Towers on fast track in West Sac
By Bob Shallit - Bee Columnist
Published 12:00 am PDT Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Story appeared in BUSINESS section, Page D1
Six high-rises will soon be popping into view in West Sacramento. And no, they're not condos. They're huge concrete silos, the tallest
topping out at 222 feet. Located along the Port of Sacramento's shipping channel, the silos will store bulk cement that's shipped here and then trucked to local construction sites. Putting a new mark on West Sacramento's skyline, they'll loom larger than the former Money Store building and the state Capitol.
But what's really amazing is how fast these structures are going to zoom into sight.
Construction on the Cemex USA project is scheduled to start Sept. 10 and be finished in two weeks. "It will be continuous pour (of concrete), 24 hours a day," says Port Manager Mike Luken, referring to the super-fast construction process. The six silos will go up simultaneously. Circular forms - 60 feet in diameter - will be filled with concrete, then slipped upward as the wall sets. They'll rise about 10 feet a day, until reaching their peak of 162 feet. The central silo, which has a loading elevator in its core, will climb an additional 60 feet.
The long-planned project relocates and expands Cemex's current location, which is served by a rail spur going through West Sac's Triangle area near Raley Field. The area is destined for parks, residences and offices, so the spur had to go. Thus the relocation, funded with $16.5 million from the West Sac Redevelopment Agency and Triangle property owners.
Cemex is spending at least $54 million more to build what a spokeswoman calls a "state-of-the-art" cement terminal, with eventual plans for aggregate storage and concrete mixing. Once the six silos are completed in October, the Cemex facility will be capable of handling 1.25 million tons of cement, generating about $1.25 million in annual revenue for the port.
The Cemex relocation removes a key obstacle to development of the Triangle - and generates needed port revenue. "A win-win," says West Sacramento Redevelopment Director Val Toppenberg.
