We are making tremendous progress at Mill District with our first phase of residential construction well underway. (See images below.)

Next up: A whole lot of concrete to create the foundational slab and ground-floor walls.

When we say we’re pouring a lot of concrete, we mean it. The project calls for close to 5,000 cubic yards of concrete—more than enough concrete to cover an entire football field and both end zones. The concrete will be three feet thick in every spot, mostly to provide protection against earthquake damage.

To get all that concrete from trucks to ground we’ll deploy a special piece of equipment dubbed a concrete pump. This machine takes concrete from the mixers, sends it up a chute to the top of a crane-like structure, then shoots it all down vertically. Jerad Kuhl, project manager for Weitz Company (our general contractor), said the pump is the latest and greatest way to get concrete installed on a job site. “It’s really much easier to use than backing up a truck,” he said. “We can move it around. It has an arm so it can go from one corner of the building to another.”

Kuhl said on the day crews will pour concrete, they will start at 3 AM to take advantage of cool mornings. As Kuhl explained it, the Canopy pour is the biggest of five individual concrete pours for the Mill District project overall. Each of the others is right around 1,000 cubic yards, meaning buildings at Mill District will comprise more than 5,000 cubic yards of concrete.

Following the first massive concrete pour, crews will start erecting what they’re calling the “podium lid,” which is basically the ceiling of the garage and the first floor of the buildings straight above. Kuhl said stair and elevator shafts will be added this fall—again with a concrete pump.

“Things will really start to take shape over the next few months,” Kuhl said. “It is an exciting time to watch the project take shape.”

Photos: Kim Carroll