First retained in 2019, Tectonic conducted geotechnical engineering services for the Storm King Art Center as part of the ongoing work associated with the Art Center’s planned improvements. Located within the Town of Cornwall, New York, the Storm King Art Center is bound on the west by Interstate 87 and Pleasant Hill Road, on the north by Orrs Mills Road, and on the east and southeast by Moodna Creek. The overall Art Center encompasses roughly 500 acres of developed property (buildings, roads, et cetera), woodlands, fields, wetlands, and ponds.

The proposed improvements include new administrative and visitor-focused buildings; a new parking area; restoration and expansion of the Scandrett House; construction of a Pond Pavilion near one of the Art Center’s ponds; and construction of a new building to house conservation, fabrication maintenance and storage facilities. The new improvements will be located in three general areas across the site: The new administrative building, the small visitor-focused building, and a “North Parking” area will be situated on both sides of Old Pleasant Hill Road, near the northern end of the Art Center, near the Scandrett House. Furthermore, the existing parking area and several small buildings will be removed from the northern portion of the site, and a new visitors center will be constructed, along with other small improvements. A new “Pond Pavilion” will be constructed adjacent to one of the existing small ponds, in the central portion of the site. At the south end of the Art Center, adjacent to Pleasant Hill Road, a new facility to house conservation and fabrication, maintenance, and art storage (hereafter referred at the CFM building) will be constructed.

The purpose of the initial subsurface investigation performed in 2019, was to provide characterization of the subsurface conditions at select locations of proposed improvements that will be constructed across the grounds of the Storm King Art Center.

The investigation consisted of the drilling, testing, and logging of twenty-one (21) test borings at proposed structures across the site and throughout the proposed northern parking area, near the Scandrett House. The borings were drilled to depths ranging from 6 to 22 feet below the existing ground surface. Other operations include the excavation and logging of thirteen (13) test pits adjacent to the Scandrett House, throughout the nearby proposed parking area and at the new Pond Pavilion location; Test pits were excavated to depths ranging from 3 to 10 feet below the existing ground surface and fifteen (15) groundwater monitoring wells were installed across the site, ranging in depth from 16 to 20 feet below existing ground surface. Installation of the wells was followed by performance of groundwater depth measurements.

The test borings, test pits, monitoring well installation, infiltration tests and percolation tests were performed under the full-time observation of engineering geologists representing Tectonic. All work was performed under the purview of a Professional Engineer licensed in the State of New York. Our representatives observed that the investigation was performed in accordance with the appropriate ASTM standards and prepared logs of the encountered subsurface conditions. Laboratory testing was conducted on samples selected to help evaluate soil descriptions and to assist in identifying the soils’ engineering properties, and on samples selected to evaluate the corrosivity of the soils across the site.

In 2022 and 2023, Tectonic conducted a subsequent subsurface investigation and percolation testing for the design of on-site wastewater treatment system leach fields and infiltration testing for design of a stormwater management ponds. The purpose of this investigation was to identify the subsurface and groundwater conditions at multiple specified locations at Storm King Art Center and to provide results of percolation and infiltration testing.

The investigation consisted of the excavation of eighty-six (86) test pits for the purpose of performing percolation tests. Each test pit was excavated to approximately the specified depth at which the percolation or infiltration tests were to be performed. Test pit depth ranged from approximately 1 to 12.5 feet below existing grade.

A percolation test or an infiltration test was performed within each test pit, in accordance with the appropriate New York State Department of Health, or New York State Department of Environmental Conservation requirements. Each percolation or infiltration test hole was hand excavated, pre-soaked for approximately 24 hours, and then tested.
In addition to the percolation testing, another twenty-two (22) test pits and infiltration tests were performed in accordance with Appendix D of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s Stormwater Design Manual, for the design of various stormwater management basins that will be constructed near the various planned improvements at the site.

The test pits, percolation test and infiltration test holes were excavated under the full-time observation of an engineer, working under the purview of a Professional Engineer licensed in the State of New York. The engineer classified the soils encountered within the test pits, prepared logs of the conditions encountered, and performed the percolation and infiltration tests. All materials encountered were classified in accordance with the Unified Soil Classification System (ASTM D2488), and the Modified Burmister Classification System.

Geotechnical engineering evaluations of the subsurface conditions as they related to the proposed site development was performed at various sites throughout the property of the Storm King Art Center. Geotechnical reports were prepared from the compiled data which presented the results of the subsurface investigations, percolation and infiltration testing, laboratory testing, engineering analyses, and geotechnical recommendations for the design and construction of the proposed site and building development.