Resorts Bring a Variety of Work Today, A Place to Vacation Tomorrow

By Lucy Bodilly

The resorts under construction at Suncadia, near Roslyn, Wash., and Brasada near Bend Ore., typify the Northwest.

Built around towering mountains and fir trees, bisected by fish-filled streams, they look like a tourism ad from the state department of economic development.

But it will take more than the beauty of the resorts and their settings to accommodate tourists once they arrive, and dozens of contractors are busy building everything from wastewater treatment plants to five-star restaurants.

At Suncadia, owner Loew Enterprises plans to spend more than $1 billion by the end of 2009 on construction costs, and that doesn't include the homes that will be owned by individuals.

Last summer, Raul Rosales, senior vice president of construction at Suncadia, oversaw construction of roads and pathways, a golf course and pro shop, an inn, a wastewater treatment plant and gravel pit reclamation.

Before coming to Suncadia, Rosales worked as a project manager for Centex Homes, the largest homebuilder in the country. "It's more of the same, just on a lot larger scale," he said.

Time is of the essence at the site, enough for contractors to take an innovative approach to building bridges over the Cle Elum River. Normally such construction would not be attempted during salmon spawning season because government regulation forbids disturbing the water between May and October every year.

In one instance, RCI/Parsons of Sumner, Wash., built a bridge on land and then pulled it into place from the opposite shore. DBM Constructors of Federal Way, Wash., was the prime subcontractor.

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Crews erected the bridge in 22 days, and then pulled it across the river with a hydraulic system and a 500-ton rubber tire crane. The method, although a nail biter, allowed the bridge to be put in place without disturbing the salmon spawning bed upstream.

Rosales even put up bleachers so people could watch.

The bridge connects Suncadia to a private residential community. Paving will be completed in October.

Some key features of the bridge include 400 tons of weathered structural steel, more than 8,000 bolts and 2,640 lin. ft. of dry and wet utility systems suspended under the bridge prior to the launch.

At another section of Suncadia, Howard S. Wright Construction of Seattle completed work on the Prospector Inn, a 32,000-sq.-ft. building that holds 18 guestrooms and office space. The inn opened two weeks ahead of schedule, despite the fact that the construction start date was delayed seven weeks. Lease Crutcher Lewis is expected to start construction soon on another hospitality building, totaling 220,000 sq. ft., which will contain 150 condo units ranging from studio size to penthouse suites.

A spa, conference center, ballrooms and restaurant will fill out the building. Both buildings follow the Northwest lodge look, with heavy timber frame construction.

With one golf course completed, contractors from Sajasa Construction in Woodville, Wash., are working on grading for the Rope Rider Course, (See golf story page 11.)

Weitz Construction will finish out the construction of the course, which is expected to open in 2007. The course features 150 acres of golf construction with 90 acres of maintained turf and 60 acres of native grasses.

The golf course will also have seven lakes that will act as stormwater detention ponds and golf hazards.

Another part of Suncadia completed in 2005 was a $20 million sewage treatment plant that will also serve the cities of Roslyn, Cle Elem and South Cle Elum. Though the current flow through the plant is only 300,000 gallons per day, it has a 3.6-million-gallon-per-day capacity. The extra capacity is being built in because of projected population growth in the area.

An equally large resort is being built near Bend in Oregon. Both resorts are being developed by Jeld-Wen.