Thanks for the pics Del! It's nice to see the perspective from the west looking east. Looks like they might be about ready to start the ground work on going up on the east side of the garage.

Great pictures Del! On the third picture down, I think you were taking a picture at the same time I was.

The shadows look the same on the machinery plus I'm sure I can see myself standing in my window!

I left my camera at home today, but I'll try and remember tomorrow. I can't believe how fast they are carting all the debris away!

Great pictures Del! On the third picture down, I think you were taking a picture at the same time I was.

The shadows look the same on the machinery plus I'm sure I can see myself standing in my window!

I left my camera at home today, but I'll try and remember tomorrow. I can't believe how fast they are carting all the debris away!

I think I see you. lol.

I like seeing the different perspectives of the work site and enjoy your pics too. I'm not in the building I took the pics from on a daily basis, but when I am, I'll be sure and snap some and post.

But.........I ended up being in the building this morning, 11-6-09:

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov62009-a.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov62009-b.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov62009-c.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov62009-d.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov62009-e.jpg

More from Lauri from today 11/6:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/devon/devon1106091.jpg

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/devon/devon1106092.jpg

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/devon/devon1106093.jpg

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/devon/devon1106094.jpg

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/devon/devon1106095.jpg

I like the pictures of the trees in the background on those last two pictures. Very colorful.

DelCamino, Lauri, Platemaker, others if I left out a name ... MadMonk's flash files are incredible ... you guys are contributing such an invaluable legacy which is not only treasured today but which will be so very valued by those who see them 50 years from today, should they then be available. You are all doing such a wonderful, wonderful job.

One day, hopefully not too far far away, we'll have an Oklahoma City history museum. Some of us are working on that. What a fine contribution all of these photos would be.

Big time hats off to all of you! :tiphat:

An acquaintance informed me that if the Devon building was built to 54 stories it would have to meet federal earthquake codes. He said that they prudently scaled back to avoid the added expense involved with achieving that level of engineering.

Makes for a good story but begs the question: Is there any validity to this?
:confused:

Normally I would have laughed at that but it seems like we've had an awful lotta little earthquakes around here the last few years.....

An acquaintance informed me that if the Devon building was built to 54 stories it would have to meet federal earthquake codes. He said that they prudently scaled back to avoid the added expense involved with achieving that level of engineering.

Makes for a good story but begs the question: Is there any validity to this?
:confused:

I question it's validity. If it were the case, it seems that the 'kick-in' factor would be based upon the building height and not the floor count.

As is the case with this tower, there are other buildings in the U.S. that have a similar footage height, yet have more floors than what is proposed here, meaning 54 stories would have a different height for different building.

I also would have thought they would have known this long before they decided to reduce the number of floors.

I question it's validity. If it were the case, it seems that the 'kick-in' factor would be based upon the building height and not the floor count.

As is the case with this tower, there are other buildings in the U.S. that have a similar footage height, yet have more floors than what is proposed here, meaning 54 stories would have a different height for different building.

Now that I think back to the conversation it was the building height not the floor count. The next sentence we switched over to discussing the building by floor count and I misremembered it as such.

What Federal earthquake codes are you referring to? I am not aware of a federal code and I am in construction all over the world. There are local seismic codes in many places, but they all start at more like 4 or 5 floors, not 50.

Their architect and construction managers are world class. They would not overlook any code of significance. This is just a wild rumor.

I know from first hand knowledge it has nothing to do with building codes....they, devon, built another facility to house their computer/data systems, hence the loss of floors from the original design

I thought that might be the case. Thanks for the information.

I went on top of the east garage today to see what progress they were making and could literally reach out and touch the boring machine that was drilling holes right next to the garage. It also looked like the garages were becoming a rather popular place during lunch to watch the activity. Good times!

I'm uploading some images since it's been so dead in here.

http://i651.photobucket.com/albums/uu235/okcmomentum/dt001.jpg

http://i651.photobucket.com/albums/uu235/okcmomentum/dt002.jpg

http://i651.photobucket.com/albums/uu235/okcmomentum/ee73b3c9.jpg

http://i651.photobucket.com/albums/uu235/okcmomentum/dt005.jpg

http://i651.photobucket.com/albums/uu235/okcmomentum/dt006.jpg

http://i651.photobucket.com/albums/uu235/okcmomentum/dt003.jpg

nice, real nice.

Took this from my cellphone camera this morning. They were augering out dirt in a huge column on the west side of the west parking garage.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/IMG00098.jpg

Wow! That's cool. My last picture is from that same area. I guess they got the sleeve all the way down by lunch time.

great pictures, guys!

I'll be back at work Tuesday and will try and remember camera. Last week was hectic with holiday in middle of week.

Construction Pics, Friday November 20, 2009...

