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Cleveland Heights hires engineering firm for review of recommendation to remove Horseshoe Lake dam

Source: Cleveland Heights hires engineering firm for review of recommendation to remove Horseshoe Lake dam - cleveland.com CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, Ohio -- The city has hired its engineering firm to conduct a peer review of the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District’s recommendation to remove Horseshoe Lake dam and restore Doan Brook to its earlier natural state. Gannett Fleming Engineers and Architects, based in Camp Hill, Pa., with an office in Fairlawn, agreed last month to do the assessment for $9,000. Plans are to complete the initial review within two weeks of the city’s notice to proceed. From there, Gannett Fleming will take part in a virtual meeting with city officials to present its findings and answer questions, with written commentary to be provided within two weeks of that, according to a “scope of services” agreement. Meanwhile, Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District CEO Kyle Dreyfuss-Wells sent an update to Cleveland Heights council last week also asking that the city “consider its concurrence with our recommended approach by Nov. 8.” On Sept. 27, Shaker Heights City Council approved its “resolution of concurrence” with the NEORSD recommendations, also being sought from Cleveland Heights council as well, since both cities lease the designated parkland from the City of Cleveland. Cleveland Heights council decided last month to seek a “second opinion” on the $28.3 million proposal to remove the lake and dam, as well as keeping Lower Shaker Lake intact with a refortified dam and dredging -- at no cost to either city. “We are confident in our recommendation to the cities of Shaker Heights and Cleveland Heights to restore Doan Brook through removal of Horseshoe Lake dam,” Dreyfuss-Wells stated. The Gannett Fleming peer review will likely include “hydrologic and hydraulic analyses and an evaluation of engineering alternatives to address identified deficiencies, and that the evaluations [...]

Ohio Geotechnical engineering faculty to develop course with Japanese colleagues

Source: Geotechnical engineering faculty to develop course with Japanese colleagues | Civil, Environmental and Geodetic Engineering Geotechnical engineering faculty to develop course with Japanese colleagues Posted: July 20, 2020 Thanks to an award granted by a partnership of The American Council on Education (ACE) and the Institute for Innovative Global Education, Ohio State faculty and students will have soon have the opportunity to collaborate with their colleagues and peers at the University of Tsukuba in Japan. The two universities were selected by ACE to participate in the U.S.-Japan Rapid Response Virtual Exchange / Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) Transformation Lab. The COIL program fosters U.S.-Japan higher education ties through the development of new and innovative courses. Daniel Pradel Daniel Pradel, professor of practice in geotechnical engineering, will collaborate with Takashi Matsushima, professor of engineering information and systems at the University of Tsukuba, to adapt a current Ohio State course called, “Learning from disasters: Extreme events and their impact on infrastructure, engineering, and society.” Professor Pradel previously participated in several post-disaster, engineering reconnaissance teams, including the 2015 Ghorka Earthquake in Nepal, the 2011 Tohuku Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan and 2017 Hurricanes Irma and Maria in Puerto Rico. He said that studying the response to these and other extreme events will reinforce, to students, the importance of resilience in designing and developing infrastructure. "Historical decisions in planning, engineering and/or urban development play important roles that often magnify the destructive effects of extreme events," Pradel said in a statement. He went on to emphasize the other challenges these events present. "In developing countries, where resources tend to be limited, extreme events such as earthquakes and typhoons often result in medical threats from infectious diseases due to the limited availability of clean water and emergency medical services." Daniel Pradel surveys landslide damage caused by Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico, 2017. While international travel is not possible during [...]