Retired engineer pushing for retrofitted viaduct

Despite being dismissed by the state, a retired structural engineer said a retrofitted Alaskan Way viaduct makes economic sense.

Victor Gray, who lives in Port Townsend, today unveiled new cost estimates that say the viaduct could be retrofitted to withstand a 500-year earthquake for $1.2 billion, far less than it would cost to rebuild it or place it in a tunnel.

"Why should we spend the money to build a viaduct no one wants," he said, pointing to the city's aversion for another elevated structure.

For months Gray and a core of supporters in the Viaduct Preservation Group have been pushing a plan to fix, rather than replace the viaduct. They said a retrofit could be done in three years with virtually no closures of the viaduct — an issue that concerns many commercial trucking users of the roadway.

The members of preservation group believes they will be taken more seriously if next month's Seattle election finds neither a tunnel nor a new elevated structure options acceptable to voters.

"All it takes is a stalemate between the tunnel and the elevated option," Gray said.

In December the state released a study that found retrofitting, rather than replacing, the Alaskan Way Viaduct will cost $2.3 billion.

T.Y. Lin International, which studied the retrofit, suggested it was possible to retrofit the aging viaduct, but it would require extensive strengthening of the underground foundations.

The state Department of Transportation has long said it wasn't interested in retrofitting the viaduct but commissioned the study in response to assertions by Gray that a retrofit made economic sense.

In addition, the American Society of Civil Engineers, which reviewed that T.Y. Lin report, found that the retrofit proposal by Victor Gray is not a viable option for the viaduct.

But Gray insists that the viaduct can be retrofitted for a fraction of the replacement cost. Getting Gov. Christine Gregoire to agree, however, is a different matter.

"Our audience is the governor," said Art Skolnik, a member of the preservation group. He said they have supplied the governor with information on the plan. "We believe the retrofit will provide the least disruption in our community for the least amount of money."

"Our focus is the time after the ballot," he said. "Our continued work keeps this on the table." Skolnik said the amount of money now available for viaduct replacement would pay for a retrofit, but nothing else. The extra money, he said, could go to other projects, like the replacement of Highway 520.

Susan Gilmore: 206-464-2054 or sgilmore@seattletimes.com