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HIGH COUNTRY WEATHER CHALLENGES MULTIPLIED ON GRANDFATHER

The winter weather that crippled operations on Grandfather Mountain in December continued into the new year. Temperatures below zero and daily snow events in early January kept the attraction closed to the public and impaired vehicular traffic to the top of the Mountain.

The winter weather hampered Greene Construction's accessibility to the Top Shop project, but did not shut it down.

"Looking back, all this winter weather was a good test to the durability of the new facility," said Skip Greene of Greene Construction.

After the Christmas ice storm, Grandfather was without power for a week. The new power line to the top was badly damaged and a new pole was almost lost after the guy wire broke. Greene Construction installed a temporary solution until the utility company could come up for repairs.

The new Top Shop was designed with a back-up generator to maintain certain systems in the event of a power failure. The heating system, emergency lighting and certain communication circuits are hooked into the generator.

After the power went out, several days passed before someone was able to get to the top to survey the damage. The generator had come on as designed and worked like a charm. The thermostat was set on 50 degrees and that temperature was maintained all through the storms.

"The only issue that we will be reviewing soon is the amount of fuel storage," said Greene. "We did use up over half before we were able to get a service truck to the site."

When the construction crew was able to get to the site they continued with the drywall. The first floor is completed, as are most of the second and third floors. The electricians are in the process of pulling wire and trimming the service panels. The heating system is continuing to work well and as the crew finishes the walls and ceiling they will be adding more controls to make the system function as designed.

A small amount of outside work has also continued in the winter. The bridge to the Bridge is complete with the exception of painting some of the railing. Most of the hand railing at both the front and east entrances have been installed and between storms, most of the construction trailers and fencing have been taken off of the Mountain.

Over the next month, the group will be priming the walls and staining the concrete. The foam insulation is scheduled for the very end of January, which will then allow for the completion of the drywall work. The plumber will be installing his fixtures as well as hooking up the system to the filtering system and the water storage tanks. The well and the septic system are both functional now. Wall tile will be installed within the toilet areas.

Once the walls have been primed the ceiling track will be installed. The ceiling grid then allows the electrician to install all of the lighting fixtures, exit signs, emergency lighting and all other ceiling mounted equipment.

The elevator is ready for final trim work and testing as the phone and electrical systems come a little more on line.

Each part of the puzzle coming together brings the building one step closer to occupancy.

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