertical clearance for their future needs. Hanson had provided a 75% complete report for review prior to the meeting that presented design and cost information on variations of five alternatives. These alternatives were discussed in detail at the meeting. Since Vulcan’s betterment share for these improvements was much greater than they felt was obtainable from their budget, the parameters for a planned sixth alternative were agreed upon. This sixth alternative has the potential of cost savings over the previously studied alternatives.
• Walker Cemetery Access Road -- The Plans and Specifications for this road were transmitted to the 8A contractor on 10 August and a fee proposal is expected by 10 September, with negotiations to follow shortly thereafter. A pre-bid walk through at the site with the contractor was held on 31 August.

RR Design -- In addition to the items listed in the quarterly meeting, Hanson Engineers have performed the following activities over the last month:

• Completed preliminary design of the truss span
• Completed study of the modification of the RR bridge over KY 282
• Continued the collection of information for MCACES cost estimates
• Continued the Section 303 (formerly 4(f)) Statement
• Continued preliminary foundation design for approach spans
• Initiated efforts on 50% submittal of Design Memorandum.
• Continued efforts on WB water and sewer line P&S.

Geotechnical Design -- Harza submitted their 100% DM geotechnical report in KTC format for their review. A task order was be issued to Harza to complete geotechnical studies for P&S on the WB embankment.

TVA Transmission Towers Relocation

Eight Upstream Towers (four on each bank) -- A scoping meeting to discuss the current status and future gameplan for the construction of these eight towers was held on 23 August in Chatanooga. Significant discussions include:

• The Corps is in the process of seeking approval by the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works) to allow TVA to use members of its contract partners in the construction of the towers. It is not expected that approval will be obtained until at least November 1999.
• Truck loads of the structural steel, H-piles for the load test, and associated hardware to construct the eight towers has been arriving at the site and should be completely stockpiled by the end of September.
• The design/alignment of grounding cables across the canal and relocation of wooden power poles are issues that still have to be addressed.
• The use of barges for assembly platforms is probably not practical for the island towers.
• The vertical clearance and construction sequencing of the transmission line relocation in conjunction with the construction of the downstream cofferdam still requires substantial coordination.

Preliminary Design/Construction Schedule:

10 Sept 1999 -- Issue Contract Drawings for EB tower foundations. LRN to initiate review and development of Contract Documents.

Early December 1999 -- Begin load test for 6 H-piles for downstream most tower on the powerhouse island. To be performed by TVA Heavy Equipment group and TVA contract partners.

Early December 2000 -- Notice to proceed for Corps 8A contractor to construct EB tower foundations. Footings for all four towers completed by the end of spring 2000.

Early January 2000 -- TVA HE group begin pile driving for upstream most tower on powerhouse island. Complete pile driving for all four towers on PH island by 31 May 2000.

July/August 2000 -- TVA tower assembly group will initiate tower erection. By December 2000, will complete two upstream towers on both the EB and on the PH island as well as the line transfers.

March 2001 -- TVA tower assembly group resumes tower erection for last four towers. Completes all four and line transfers by 31 May 2001.

Three Downstream Towers (69 kV) -- Approval of the proposed retaining wall scheme to eliminate the need to relocate these three towers has been granted by TVA and Corps reviewers. Ongoing stability analyses are required to complete this design.

Miscellaneous

Development of Drawing Library System -- LRN plans to develop a library of all drawings that can be accessed by all members of the design team. When it is complete, a message will be sent to all design team members and will be posted on the Homepage.

KY Lock Telephone Directory -- Download a list of all organizations and key personnel involved in the design of this project that contains their address, phone numbers and email addresses:

Microsoft Access Format       Microsoft Excel Format

Print copies available upon request to Don Getty, (615) 736-2346 don.b.getty@usace.army.mil.