Geologic Hazard Assessment Addendum Proposed Residential Short Plat 1014 – 23Rd Avenue Southwest Puyallup, Washington PN: 7065000020 Doc ID: Mkwest.23Rdavesw.Ghaa
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June 23, 2020 MK West, Inc 2701 – 13th Street Place Southwest Puyallup, Washington 98371 (253) 222-0255 Attn: Mr. Michael Kerschner [email protected] Geologic Hazard Assessment Addendum Proposed Residential Short Plat 1014 – 23rd Avenue Southwest Puyallup, Washington PN: 7065000020 Doc ID: MKWest.23rdAveSW.GHAa This addendum to our Geologic Hazard Assessment addresses the erosion hazard areas at the site and the slope stability of the proposed permanent cut slopes associated with the proposed development. We understand the City of Puyallup is requiring an update to our Geologic Hazard Assessment to address the presence of an erosion hazard area at the site. Additionally, we understand that permanent cut slopes are now proposed at the site, which will need to meet the performance standards per Puyallup Municipal Code (PMC) 21.06.1230. The proposed site grading and the locations of our previous subsurface explorations are shown on the Site & Exploration Plan, Figure 1. We previously prepared a Soils Report dated April 24, 2019 and a Geologic Hazard Assessment dated November 14, 2019 for the proposed residential short plat at the site. Our soils report included the subsurface explorations and descriptive logs of 4 test pits excavated across the site. We also reviewed the Geotechnical Study Report Update by Pacific Geo Engineering dated December 8, 2016, which included 4 previous hand auger explorations at the site. We did not perform any additional subsurface explorations or laboratory testing a part of our original Geologic Hazard Assessment or this addendum. This addendum address comments from the Landau Associates, Inc, as the City of Puyallup third-party geotechnical engineering reviewer dated February 7, 2020. Landau’s only comment was that our report indicated that the site soils as mapped meet the criteria of an erosion hazard per title 21.06.1230 of the Puyallup Municipal Code. ENGINEERING CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Based on our site observations and data review, subsurface explorations and our engineering analysis, it is our opinion the development of the site is feasible from a geotechnical standpoint, provided the recommendations included herein are incorporated into the project plans. MKWest.23rdAveSW.GHAa June 23, 2020 page | 2 Erosion Hazards per PMC 21.06.1210(3)(a) The PMC defines erosion hazard areas as those areas identified by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) or identified by a special study as having a “moderate to severe,” “severe,” or “very severe” erosion potential. The majority of the site is mapped by the NRCS soils map as underlain by Kitsap silt loam (20C and 20D). Where the Kitsap silt loam is on slopes of 15 to 30 percent (20D soil type), it is designated as having a “moderate to severe” erosion hazard when exposed. Based on the above, the portion of the site sloping at steeper than 15 percent does meet the definition of an erosion hazard area per the PMC. Alteration of Erosion Hazard Area The proposed development includes regrading portions of the site that meet the definition of an erosion hazard area. Title 21.06.1230, lists the various criteria that needs to be satisfied in order to allow alteration of the portion of the site that are underlain by the Kitsap silt loam (20D) soils. As stated in our previous reports, the site does not have slopes steeper than 40 percent and the result of our slope stability analysis demonstrates that proposed development will not have factors of safety below 1.5 and 1.2 for static and dynamic conditions, respectively. Additionally, the proposed alterations will not increase the geologic hazards to neighboring properties or increase the required buffers/setbacks. Between this report, our previous reports, and the civil drawings, short plat documents, and codes, covenants, and restrictions should satisfy the other remaining criteria for alteration of an erosion hazard area. We anticipate regrading is required, in part, to construct a common access drive with grades of 10 percent or less to meet emergency vehicle access requirements. The proposed site grades will still meet the existing erosion hazard area designation, which should be mitigated through permanent erosion control measures. As discussed below, the proposed site grading meets the required slope factors of safety per the PMC. Slope Stability Analysis We analyzed the stability of the existing and proposed slope geometries using subsurface profiles A-A’ and B-B’, as shown on Figure 1. These subsurface profiles were selected as the most critical given the configuration of the proposed grading and development. The slope stability results for the existing and proposed configurations are included as Appendix A. Seismic loading of 0.254g was added to the