OYSTER
CREEK INN

Location: Chuckanut Drive, Bellingham, WA

Client: Thomas & Danielle Palmer

Structural Engineer: MLA Engineering

Award - Environmental Excellence by the Associated General Contractors of Washington

The two-story 70+ year old restaurant is located on an active slide area along Chuckanut Drive south of Bellingham. The structure had experienced significant movement and cracking over its life as the shifting ground area caused the northern portion of the building to move laterally and settle. MLA Engineering worked with the geotechnical engineering team of Shannon & Wilson and the general contractor Fisher & Sons, general to provide a system of micropiles, post-tensioned tiebacks, a reaction beam, and concrete outriggers to stabilize the lateral and vertical movement of the foundations. The damaged CMU walls and wood framing were re-built to provide code-compliant resistance to wind and seismic loading. Construction, which occurred unimpeded during the winter, included measures to protect the sensitive oyster-spawning stream that flowed within 50 feet downhill of the building.