Andrea de Vries, Author at McElhanney

Engineered drawings showing an aerial view of the reservoirs and pump station at Eagle Heights.

Eagle Heights Reservoir Replacement

British Columbia, Cities & Communities, Engineering, Geotechnical, Reservoirs, Structural, Vancouver Island, Water and Wastewater FacilitiesMay 6, 2024

The City of Duncan’s reservoir replacement had to store twice the amount of water on a parcel the size of a basketball court. Could our design deliver?

A highway is in mid-repair. A gravel section suffices for the roadbed where the pavement has been washed away by heavy rainfall. Flooded landscape is visible on either side of the damaged roadway.

BC Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure Culvert Vulnerability Asset Management System

Award-Winning Project, British Columbia, Cities & Communities, Engineering, GIS & Remote Sensing, GIS & Spatial Analysis, Stakeholder Engagement & Communications, Sustainable Feature, Water ResourcesMay 2, 2024

To support BC MoTI’s Resilient Highway Infrastructure Adaptation Program, we developed a system to identify, analyze, and map at-risk culverts province-wide.

A black and white structural engineered drawing

Fortune Creek Reservoirs

British Columbia, Cities & Communities, Engineering, Northern, Interior, Central BC, Reservoirs, Structural, Surveying, Water and Wastewater FacilitiesMay 2, 2024

To address an existing water storage deficiency, the City of Armstrong requested a design for concrete potable water reservoirs.

A narrow, single-story concrete structure is in the centre of the photo. The side of a house is visible on the right, a few metres away from the concrete structure. To the left of the concrete structure is a narrow laneway that is bordered immediately by a fence line and trees.

Wakefield Lift Station Replacement

British Columbia, Cities & Communities, Engineering, Geotechnical, Legal and Engineering Surveys, Lower Mainland, Municipal Underground Infrastructure & Roadways, Pumping Stations, Surveying, Water and Wastewater FacilitiesMay 2, 2024

McElhanney led a team of civil, process mechanical, structural, geotechnical, and electrical disciplines in the Wakefield lift station replacement.

View of Trimble SiteVision software in action.

Applications for Trimble SiteVision

Alberta, British Columbia, Cities & Communities, Construction Surveys, Energy & Resources, Engineering, GIS & Remote Sensing, GIS & Spatial Analysis, Land Development, Landscape Architecture, Legal and Engineering Surveys, Lower Mainland, Market Sectors, Municipal Underground Infrastructure & Roadways, Northern, Interior, Central BC, Northwest Territories, Oil & Gas Surveys, Planning, Saskatchewan, Services, Stakeholder Engagement & Communications, Structural, Surveying, Transportation, Transportation & Transit, Urban Design, Vancouver Island, Visualization and Virtual/Augmented RealityFebruary 27, 2024

There are numerous applications for Trimble SiteVision, from underground utility exploration to aboveground boundary overlays.

A black and white engineering drawing of a campsites situated on a looping road. Two orange-shaded, concentric circles surrounded the structures in the drawing.

Crandell Mountain Campground FireSmart Strategy and Updates

Alberta, Cities & Communities, Construction Management, Engineering, Environmental, Environmental Assessment, Landscape Architecture, Municipal Underground Infrastructure & Roadways, Parks, Recreation, Stakeholder Engagement & Communications, Sustainable Feature, Sustainable Landscapes, Tourism, Trails, Transportation, Water and Wastewater Facilities, Water ResourcesFebruary 22, 2024

After it was destroyed by wildfire in 2017, McElhanney was engaged to deliver a FireSmart strategy for Crandell Mountain Campground.

A two-story building with brick and window exterior is in the background. The plaza in the foreground has large paving blocks, scooter parking, and a tree and bench. There are three people conversing towards the side of the image.

Riley Area Streetscape Improvements and Soil Cells

Alberta, Cities & Communities, Landscape Architecture, Stakeholder Engagement & Communications, Sustainable Feature, Sustainable LandscapesFebruary 14, 2024

McElhanney’s landscape architects incorporated soil cells in the Riley Area’s streetscape improvements to support long-term tree health.

A dirt trail cuts through green, bushy underbrush in a deciduous forest. A green pipe is on the right side of the trail.

Wallace Street Ditch Flood Resiliency Upgrades

British Columbia, Cities & Communities, Environmental, Lower Mainland, Mitigation, Compensation, & Restoration, Region, River and Hydrotechnical Engineering, Services, Sustainable FeatureJanuary 25, 2024

Could a long-term flood resiliency upgrade solution protect residents against ditch erosion and slope instability?

There is a series of easels displaying poster featuring project related content. A group of people is gathered around the posters. One onlooker is reaching towards a poster and making an observation about it.

Memorial Hirst Fly Through and Public Engagement

January 25, 2024

McElhanney identified that a fly through visualization was a useful communication and engagement tool for the Memorial Hirst project.

Aerial view of small-scale multi-unit housing

Proposed changes in BC Legislation to affect housing, zoning, official community plans, and amenity cost charges

NewsNovember 30, 2023

December 1st, 2023 Throughout early November 2023, the BC Ministries of Municipal Affairs and Housing made four separate announcements that will affect municipalities in BC. These announcements are part of three bills (Bill 44-2023, Bill 46-2023, and Bill 47-2023) and, if passed, would amend the Local Government Act. McElhanney’s urban planners prepared a summary of…