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov202009-d.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov202009-e.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov202009-f.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov202009-h.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov202009-g.jpg

Nice pics!!

Very nice, Del!

I didn't take my camera all week - too much other stuff to lug. They sure are digging some deep holes - I could hear the drills all week.

Thanks. Now that the parking deck has be demo'd, there's not much to see for us civilians. I know there's lots of underground, dirt work, digging of lines, support piers, etc going on, but until the superstructure begins to come out of the ground, things may look like this for a while.

What is all those posters/art or advertisements on the construction temp wall? Don't remember seeing those?

What is all those posters/art or advertisements on the construction temp wall? Don't remember seeing those?

Those are murals from various Oklahoma City schools that Devon asked them to do, and they're displaying them on the temp wall.

i go to OU, so each week i drive home on the weekends and go by downtown. I cannot wait until it starts to get into the air. it is gonna look awesome.

This is such a daunting task for the workers. I hope they know what they are doing. Good luck to anyone who is part of this project and remember: NO HALF-A$$ING IT, OK!

Won't they be digging out a couple floors deeper?

Pics from Tuesday 11-24-09.....

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov242009-a.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov242009-b.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov242009-c.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Nov242009-d.jpg

In the top two pics, you can see nine separate boring/drilling machines, various sizes, at work.

are there any renderings of the finished remodeled parking garage

There is one floating around here somewhere.

Thanks as always Del! Wow, there is a lot of simultaneous activity on that site.

Here you go worthy:

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g320/martymcflyjb/Picture1-2.png

Pete, there is also this rendering. I don't know which of the renderings reflect the one being utilized. (View is looking south, along Hudson).

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/devon1.jpg

I never noticed there were two different renderings from that angle. I think I like the first better.

I wish the renderings had bigger "windows" or openings for the parking garage. The more sunlight the better right?

It appears the W face of the garage has a steel mesh type covering, which allows light/air in but screens the interior somewhat. (Much like what is on the E face @ OU's Memorial Stadium)

I don't know about anyone else, but it's going to suck parking elsewhere for a couple months (the coldest of the year). I hope Devon appreciates my sacrifice. LOL.

Those are murals from various Oklahoma City schools that Devon asked them to do, and they're displaying them on the temp wall.

The boundaries of the Devon Energy Corp. tower construction site are being converted into a gallery of murals created by Oklahoma City schoolchildren. Devon Energy worked with the Oklahoma City Arts Council and the Oklahoma City Public Schools Foundation to assemble a mural at the construction site across from Myriad Gardens.
Devon Energy provided wood panels and a stipend for painting supplies to 33 Oklahoma City public schools.

Each class was asked to adhere to the project's theme of "Building Momentum" but also was allowed to interpret the theme however they saw fit.

Devon's $750 million, 50-story tower is expected to be completed in 2012.

STEVE LACKMEYER, BUSINESS WRITER

DVN,ERGY BRIEF: Childrens' murals adorn construction of Devon tower (http://www.tradingmarkets.com/.site/news/Stock%20News/2681886/)

The Structure on the Parking Garage is going up. It is going to be like an erector set due to thier use of precast concrete structural elements and precast walls. It will begin to go up quickly! I am wondering if the view from the Web Cam is going to be obscured sooner than we think! Which is an awesome thing to behold!

I think that I prefer the first rendering as opposed to the one with all metal mesh screen all the way up becuase its scale seems more pleasing and there is some contrast. Although the metal mesh exudes a lightness that to me says that that in order to presserve architectural integrity the two should be reversed with the heavier mass on the bottom. I hope that they are planning to do some creative lighting on the metal mesh. Stone or concrete is a much more tactile and pedestrian level type material. There have been some really great uses of the material and light on other parking garages that make them a more vibrant part of the street scene. One in Austin...I'll see if I can dig up the photos.

Also, I worry about the creation of pedestrian dead zones. By that I mean areas that when you are walking down them say at night, there is something breaking up the wall effect. It would have been beautiful if they had planned pocket retail to go on the ground floor on the street facing sides of the parking garage so that it would allow for more vibrancy at all times at street level. Sure it would have taken up parking spaces but that could have been accomodated in the height of the structure. For sure the parking garage as they existed previously certainly created dead zones, but with the renovation and expansion it could have provided for the opportunity to reclaim a street frontage. Now don't get me wrong I do not mean to criticize. I am just passionate about OKC and design that is comprehensive and pedestrian conscious. This is a tremendous development and am excited for the morale, economic and national awareness increase that it will provide for OKC. Just cognizant of what might have been by taking into account comprehensive planning not just on the money shot sides of the building.

for all those who are dumb when it comes to construction like myself, what are all those machines going around and doing? drilling piers?

