111924 CSCE Dinner Meeting at Quinnipiac University
Please join CSCE at our monthly meeting at Quinnipiac University, North Haven, CT, on Tuesday, November 19, 2024. At this meeting, Katrina T. Perez Mejia, P.E., LEED GA, of Haley & Aldrich will give a presentation on the redevelopment of the New London State Pier into the First Operational United States - Based Offshore Wind Farm Terminal. One (1) New York State PDH will be offered at this meeting. This meeting is co-sponsored by the CT Valley Chapter of the ASCE Geo-Institute and the ASCE Student Chapter at Quinnipiac University.
A partnership between the Connecticut Port Authority and State of Connecticut together with Eversource and Ørsted, the Danish wind giant, has established the first offshore wind port in New England that will support staging, assembly, and deployment of wind turbines. The State Pier Complex is located approximately 3 miles upstream of the Thames Rivers outlet into the Long Island Sound and consists of the State Pier and Central Vermont Railroad (CVRR) Pier, as well as an approximately 25-acre Uplands area which also includes railroad access. The total area of the site is about 45 acres.
The geology at the site consists of recent undifferentiated fill soils, deposited within the last 100 years, over very soft organic and medium dense to dense glaciofluvial deposits. Dense glacial till and bedrock was encountered relatively deep at the project site.
The earliest development at the State Pier Complex dates back to 1876, when the Central Vermont Railroad commissioned the CCVRR Pier. Besides the challenging subsurface conditions at the site, the proposed development also needed to take into account a complex history of development at the site over the past 145 years.
The State Pier Complex redevelopment required major site improvements for the ability to support offshore wind projects. Thus, the geotechnical components of the development are both extensive and challenging, as described below.
State Pier and CVRR Renovations: Construction of one large pier (about 1,000 ft long by 650 ft wide) by sealing off the ends of the State and CVRR Piers with the installation of a new King-Pile tied-back bulkhead between them, then creating land in this area by infilling. Most of the infill area is designed to support 1,000 lbs per square foot (psf) uniform loads and up to 3,000 psf transportation loads. As such, soil improvement consisting of vibrocompaction was planned to improve the soils placed underwater, to support the planned loads, as well as to prevent liquefaction and excessive settlement.
Installation Berth: The installation berth is where the installation vessel gets loaded with the various components of the wind turbines that are to be taken offshore for installation. The new berth is located along the east side of the State Pier and includes a pile-supported relieving platform that will support loads up to 5,000 psf. A King-Pile toe-wall is constructed adjacent to the new berth to support the riprap slope embankment underneath the State Pier, and to allow for future dredging activities.
Delivery Berth: The delivery berth allows for delivery vessels to offload equipment onto land. Similarly to the installation berth, the delivery berth includes a pile-supported relieving platform that will support loads up to 5,000 psf. A new King-Pile bulkhead is constructed to replace the existing bulkhead in this area and is supported by deadman anchor piles, where not supported monolithically by the relieving platform
Katrina T. Perez Mejia, P.E., LEED Green Associate, Project Manager, has over 10 years of geotechnical engineering design experience on projects ranging from institutional, commercial, residential, marine structures, roadways, electric transmission lines, and substations. Her project experience includes subsurface explorations, design of shallow and deep foundations, lateral earth support systems, pile load tests, tiebacks and rock anchors, pavement design, earthwork, underpinning, vibration monitoring, and contract document preparation. Some of her projects include New London State Pier, Pier 31 and Pier 8 at the Groton, CT Navy Base, several institution buildings for CT and NY universities, and residential structures for developers.
5:30-6:30 p.m. Registration and Social Hour followed by a Plated Dinner and Presentation
Quinnipiac University, Multipurpose Room, MNH-105, 370 Bassett Road, North Haven Campus, Center for Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, North Haven, CT 06473
Directions to North Haven Campus
From I-91 - Take I-91 North to Exit 12 (Washington Avenue). Turn right onto Route 5/Washington Avenue and follow for 1.5 miles. Turn right onto Bradley Street. Continue straight through the Bassett Road intersection. The entrance to campus is directly ahead.
From I-95 - Take I-95 to I-91 North. Drive 8.6 miles to Exit 12 (Washington Avenue). Turn right onto Route 5/Washington Avenue and follow for 1.5 miles. Turn right onto Bradley Street. Continue straight through the Bassett Road intersection. The entrance to campus is directly ahead.
For more detailed driving directions to the North Haven Campus, view the campus map:
Parking: Please click here for an image of the campus map. Once you arrive at Quinnipiac, please follow the signs for the parking garage, which is labeled as P-G on the map and is located between Buildings 3 & 4, and park there. Signage will direct visitors from the garage to the meeting. The dinner meeting will be in the Center for Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences (MNH -105), which is in Building 2 on the map, but it is located near the entrance where Buildings 1 & 2 join together.
CSCE Members - No NYS PDH: $55
CSCE Members who want to earn 1 NYS PDH: $65
Non CSCE Members - No NYS PDH: $65
Non CSCE Members who want to earn 1 NYS PDH: $75
Full Time Students - No NYS PDH: $30
Unemployed CSCE Members: No Charge
Only attending the presentation - No meal: No Charge
Reservations received and accepted after November 12, may incur a $10 additional fee.
Payment is required with registration unless other arrangements are made. CSCE cannot give refunds after the final dinner order has been placed.
Please register to attend this dinner meeting by clicking on the following link:
* Student membership in ASCE/CSCE offers people opportunities to:
- apply for internships, jobs, scholarships and fellowships
- get 1-on-1 career advice with ASCE Mentor Match
- better understand the job market with ASCE's entry-level Salary Report
- start building your professional network before you need it.
Table Top Sponsor - $100 - This sponsorship offers table signs with your company logo on each dinner table (Please sign up for this 1-2 weeks before the meeting to allow time for CSCE to finalize & order the signage)
Flyer Sponsor - $250 - This sponsorship offers your company logo on event promotional emails and upcoming events flyer distributed at dinner meeting (Please sign up for this 1-2 weeks before the meeting to allow time for CSCE to finalize & order the signage)
Promotional Item Sponsor - $500 - This sponsorship offers your company logo on a promotional item that will be distributed at the dinner meeting. The item can either be provided by the sponsoring company or CSCE can order an item that is purchased by the company.
Social Hour Sponsor - $1000 - This sponsorship offers your company logo will be included on meeting promotional material and signage recognizing your sponsorship will be displayed at the social hour (Please sign up for this 1-2 weeks before the meeting to allow time for CSCE to finalize & order the signage)
To sponsor this dinner meeting, please click on the following link:
Donation Opportunities
Please consider a donation to the CSCE scholarship fund to help civil engineering students from Connecticut. All donations will help students in need. To make a donation to CSCE, please click on the following link: