Pullman A Structural Group Company

Owner:

University of California

Scope Of Work

Project Highlights 

Historic Restoration of 376,000+ SF Stadium

Seismic Improvements and Building Facade Repairs

Concrete Restoration

Project Description 

Located on the campus of the University of California in Berkeley, California, Memorial Stadium was originally constructed in 1923 as a memorial to Californians who lost their lives World War I. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2006, the over 376,000 SF stadium currently serves as the home of the Golden Bears football team.

The stadium required seismic improvements because of its location right on the Hayward Fault. The University of California initiated plans to renovate and retrofit the stadium to address existing seismic safety issues, modernize game day facilities, and upgrade accessibility. The multi-phase project included plans for additional, more comfortable seating, a press box, new fire sprinklers and concrete repairs to the stadium’s exterior façade.

Working within a tight schedule to avoid disrupting the college football season, the project team began planning an efficient construction sequence more than a year before groundbreaking.

The construction management firm, Webcor, of San Francisco, brought in Pullman Power through a competitive bid process to provide building envelope services and to identify and repair the areas of damaged concrete caused by spalls and corrosion of the embedded steel. 

Identifying and Strategizing Repair Needs 

The stadium’s exterior façade was originally constructed of concrete with a board form design, created with redwood board for the form face. In developing the repair strategy, there had to be a delicate balance upgrading the stadium with modern amenities while preserving the structure’s historical integrity and neoclassical architecture.

To begin identifying the areas of concrete that required repair, Pullman Power crews performed zone-by-zone field survey drawings. The stadium’s façade was divided into gridlines to examine each level for cracks and spalls, note their position, and assign a patch location on a diagram of the stadium. This method gave Pullman Power the opportunity to define the scope of work and estimate the cost, which the owner was then able to review and approve.

To determine the appropriate mix design, Pullman Power analyzed the existing concrete. A custom blend of concrete material was specified to match the existing concrete with the repair material. 

Detail Oriented Restoration

After identifying the areas of damaged concrete, Pullman Power removed the deteriorated areas and installed new embedded steel and anchors.

New form boards were constructed and the concrete patches were made, all while maintaining the historical look and feel of the exterior facade. Pullman Power’s crews worked diligently to ensure the patches blended in and maintained the same elevations as the board form edges and architectural features. New form boards were created by crews with intricate details to match the original façade.

Pullman Power was also contracted to restore the stadium’s flag poles. Crews removed all existing poles and bases, new architectural bases were fabricated and installed. Meanwhile, the original poles were refurbished offsite and then reinstalled.

When the restoration was complete, Pullman Power then carefully stained the entire exterior façade to match the original structure. A sodium-silicate based stain was selected so that silt would penetrate the concrete and enable the coloring to match the building’s original off-white shade.

Pullman Power crews completed their entire scope of work with zero safety incidents.

History Preserved 

At the peak of the project, there were over 500 workers on site. The stadium's perch above the Bay Area provided only one entryway for numerous materials deliveries. The team temporarily paved over the playing field to provide additional staging space to overcome this challenge

The renovated Memorial Stadium was completed safely and successfully after more than 30 years of planning and 21 months of construction. The nearly century-old stadium at UC Berkeley has been converted into a modern, functional stadium while maintaining the historic nature of the original structure.