Wellings of Stittsville Tunnel

Custom Box Culvert, Precast, Residential, Box Culverts

PROJECT NAME
Wellings of Stittsville Tunnel

SITE
2500 Wellings Private, Stittsville ON

CONTRACTOR
S.W. Farrell & Sons (1979) Ltd.

OWNER
Wellings

PRODUCTS USED
3000 x 2400 mm Box Culvert

The Wellings of Stittsville senior living complex required a safe, climate-controlled connection between a newly constructed phase and the existing building. Rather than constructing a traditional cast-in-place pedestrian tunnel, the project team explored an alternative solution that would minimize site disruption while maintaining high-quality standards and construction efficiency.

Partnering with long-term customer S.W. Farrell & Sons (1979) Ltd., MCON supplied a 3000 x 2400 mm precast box culvert system to serve as the pedestrian tunnel. While box culverts of this size are typically designed to convey significant volumes of stormwater, this project demonstrates how precast infrastructure can be adapted to meet unique structural applications.

One of the key challenges was the tunnel alignment, which was not straight. Thanks to the availability of precast bends, this was seamlessly accommodated. In fact, these were the largest box culvert bends our production team has manufactured to date. Over a three-week period, ten straight sections and two custom bends were produced to meet the project’s specifications.

Each unit weighed between 19,300 kg and 23,600 kg, requiring individual truckloads for transport. Fortunately, with the site located just 8 km from MCON, logistics remained efficient and manageable. Installation of a tunnel of this scale would typically be completed within two days once site preparation is finalized; however, final placement is currently pending the relocation of existing utilities.

As shared by the team at S.W. Farrell & Sons (1979) Ltd.:

“This project was a collaboration between the General Contractor, Architect, Structural Engineer and ourselves to resolve the requirement to install a walkway between the existing phase of the project and the new. As the area to install the walkway is a high-traffic area, as well as the main entrance for all emergency vehicles, an overhead walkway was costly and interfered with everyday operations. A pour-in-place option was put forth, with the precast solution being the most cost-effective. The precast solution allowed for mitigating traffic concerns within the work area as well as minimizing the impact.

As both entries from the existing phase to the new phase were structurally in separate locations, custom precast pieces were designed and built by MCON to allow the offset in the direction of the proposed walkway tunnel. We cannot emphasize enough the work MCON put into this unconventional approach to this underground walkway. The amount of planning, reviews, considerations and design our firms worked together once again to make the dream come alive. Well done to the S.W. Farrell & Sons crew, and many thanks to the support of the teams at MCON!”

This project highlights how precast solutions continue to challenge conventional applications. By thinking beyond traditional drainage use, the team delivered a high-quality, efficient, and innovative solution that provides residents with safe, convenient access between buildings year-round. It stands as another example of how MCON works collaboratively with contractors and owners to deliver infrastructure solutions that go beyond expectations.