Watkins Landmark’s March 2022 Newsletter
Build To Serve
Hello,
At Watkins Landmark Construction, March always means attending the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. As most of you know, our work at the Tennis Garden has been the biggest and most high profile project Watkins Landmark has built to date. Along with our employees, we also invite our clients to this incredible event. The level of quality and finishes at the Indian Well Tennis Garden are unparalleled within the tennis world. Stadium 2 is the only tennis stadium in the world where you can enjoy 5 star dining (NOBU, Wally’s Desert Turtle) while watching the best tennis players in the world battle it out. It is a great example of the quality and craftsmanship that Watkins Landmark can build into a project. Oh and the best part? It’s also a lot of FUN!
This newsletter contains two articles and our Culture Section. The first article is on our Califino Arena project, the new home of the San Diego Sockers in Oceanside. Our second article is on our new renovation project at the historic Tamarisk Country Club in Rancho Mirage. Our Culture Section covers our attendance mentioned above at the BNP Paribas Open.
Thank you for all of your comments and suggestions for our newsletter over the years. We truly try to incorporate the best of your remarks into our periodical. You can always click on my name and email me at Jody James Watkins with any observations or critiques.
Sincerely,
Jody James Watkins
CEO/Founder
WATKINS LANDMARK CONSTRUCTION
San Diego / Inland Empire
CaliFino Arena Update
By A. Felipe San Martin, Project Engineer
Watkins Landmark Construction continues to build the future home of the San Diego Sockers, the CaliFino Arena in the City of Oceanside, CA.
This sports facility is scheduled to be opening its doors by Q3 2023, where it will start providing North County with all sorts of entertainment events; soccer/fútbol, hockey and concerts among them.
We broke ground on February 17th, 2022. After 5 weeks of smooth mass earth removal, our team has already completed the over-excavation. At the very bottom (30 ft. depth) we encountered tailing-ponds, a “peanut butter like” type of soil; clayous/silty. This soil has been partially removed; the remaining of it will be improved by the insertion of gravel columns.
This soil improvement method is called RAP, by Geopier. Each column is a 20 inch diameter cylinder with an average depth of 30 feet that will be hammered down by sections. Almost 1,100 of these units will be inserted into the ground, starting in less than a week.After all Geopiers are in place we’ll commence concrete pouring to set foundation and give shape to the first level of the arena. Structural steel erection will follow there after.
The adjacent picture shows part of the over-excavation pad being covered by a layer of crushed rock over a geotextile stabilization surface. This is required for the equipment used to install the aggregate columns.
The adjacent picture shows part of the over-excavation pad being covered by a layer of crushed rock over a geotextile stabilization surface. This is required for the equipment used to install the aggregate columns.
Finally, we are happy to announce that we have installed a time-lapse camera that will record the entire construction process and will allow us to visualize months of work within seconds. Here is an example; Stadium 2 at Indian Wells Tennis Garden. (Congrats to San Diegan Taylor Fritz for becoming the 2022 Indian Wells ATP Master 1000 CHAMPION! Fritz is the first American to win here after almost 20 years!)
Tamarisk Country Club Kitchen Remodel
By Eric Mudge, Senior Project Manager
Watkins Landmark has been awarded the Tamarisk Country Club Kitchen Renovation and Expansion project in Rancho Mirage. This project was first presented to our team early in 2021 but was put on hold pending final design and funding. The project consists of the salvage of selective existing kitchen equipment for reuse combined with a substantial list of new equipment which includes all new hoods, make up air units and a new walk-in cooler.
The entire kitchen area interior is being demolished along with several structural walls that are being relocated. This portion of the project will involve temporary shoring for the existing roof structure while new footings, columns and PSL beams are being installed.
Once the structural work is complete, MEP rough in for the new equipment layout will be done followed by all new finishes and fixtures. The work also includes a storage room and office addition. One of the critical components of the project is to add additional air conditioning to the space so that the kitchen can be utilized during the hot summer months.
The project is currently being procured and permitted for a May 1st 2022 start. The project schedule is four months of construction and one month of kitchen equipment installation and startup. The completion date is before November 1st, 2022. The project team consists of Eric Mudge, Ruben Bravo and Keagen Fritz.
Culture Section: BNP Paribas Open
We spent a very relaxing Saturday in Indian Wells at the 2022 BNP Paribas Open. Since the 2021 open was rescheduled to October due to Covid, it was a much welcomed treat to be able to enjoy the Spring weather. Watkins Landmark Construction has contributed greatly to the fan experience by making improvements, renovations, and additions to the Tennis Garden. Our team, clients, friends and family were able to celebrate the 8-year Anniversary of our construction of Stadium Two and the 5-year Anniversary of Stadium One’s major renovations!
Again, we were fortunate enough to be able to host our clients and team members for the tournament. This event has become a tradition that our employees and clients look forward to every year!