for all those who are dumb when it comes to construction like myself, what are all those machines going around and doing? drilling piers?
You're not as dumb as you think, Yes the ones that there are multiple of around the site are drilling rigs that are augering out the pier locations to support the foundations. In some cases a row of piers side to side are used to act as a shoring between structures, and are called soldier piers. I wouldn't know if they are being used with out looking at the plans. Man I wish I had a set of those! Around the perimeter of the site you will start seeing them building the soil retention system. Looks like a wall that will hold back the earth of the excavation prior to them placing the mat foundation in place.

actually they are called secant piers. SecantPiles.com: A technical resource forum for design and construction of secant piles. (http://www.secantpile.com)
this is what the construction plans call them anyway....been around construction for 18 years and this is the first time i have seen them used

actually they are called secant piers. SecantPiles.com: A technical resource forum for design and construction of secant piles. (http://www.secantpile.com)
this is what the construction plans call them anyway....been around construction for 18 years and this is the first time i have seen them used

Interesting. Based on the information in the link, I wonder if Devon is doing that as part of the LEED certification they are trying to achieve.

That was interesting WWW. I found some more info on the process that I think others would be interested in.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_4.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_5.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_6.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_7.jpg

Here's an example photo of what it will look like once they start the digging (coincidentally, right beside a parking garage).
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_8.jpg

That was interesting WWW. I found some more info on the process that I think others would be interested in.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_4.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_5.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_6.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_7.jpg

Here's an example photo of what it will look like once they start the digging (coincidentally, right beside a parking garage).
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v291/Mad_Monk/DevonTower/SecantWall_8.jpg
Mad Monk.. I think you have shown with the pics what would be very hard to describe in print. I have been involved in this process but, don't think I could (In print) describe it and It be understood. Thanks!!

No problemo. I meant to post the link to the pdf file. It has a little more info. Here it is.
http://www.lta.gov.sg/projects/images/Secant%20Final.pdf

Someone said they wish they had a copy of the plans. Is it not possible to go to the building department for the city and get a copy?? I know it would cost a bit, but is that still done?? I know i have done it before in different states. But it was Pre-9-11. Things may have changed.

Love the pics too guys. Its great for those of us who cant get down there much.

All building permit plans are public record and can be obtained from the city permit offices located on the 8th floor of 420 West Main. The only ones that aren't public record are certain federal building plans. You are required to pay for copies.

Someone said they wish they had a copy of the plans. Is it not possible to go to the building department for the city and get a copy?? I know it would cost a bit, but is that still done?? I know i have done it before in different states. But it was Pre-9-11. Things may have changed.

Love the pics too guys. Its great for those of us who cant get down there much.

Yeah, I am aware of how to get them but I am currently residing out of state and so the feasbility and cost associated with the size of the plans as well as the shipping of them would be prohibitive. Thanks though! I still consider OKC my home even though I live in Houston.

Drove by today, looks like 3-4 levels have been added to the parking garage... looks good

Dec. 4, 2009:

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Dec42009-b.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Dec42009-c.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Dec42009-f.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Dec42009-a.jpg

http://i724.photobucket.com/albums/ww242/luckynedpepper/Dec42009-e.jpg

Looks like they found the water table. Pretty obvious now why they are having to build what amounts to a cofferdam with the secant piles. Downtown OKC is basically built on a riverbed.

That also lends credence to the suggestions I have heard that the water in the Myriad Gardens lake is naturally occurring at that elevation.

It's also has become interesting and appropriate that Doug's initial post, the one that began this thread, included prominently in the foreground the equipment that would be used to build this barrier. I'm sure Doug caught that equipment quite by accident, but it provided excellent foreshadowing for the thread. Now we understand just how important that equipment and that type of construction is to this project. Basically, they are building this huge tower on a giant sandpile, so they have to dig really deep to get to bedrock, and do a huge amount of preparation to do the job right.

Here's Doug's post:

I drove by Hudson and found no nearby parking and Sheridan was totally blocked off so I decided not to stop, particularly not knowing whether there was a gatekeeper letting only invited people attend. But, I did hear the applause and took a couple of distance shots from my car window. They appear below.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a49/DougLoudenback/devon_tower/devongroundbreaking1.jpg


http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a49/DougLoudenback/devon_tower/devongroundbreaking2.jpg

It has begun, 11:05 a.m. October 6, 2009, less than 1 hour ago.

DelCamino..those are some awesome pics..Thanks!

Shouldn't you be watching the Journal Record van?

The water in the hole wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that it rained just under a quarter inch yesterday would it? I mean, the park across the street from the Sandridge building is deeper than that hole and it isn't interfering with the water tables. Good grief!

The water in the hole wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that it rained just under a quarter inch yesterday would it? I mean, the park across the street from the Sandridge building is deeper than that hole and it isn't interfering with the water tables. Good grief!

Very true - although the water table is pretty high - watched them drill the piers for the West garage and they were constantly hitting water.