Volume 7 – Winter 2015

Dallas Horseshoe Project
NEWSLETTER
Volume 7 • Winter 2015
New Roadways in Progress Outside of Existing
Structures
With 2014 in the rearview mirror, the Dallas Horseshoe Project
team is progressing full force into 2015. The project, aimed at
“Fixing the Mix,” is scheduled to be complete in summer 2017.
Now structures on the outside of existing interstates 30 and
35E are prominent, and some drivers will be moved onto the
new roadways in early March and through the spring.
This design-build project works from the outside in, decreasing
the impact to the flow of traffic through downtown Dallas. By
moving drivers onto new roadways, crews will be able to work
on existing structures. Drivers will notice the new structures
are about 10 to 12 feet higher, to accommodate future raise
of the levees and vehicle clerance for flood control operations
and maintenance.
The new structures along northbound I-35E will open in
early March 2015 for drivers headed to I-30 and Riverfront
Boulevard. In the final design of the project, drivers crossing
the Trinity River will be split into mainlane traffic and to traffic
connecting to eastbound I-30 and traffic exiting to Riverfront
Boulevard. With the traffic switch in early March, the decision
point for drivers will be moved further south, with traffic signs
placed after Eighth Street on I-35E to split northbound I-35E
traffic to the left lanes and I-30 and Riverfront traffic to the
right lanes.
Northbound view of Interstate 35E with downtown Dallas in the
background. Crews are building to the outside in, and the new
I-35E frontage road bridge (left) will be complete spring 2015.
The traffic shift on I-35E will also change how drivers will
access the mainlanes and Riverfront Boulevard from Colorado
Boulevard. Information about this change can be found on the
project website at www.dallashorseshoe.com.
www.dallashorseshoe.com
Continued on Page 2
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Inside This Issue
New Roadways Underway Outside of Existing
Structures................................................................................................1-2
Stay Up-to-Date with the New Dallas Horseshoe
Project Website......................................................................................3
At a Glance: Margaret McDermott Bridge.............................3
Fluor Corporation Joins Conference of Minority
Transportation Officials.....................................................................4
DBE Spotlight: QMF Supply Fab Manufacturing...................5
PLC Employees Donate $6,640 to Children’s Medical
Center Foundation...............................................................................6
Connect with Us....................................................................................7
View of eastbound I-30 and the arch of the future Margaret
McDermott Bridge.
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Continued from Page 1
While working on I-35E and I-30, crews also have been
installing pieces of the Margaret McDermott Bridge. With
the four footings for the bridge complete, steel pieces have
been placed on the eastbound side of the bridge. As of midFebruary eight of the 39 steel arches have been installed
for the bridge. The first arch segment was erected on Jan.
7. This Santiago Calatrava-designed bridge will include a
suspension bridge dedicated to pedestrian and bicycle access.
The bridge will contain 98 1.125-inch-thick cables of various
lengths suspended on the arch. When complete, the Margaret
McDermott Bridge will add another iconic structure to the
Dallas skyline, a 300-foot-tall bridge along I-30.
To help keep drivers and stakeholders up-to-date about
closures, the project team has created numerous ways to
communicate information. For example, drivers can text
“dallashorseshoe” to 31996 to receive traffic information. The
new system also allows viewers to receive images of detour
maps, if applicable. Please see Page 7 for more ways to connect
with the project and stay up-to-date on upcoming closures.
A close-up look at the new Interstate 35E frontage road. Drivers
accessing Riverfront Boulevard and Interstate 30 will use the new
roadways starting in early March 2015.
www.dallashorseshoe.com
Stay Up-to-Date with the New Dallas Horseshoe
Project Website
The project team is pleased to announce the new Dallas Horseshoe Project website. With a new sleek design change and an
easy-to-navigate format, we hope you like it as much as we do. Please note lane closure information has been moved to its own
page and is no longer on the Home Page. Please look around our site at www.dallashorseshoe.com and send us your feedback
at [email protected].
At a Glance:
Margaret McDermott
Bridge
Crews have been working on arch installation for the Margaret
McDermott Bridge since January 2015.