stability models based on ½ of the mapped site modified peak ground acceleration with a 2% probability of exceedance within a 50-year period, retrieved from the ATC Hazards by Location website. We used the computer program Slide2, from RocScience, 2020, to perform the slope stability analyses. The computer program Slide2 uses a number of methods to estimate the factor of safety (FS) of the stability of a slope by analyzing the shear and normal forces acting on a series of vertical “slices” that comprise a failure surface. Each vertical slice is treated as a rigid body; therefore, the forces and/or moments acting on each slice are assumed to satisfy static equilibrium (i.e., a limit equilibrium analysis). The FS is defined as the ratio of the forces available to resist movement to the forces of the driving mass. A FS of 1.0 means that the driving and resisting forces are equal; an FS less than 1.0 indicates that the driving forces are greater than the resisting forces (indicating failure). We used the Generalized Limit Equilibrium method using the Morgenstern-Price analysis, which MKWest.23rdAveSW.GHAa June 23, 2020 page | 3 satisfies both moment and force equilibrium, to search for the location of the most critical failure surfaces and their corresponding FS. The most critical surfaces are those with the lowest FS for a given loading condition, and are therefore the most likely to move. Soils at the site were modeled using Mohr-Coulomb strength properties. Table 1, below, summarizes the estimated soil parameters used in our stability analyses. In our opinion, based on the subsurface conditions encountered in our explorations, the assumed values below are appropriate. TABLE 1: Mohr-Coulomb Strength Parameters Unit Weight Friction Angle Cohesion Soil Type (pcf) (degrees) (psf) Lacustrine silt (ML) 115 28 100 Weathered recessional outwash (SP-SM) 120 34 25 Based on our analyses, the current and proposed site configurations are stable and have the factors of safety shown in Table 2, below. The factors of safety meet the requirements of PMC 21.06.1230, of 1.5 for static conditions and 1.2 for dynamic conditions. TABLE 2: Global Stability Analyses Results Cross Section Condition Loading Condition Factor of Safety Static 6.1 Existing Dynamic 1.9 A-A’ Static 2.0 Proposed Dynamic 1.2 Static 3.2 Existing Dynamic 1.4 B-B’ Static 2.1 Proposed Dynamic 1.2 Recommended Buffers and Setbacks Buffers and setbacks are typically used to protect critical areas from disturbance and also to protect the proposed development from damage due to the potential hazard. The following discussions regarding critical area buffers and structure setbacks are based on PMC 21.06 and International Building Code (IBC) 1808.7, respectively. Vegetated Buffers Buffers typically consist of an undisturbed area of native vegetation, retained, or established, that extend from the edge of the critical area or hazard. The width of the buffer should be based on the potential hazard and associated risks. Buffer widths are generally measured from the edge of MKWest.23rdAveSW.GHAa June 23, 2020 page | 4 the critical area being protected, in this case toe of slope. Per PMC 21.06.1240, the required landslide or erosion hazard areas buffer width for slopes with a vertical elevation of more than 10 but less than 25 feet, shall be equal to the height of the slope divided by two. The proposed 2H:1V cut slopes at the site have heights of between about 10 to 16 feet. Therefore, the required vegetated buffer from the toe of slopes at the site will be between 5 and 8 feet, depending on the height of the adjacent cut slope. Building Setbacks We recommend that building setbacks from slopes steeper than 33 percent be established in accordance with the 2015 IBC. The 2015 IBC Section 1808.7 requires a building setback from slopes that are steeper than 3H:1V (Horizontal: Vertical) unless evaluated and reduced and/or a structural setback is provided by a licensed geotechnical engineer. The setback distance is calculated based on the vertical height of the slope. The typical IBC setback from the toe of the slope equals one half the height of the slope, with a maximum setback of 15 feet from the toe of the slope. The IBC setback requirement is equal to the above requirement for vegetated buffer. Therefore, structures located outside the 5 to 8 feet buffer will also meet the required IBC setback. If these setbacks are not feasible, the IBC does allow the use of a “structural setback” where the foundations are deepened, or the daylight basement/stem wall are extended such that the setback distance is determined by measuring from the lowest/highest point of the foundation. Where there is insufficient space the top of the daylight basement/crawl space wall or stem wall should be elevated such that the level backfill extending from the wall to the slope meets the required toe of slope Erosion Control Weathering, erosion and the resulting surficial sloughing and shallow land sliding are natural processes.