Mountain Majesty
Pikes Peak Summit Visitor Center | Colorado Springs, CO
Completed as GE Johnson Construction Company
Each year, more than 600,000 people visit the summit of Pikes Peak, and this new facility is designed and constructed so that visitors can focus on the beauty, richness, and scenery of America’s Mountain, with multi-media exhibits to tell the story and history of the mountain and enhance the visitor experience.
About
The Project
Replacing the 1960’s Summit House, the new 38,400-sq.-ft. Pikes Peak Summit Visitor Center sits at the summit of Pikes Peak, 14,115 feet above sea level. The new building takes advantage of breathtaking views, blending in with the colors and textures of the granite of the mountain and the surrounding landscape of the summit.
Construction consisted of extensive site work on the top of Pikes Peak, demolition of the existing central utility plant, and installation of a temporary water tank, sanitary sewer tank, and an emergency generator to allow the existing summit house to remain open during construction. The crews performed extensive rock blasting and excavation of 35,000 cubic yards of rock. The foundations are shallow spread footings placed directly on bedrock.
The interior includes a two-story grand stair entry with views looking south over Mt. Rosa, an interactive exhibit area that provides information on geology, geography, flora and fauna, and the mountain’s history. There are ample public restrooms, a full kitchen, servery and dining areas, as well as retail and gift shops. The lower level houses the central utility plant.
Awards
Logistics - Hauling Materials up Pikes Peak
Living
Building Challenge
The new visitor center was constructed to meet The Living Building Challenge (LBC) – the world’s most rigorous environmental and health performance standard for buildings and is the first building in Colorado to achieve this recognition.
LBC requires over 90% diversion of construction and demolition waste, transplanting existing native vegetation, sourcing materials close to the site, vetting every product for over 900 red-list chemicals that are harmful to human and environmental health, meeting stringent material certifications, and minimizing negative indoor air quality impacts. The red list vetting process took an extraordinary collaborative effort between our project team, the architect, engineers, and 32 subcontractors over the span of three years.
A reclaimed water treatment system was installed, making it the second one in all of Colorado. This system processes black sewage water and utilizes graywater in vacuum-assist toilets, reducing the amount of water and sewage transported up and down the mountain by over 60%.
Living Building Challenge
Ingenuity
In Action
Safety & Logistics
Worker safety was paramount, and communication was important to ensure that employees and subcontractors knew when weather could negatively impact their work. The superintendent on the project traveled to the entrance of the Pikes Peak Highway daily at 4:00 a.m. to check road conditions. From there, he utilized RainedOut, a mass-texting application, to let crews know the conditions and whether it was possible to access the summit for the day. This application was also deployed during the day to alert the team of the rapidly changing weather.
Due to the extreme nature of the Pikes Peak highway – the only access road for materials and equipment, our logistics personnel managed all subcontractor material deliveries and equipment. Due to the highway’s sharp switchback turns and steep drop-offs, the logistics team took full responsibility to safely make these trips, sometimes multiple times a day. A special truck was purchased and used to navigate the switchbacks for hauling equipment and materials to the summit of Pikes Peak. The logistics team successfully made over 1,000 accident-free trips up and down the mountain and delivered materials on time for a successful project.
Building on Bedrock
The structure is built on bedrock that is beneath the permafrost layer of the mountain to reduce the likelihood of shifting and movement of the structure. To improve building efficiency, foundation forms with reinforcing steel were prefabricated offsite and delivered to the summit, minimizing the amount of work being performed on the site. Tracking technology was used during the prefabrication of the concrete formwork and precast, giving each piece a unique QR code and tracking them from fabrication to delivery. This added to the efficiency of the delivery and decreased construction time.
substantial rock blasting and excavation of 35,000 cubic yards of rock was required for installing the foundation. When drilling began, the team was expecting the ice from the permafrost to be three to six feet deep. The team found out the ice was actually 10 to 20 feet deep, requiring an adjustment to the blasting.
Adjusting to Drastic Weather
Weather was factored into scheduling delays and unforeseen job conditions. The mountain sees snow and ice almost year-round and daily coordination with mountain personnel was necessary to determine if the teams could work on the summit each day.
Average winter temperatures stayed below -20 degrees Fahrenheit, creating the challenging job of preventing heavy equipment from freezing as the team performed excavation and rock removal. Wind periodically exceeded 160 miles per hour, blowing out any glass on vehicles and heavy equipment that was exposed.
During the summer months, computer applications were used to monitor lightning strike distances to know when to shelter crews working on the project. Even in the Summer, wind speeds over 80-miles-per-hour often occurred, requiring all materials to be tied down and secured.
Ingenuity
In Action
Safety & Logistics
Worker safety was paramount, and communication was important to ensure that employees and subcontractors knew when weather could negatively impact their work. The superintendent on the project traveled to the entrance of the Pikes Peak Highway daily at 4:00 a.m. to check road conditions. From there, he utilized RainedOut, a mass-texting application, to let crews know the conditions and whether it was possible to access the summit for the day. This application was also deployed during the day to alert the team of the rapidly changing weather.
Due to the extreme nature of the Pikes Peak highway – the only access road for materials and equipment, our logistics personnel managed all subcontractor material deliveries and equipment. Due to the highway’s sharp switchback turns and steep drop-offs, the logistics team took full responsibility to safely make these trips, sometimes multiple times a day. A special truck was purchased and used to navigate the switchbacks for hauling equipment and materials to the summit of Pikes Peak. The logistics team successfully made over 1,000 accident-free trips up and down the mountain and delivered materials on time for a successful project.
Building on Bedrock
The structure is built on bedrock that is beneath the permafrost layer of the mountain to reduce the likelihood of shifting and movement of the structure. To improve building efficiency, foundation forms with reinforcing steel were prefabricated offsite and delivered to the summit, minimizing the amount of work being performed on the site. Tracking technology was used during the prefabrication of the concrete formwork and precast, giving each piece a unique QR code and tracking them from fabrication to delivery. This added to the efficiency of the delivery and decreased construction time.
substantial rock blasting and excavation of 35,000 cubic yards of rock was required for installing the foundation. When drilling began, the team was expecting the ice from the permafrost to be three to six feet deep. The team found out the ice was actually 10 to 20 feet deep, requiring an adjustment to the blasting.
Adjusting to Drastic Weather
Weather was factored into scheduling delays and unforeseen job conditions. The mountain sees snow and ice almost year-round and daily coordination with mountain personnel was necessary to determine if the teams could work on the summit each day.
Average winter temperatures stayed below -20 degrees Fahrenheit, creating the challenging job of preventing heavy equipment from freezing as the team performed excavation and rock removal. Wind periodically exceeded 160 miles per hour, blowing out any glass on vehicles and heavy equipment that was exposed.
During the summer months, computer applications were used to monitor lightning strike distances to know when to shelter crews working on the project. Even in the Summer, wind speeds over 80-miles-per-hour often occurred, requiring all materials to be tied down and secured.