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78
98
328
1,311
www.dallashorseshoe.com
pedestrian/bicycle arches
individual steel arch
segments
cables
(feet) approximate height
of the bridge
(feet) length of arch
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Fluor Corporation Joins Conference of
Minority Transportation Officials
Fluor Corporation, a member of Pegasus Link Constructors
(PLC) and the newest national corporate member of the
Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COTMTO),
participated in the DFW chapter Membership Meeting in January.
The event, held at PLC’s project offices, featured Steven
Grech, director of sales – infrastructures, who discussed Fluor’s
pursuits in the Texas market and opportunities for local firms
and professionals to partner with the corporation. Fluor
is headquartered in Las Colinas and is one of the world’s
largest publicly traded engineering, procurement, construction
maintenance and project management companies.
Anne Foltz, Fluor marketing specialist, also presented updates
on Fluor’s Supplier Diversity Program and the recent inclusion
of infrastructure opportunities, in addition to commodities,
goods and services.
“The event served to highlight Fluor’s recent COMTO
membership and showcase and highlight the projects in
DFW,” said Adrienne Williams, public information (PI) and
disadvantaged business enterprise (DBE) manager for the
Dallas Horseshoe Project.
Williams also gave a presentation about DBE participation
and outreach activities, and highlighted the successes of one of
Fluor’s local projects, the Dallas Horseshoe Project.
The mission of COMTO is “to see the diverse faces of
America equally reflected in all levels of the transpor tation
industr y.” It has 39 chapters throughout the U.S. and
Anne Foltz, Fluor Corporation marketing specialist, and Steven
Grech, Fluor director of sales – infrastructures discuss with an
attendee Fluor’s pursuits in the Texas market and opportunities
for local firms and professionals to partner with the corporation.
members include individuals, transportation agencies, academic
institutions, industry nonprofits and historically underutilized
businesses. For more information on membership, please
contact COMTO National at 703-234-4072.
Anne Foltz, Fluor Corporation
marketing specialist, Steven
Grech, Fluor director of sales
– infrastructures,
Adrienne
Williams, PI/DBE outreach
manager for the Dallas
Horseshoe Project, and Ruben
Landa, DBE administrator for
the Dallas Horseshoe Project,
pose at the Conference of
Minority Transportation Officials
(COMTO)
DFW
chapter
Membership Meeting in January.
Fluor Corporation, a member of
Pegasus Link Constructors (PLC),
celebrated its first meeting as a
national corporate member of
COMTO.
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www.dallashorseshoe.com
DBE Spotlight: QMF Supply Fab
Manufacturing
In 1994, Sherrill Lester and her husband Steve purchased Quail
Meadow Farms Metal Products & Services, a raw material
supplier of aluminum, stainless and steel products.
Sherrill Lester grew up in the Dallas area and began working
immediately after graduating from high school. Having been
brought up around the manufacturing process because of her
machinist father, Lester began working for an engineering firm.
Twenty-one years in the making, the company rebranded to
QMF Supply Fab Manufacturing (QMF) and expanded their
services from being sole suppliers of raw materials to being
a “concept to completion” service that supplies, manufactures
and installs metal products – including services like engineering,
field measurements, shop drawings, Texas Department of
Transportation (TxDOT)-certified welding, and structural and
ornamental fabrication.
When customers began asking for requests that demanded
a more finished product, QMF evolved into being both a
manufacturer and installer.
“Our company mission has always been to supply the needs of
the customer,” Lester said. “This eventually led to our adding the
engineers, certified welders and installers to take the customer’s
idea from concept to completion.”
QMF’s participation in the Dallas Horseshoe Project is major.
Before working with Pegasus Link Constructors (PLC), they
sold raw materials directly to TxDOT for five years and
worked on several other major projects for TxDOT and
the City of Dallas. In 2014, QMF began work on the Dallas
Horseshoe Project and supplied fabricated miscellaneous
metal products for use in bridge construction. In January,
QMF won the contract to supply the pedestrian rail for the
Margaret McDermott Bridge. Work on that project began in
February.
