Kia Ora
It’s a wonderful time of year to be on and around Karangahape Road with the area celebrating Matariki in June and July.
On our sites, work continues apace with both of our station boxes beginning new stages of construction.
Down in the mined tunnels, the team are preparing the site for the arrival of our Dame Whina Cooper Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM), due to breakthrough to Karanga a Hape Station (Karangahape) in July.
As always, if you have any questions or concerns we can help you with, please don’t hesitate to contact us via email at Karangahape@linkalliance.co.nz or call 0800 CRL TALK (0800 275 8255) and press option 4.
Ngā mihi,
The Karanga a Hape Station team
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A familiar face returned to our sites
Earlier this month, Auckland Mayor Phil Goff visited the City Rail Link construction sites at Maungawhau (Mt Eden), Te Wai Horotiu (Aotea) and, of course, Karanga a Hape (Karangahape).
The mayor visited the CRL stations in 2020 and a lot has changed since then.
As part of the tour, the mayor was met by Karanga a Hape Station Manager Jonathan Hill, who showed the mayor the latest progress made in the mined tunnels, as well as the Mercury Lane and Beresford Square station boxes.
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Works update - Mercury Lane
June saw the Mercury Lane crew progress their reinforcing work, formwork and concrete pours – activities set to continue in the station box until 2023. Once complete the temporary plunge columns will be removed and the station fit out will begin.
The ‘bottom up’ construction methodology continues as the team build back up from 27-metres below Mercury Lane, with external and internal walls poured as they build their way up to B3.
The first pour for B3 was completed on 22 June, with the remaining pours scheduled for completion by mid-July.
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This month, the crew also completed their second arch pour, connecting the station box with the mined tunnel on the southern face.
Whenever tunnels and cross-passages connect the work in the junctions is complex, this pour was the most complex so far in terms of reinforcing and formwork.
The B3 slab will connect into this structure using coupled reinforcing bars.
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An exciting milestone in June was the start to construction of the Mercury Lane superstructure with the installation of the first set of vertical columns. Standing at 15 metres, these columns span the height of the three storey structure with the TVS above. The columns will be connected by bracing and beams.
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The station entrance on Mercury Lane will facilitate thousands of people every hour during peak times and allusions to the kauri trees that once existed within the area are shown through the large pupurangi shells on the entrance ceiling (these snails live on the tree's leaves).
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Meet...Nelo Galan, Steel Fixer, Mercury Lane
What does your job at the Link Alliance entail?
My job on the project is steel fixing in the Mercury Lane station box.
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Isabela, Philippines.
Where were you working prior to this?
When I finished my contract in Saudi Arabia, I returned to the Philippines to help my wife in our small business in Isabela.
What do you do when you are not working?
On my off days, I just stay home and chat with my family back home in the Philippines.
Any fun facts about yourself you want to share?
I love singing in Karaoke and I also love watching videos on how to do business regarding buying and selling in the Philippines.
We heard about an amazing act of kindness from you for your community in Isabela. Can you tell us more?
Every time I send money back home for my family in Isabela, I'll make sure there will be a set amount of money to buy milk and food for the children and elderly in my community. It’s not much but my wife will make the arrangement to make sure that everyone will get something.
I'm so happy seeing their faces every time my wife hands them a box of milk and food. They are very happy and contented, even if it's not much.
I'm doing this because I used to be like these children when I was young as I came from a poor family. That’s why when I got to New Zealand, I felt so blessed to have more than enough to support my family and helping those children and elderly is my own little way to give back the glory to God. Giving for me is an act of worship, something we do graciously and for the right reason.
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Works update - Beresford Square
A recent achievement in Beresford Square was the completion of excavation for the station box. The final bucket of spoil was lifted out in early June, followed by the last excavator.
Commencing in February 2021, the Beresford Square team excavated more than 33,000 cubic metres of soil and rock, which is enough to fill more than 13 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
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An end to excavation means that much of the recent activity can focus on B7, the deepest floor of the station. The northern half of the B7 slab has now been poured, which can be seen in the top of the picture below (worker in white jumpsuit).
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Steelwork – fixing reinforcing steel in place to strengthen concrete – pictured underway for the southern slab at B7 with the pour completed 30 June.
On the B1, B2 and B3 levels, walls, rooms and accessways are under construction. These levels are rapidly transforming as blockwork and concrete walls create new spaces, most of which will contain back of house equipment such as ventilation, electrical, hydraulics and communications.
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The picture below, looking east from B7, 33-metres beneath Pitt Street captures the Beresford Square entrance in all its glory. The yellow arch to the right of the picture is the main route for commuters to access the station platforms. The arch on the left is an emergency exit and location for equipment rooms.
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Small Business Support Programme returns
Link Alliance's Small Business Support Programme (SBSP) returns for 2022 with an increased level of support, following a successful pilot programme in 2021. This year a $3000 grant to support business adaptation is available, and also comes with free business advice.
The SBSP is available for businesses in the Te Wai Horotiu and Karanga a Hape Station communities and forms part of a comprehensive approach to supporting businesses throughout construction. The programme provides an independent business connector (William Keung) for businesses to help identify their needs and to provide individualised, free, accessible support and specialist services.
Please see here for more information on how to apply.
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Time to share the latest survey results
We have received the results from the Q2 2022 Stakeholder Satisfaction Report and we're happy to report that Karangahape Station received a 75% overall satisfaction rate.
As always, it’s great to get your invaluable feedback on what you feel is going well at our station and the areas we can improve, so please continue to share your thoughts and feedback with us.
We’d like to highlight a couple of requests we have addressed:
- We are investigating the possibility of relocating temporary traffic signage to assist with pedestrian flow.
- We are also speaking with Auckland Transport about a request for more information on plans for the surrounding streets.
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Works update - Mined Tunnels
As at Beresford Square, bulk excavation in the tunnels is complete; waterproofing and steelwork are now the focus in the mined tunnels.
The picture above looks north towards Te Wai Horotiu (Aotea) Station. The intricate steelwork takes weeks to complete, with 60-tonnes of reinforcing steel used in this location.
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