PHILADELPHIA, PA.- Keast & Hood Co., structural engineers, announces completion of the $27 million renovation project to upgrade visitor safety and accessibility at the Statue of Liberty National Monument. The statue will reopen to visitors July 4, 2013 for the first time since Hurricane Sandy hit the New York area.
The Statue of Liberty’s pedestal and crown opened to guests October 28, 2012, after a one-year construction period in which the pedestal underwent renovation for the installation of new main and emergency elevators and two independent, code-compliant stairs. The statue was closed again as a result of Hurricane Sandy, which struck the eastern United States on October 29.
“We are proud to be part of the team entrusted with this complex and technically demanding undertaking,” said Keast & Hood Co. principal in charge, Thomas J. Normile, PE. “It is especially rewarding for us to see the statue welcoming visitors once more.”
As consultants to Mills + Schnoering Architects, LLC, of Princeton, N.J., Keast & Hood Co. provided comprehensive structural engineering for the project.
Keast & Hood Co. has been part of the multi-discipline design team charged with raising the life-safety standards within the Statue of Liberty since 2009. Structural consultation began with an initial three-month pre-project to replace helical railings, culminating in the crown’s reopening to visitors July 4, 2009 for the first time in eight years.
The structural scope of work included comprehensive structural design and construction administration services for the 145-foot pedestal interior renovation and two new egress routes through abandoned elements of historic Fort Wood surrounding the statue. Full Revit (BIM) modeling was provided for the new elevator shaft and two separate but intertwined stair structures that ascend within the pedestal and around existing statue hold-down structure. Keast & Hood Co. provided extensive on-site representation to respond rapidly to multiple field conditions and to help maintain the tight construction schedule.