Lester believes the disadvantaged business enterprise
(DBE) program is beneficial for each company. “DBEs are
more flexible and make decisions more quickly than larger
organizations,” said Lester. “It’s a win-win if the scope matches
the capability and the pricing is competitive. Successful DBEs
grow their capacity and continue to be an asset to other
projects in Texas.”
Top: Sherrill Lester, president of QMF Supply Fab Manufacturing
has been working on the Dallas Horsehoe Project since 2014.
Bottom: (from left) The Dallas Horseshoe Project Team: Justin
Wyatt (engineer), David Sabella, Jr. (project manager), Scott
Knapp (plant manager), Ben Draper (senior project manager),
Sherrill Lester (president), and Steve Lester (vice president).
Lester sees the collaboration of her company on the Dallas
Horseshoe Project as an honor. She loves being a part of Dallas’
history and continues to keep her company’s evolution in mind.
“Our customers are growing,” said Lester. “We are continuing
to equip the company with the needed staff and machinery
necessary to meet their needs.”
www.dallashorseshoe.com
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PLC Employees Donate $6,640 to Children’s
Medical Center Foundation
Pegasus Link Constructors (PLC)
employees donated $6,640 to the
Children’s Medical Center Foundation
this holiday season, marking the
second year of charitable donations
by the company. The amount raised in
11 weeks surpassed the original goal
of $5,000. Employees raised money
by par ticipating in a friendly football
tournament pool at the office.
Last year, employees donated $4,560
to the Dallas Children’s Advocacy
Center. This year, employees raised
$2,080 more due to a higher
number of employees and a longer
fundraising duration. The PLC
employees chose the charity by
nominating several local charities
and then voting for the top pick.
“We work in Dallas and want to
Audra Cozart, corporate partnerships officer for Children’s Medical Center, and Bob
keep the money local. PLC values
Stevens, project director of the Dallas Horseshoe Project. Employees raised $6,640
giving back to the community,”
in 11 weeks for the organization.
said Chris Holdaway, project HSE/
HR manager for the Dallas Horseshoe Project. “We said Audra Cozar t, corporate par tnerships officer for
have a great group here at the project. Hopefully our Children’s Medical Center.
contribution will help suppor t the Children’s Medical
As a private, nonprofit health care system with no tax
Center Foundation effor ts in helping make life better for
suppor t, Children’s Medical Center remains one of the finest
children today while they search for tomorrow’s cures.”
pediatric health care facilities in the U.S. due to the suppor t
Children’s Medical Center is the 7th largest pediatric of generous donors.
health care system in the nation and cared for more
“The willingness of the PLC Team to provide assistance to
than 215,000 children through approximately 770,000
encounters in 2013. It celebrated its 100th year of worthy causes two years in a row is impressive,” said Bob
“making life better for children” in 2013. Children’s Stevens, project director for the Dallas Horseshoe Project.
Medical Center provides comprehensive care to children “Our holiday contributions aren’t just a donation, they are a
statement of our investment to the children in the community.”
from bir th to age 18.
“We deeply appreciate the gifts from PLC to fund our
research effor ts to improve the lives of our young patients,”
For more information about Children’s Medical Center
Foundation and ways to give, please visit give.childrens.com.
Media Contact
Katrina Keyes
Public Relations/Media Director
[email protected]
214-599-9766
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www.dallashorseshoe.com
Connect with Us
Learn more about the Dallas Horseshoe Project, the major roadway
construction project dedicated to “Fixin’ the Mix” in downtown
Dallas along interstates 30 and 35E.
Sign up to receive project updates, construction progress,
traffic alerts, detours and project events.
Like us
www.facebook.com/dallashorseshoe
Email us
[email protected]
Follow us
Call us
www.twitter.com/dallashorseshoe
214-FIX-MIXD | 214-349-6493
Text us
Visit us
www.dallashorseshoe.com
or at the Project Storefront
160 Continental Ave.
Dallas, Texas 75207
Text “dallashorseshoe” to 31996
Mobile App
Download “Dallas Horseshoe”
www.dallashorseshoe.com
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www.dallashorseshoe.com
214-Fix-MixD