HDC Engineering - Parks & Recreation

Hessel Park Projects

Hessel Park Trailway
The Hessel Park trailway was constructed to provide the public an opportunity to walk or jog the perimeter of the park on a 0.62 mile long trail. Before the trail was constructed, there were no walks along three adjacent streets which made it a safety issue for joggers who traveled along the paved streets. HDC Engineering worked with the park district staff to provide this meandering scenic trailway for the public. Areas of expertise and services provided by HDC Engineering to the project were:

- Complete detailed topographic site survey showing all existing land features, utilities, sewers and other existing improvements to be used for project design.
- Established accurate horizontal and vertical control for the project in the field.
- Design and drafting services to provide site engineering plans for the project.
- Quantity estimates and bidding process.
- Construction layout of all trailway improvements.
- Consultation and guidance to the park district staff on quality control of construction.

The End Result
An eight-foot-wide concrete trailway with six access points and brass distance markers in the pavement every tenth of a mile. The trail provides enough room for joggers and walkers to share within the comfort and safety of a beautiful park.

Hessel Park Tennis Courts
This project consisted of taking an existing tennis/basketball site and replacing it with a new tennis facility. The existing pavement was badly cracked with areas of poor drainage. The project?s goal was to provide new fencing, new playing surface, eliminate the basketball courts, and provide new tennis court nets. Key items of the project were:

- Selective demolition of existing courts.
- Four redesigned and resurfaced tennis courts.
- Two half-court tennis practice areas.
- Replacement of bad sub-grade areas.
- Additional sub-base and new asphalt surfacing.
- New vinyl coated chain link fencing and framework.
- Surface color coating.
- Net posts and hardware.
- Lightweight backboards for practice area.

Challenges
The courts had poor drainage due to several flat areas. Part of eliminating this problem was to increase the slopes on the courts to provide proper drainage. In addition, the playing surfaces had to maintain required guidelines and meet existing elevations along the perimeter.

Severe cracking on the courts shortened the expected life span of the existing courts. After removal of existing surfacing, it was discovered there were several areas of poor subgrades under the stone subbase that contributed to the cracking problem. These areas were identified and replaced with additional stone. As part of the new design, fabric was required between the layers of asphalt to stop cracking from lower layers. Additionally, control joints were saw-cut and sealed in selective areas to stop any cracking that may begin on the surface.

The new courts had some very low tolerances dealing with slopes, dips, etc., in the asphalt surface. A ten foot grid pattern was shot on the stone base, and each layer of asphalt as the project progressed, to provide the needed quality control to eliminate any surface irregularities.

The End Result
An outdoor tennis facility including, four new courts with additional practice areas for individuals to work on their games without requiring a playing partner. The fencing and courts were designed to provide a longer structural lifespan, contributing to many memorable games for the public at large.