The Holmes County Board of County Commissioners chose Hanson to design improvements for approximately 1.1 miles of John Clark Road, a two-lane roadway in Holmes County, Florida.
Hanson’s work included reconstructing areas of base failure, widening curves, resurfacing, and drainage and safety improvements for two 10-foot-wide travel lanes with 5-foot-wide paved shoulders. Drainage improvements included cross drain and side drain replacements and end treatments, ditch regrading and erosion protection, and replacement of a failing headwall on a cross drain that consists of four 60-inch corrugated metal pipes.
Challenges and solutions
A key design challenge involved deteriorating headwalls at an existing bridge culvert crossing Ten Mile Creek. The culvert consisted of four 117-inch-by-79-inch steel arch pipes, which remained partially submerged throughout the design phase, limiting a full inspection and assessment.
Because Florida’s grant funding only allowed for repairs to the existing structure, full replacement of the culvert was not permitted. To address this, the design team developed a solution involving a new, reinforced concrete headwall poured around the existing pipes. This approach was intended to stabilize the pipe ends and prevent further settlement or structural degradation.
However, once the culverts were dewatered during construction, previously undetected corrosion-related damage was discovered, including multiple holes throughout the pipes. This required the team to quickly evaluate alternative repair strategies that would still comply with funding restrictions.
After careful consideration, the selected solution was to rehabilitate the pipes using a shotcrete lining. This method provided a cost-effective way to restore structural integrity and extend the service life of the cross drain without full replacement. The repair approach was closely coordinated throughout construction and successfully implemented, allowing the project to move forward without significant delays.
