Environmental, Planning and Construction at the Olympic Regional Development Authority
These famous words – “Great moments are born from great opportunity” – were delivered by Herb Brooks to his team before that greatest of hockey games ever played.
But to give Coach Brooks the credit he deserves, let’s also recognize the critical role of planning in turning that opportunity (and virtually any opportunity) into something great. For without his careful and knowing guidance of all that team’s activities and preparations in the months leading up to that monumental opportunity, there would never have been a Miracle on Ice.
For every endeavor, whether it’s landing a spaceship on the moon or landing the first Ski Jumping World Cup event in 30 years, planning is the process of preparing to succeed. That makes it fundamental to doing great work, achieving goals, and creating excellence.
In some cases, plans are simple. In others, the planning process is enormously complex. At the Olympic Regional Development Authority (Olympic Authority), every project is unique, and the environment in which our planners operate is especially challenging. That makes creating world-class sport and recreation venues a demanding and complex responsibility.
Bringing Great Concepts to Fruition
Our Environmental, Planning, and Construction team is tasked with completing high quality, highly specialized projects on time, within budget, and to exacting standards at venues within our State’s precious forest preserves, accomplishing it all in ways that meet or exceed not only the established environmental and building code regulations but also our own organization’s high standards for sustainability, safety, and excellence. Achieving the success our teams have consistently demonstrated in this realm requires tremendous foresight, preparation, and expert planning.
“We run the whole gamut from architectural to structural to mechanical engineering and planning and everything in between,” says Bob Hammond, Olympic Authority Director of Environmental, Planning, and Construction. Through rigorous planning processes, Bob and his team determine how to optimally manage and execute each unique construction project, from the initial stage of communicating with internal and external stakeholders to the building design to completion. As a process that encompasses all activities and timelines for each part of the project, construction planning defines the scope of work, initiates reviews and approvals for the litany of regulations to be met, sets timelines, allocates resources, establishes all expectations and responsibilities, and even manages the project work itself.
“When we start any project,” says Bob, “It’s important we get together with venue managers and their stakeholders. We work with them at the beginning to establish the goals, the expectations, and the end results. Jumping ahead a little, when we have a comprehensive work order established, we present it to these stakeholders. There are a lot of potential internal stakeholders. Sometimes they are lift operators or snowmaking staff. Other times, they are the events department. There are also the external stakeholders, like FIS International Ski and Snowboard Federation, US Biathlon, the Town of North Elba, local or environmental groups, and others.”
Though Bob’s team often selects contractors, engineers, or architects to perform specific duties along the way, his small group takes responsibility and does the heavy lifting for these projects from the very beginning. Bob adds, “Sometimes, depending on the size and scope of a project, our own staff members will handle the onsite construction management work. Other times, for larger projects, we designate a third party construction management firm for projects such as for the new North Creek Ski Bowl Lodge at Gore or the expansion of the Discovery Lodge at Belleayre.”
Climbing Mountains of Complexity
Superficially, those steps follow a typical, straightforward design-bid-build process, but in diving into details, one finds it is far more complicated. As both a New York State agency and one operating within the confines of the Adirondack and Catskill Parks, complexity and accountability get built into every project, big and small. While ordinary public or private sector organizations simply choose their contractors and begin collaborating, the Olympic Authority abides by much more complex and rigorous (and time consuming) systems of qualification and review.
“Any significant project within the forest preserves needs to be approved within a Unit Management Plan (UMP), and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has jurisdiction over those,” says Bob. “In the Adirondack Park, that UMP process goes through the DEC and then the Adirondack Park Agency (APA) reviews it, too, for compliance to the Adirondack Park State Land Master Plan (APSLMP). That process includes public hearings, too.” Some of the additional requirements in the Catskill Park include stormwater permits issued by the Watershed Inspector General and the Catskill Park State Land Master Plan (CPSLMP). The other major challenge is the timing of budget approvals through the State Legislature.
Environmental Preservation Always Paramount
For the entire Olympic Authority and its Environmental, Planning, and Construction team, the UMP process and State environmental regulations and requirements are not simply hurdles to overcome. Operating within the Forest Preserves, the entire organization takes its responsibility very seriously and is committed in an enduring way to conscientious stewardship of the environment in everything they do.
Helping the Olympic Authority preserve and protect the mountain ecosystems in which it operates is the role of Sustainability and Environmental Compliance Officer, Emma Lamy. Before a UMP is even drafted, Emma performs a detailed review of the proposed management actions to understand the environmental impacts of projects being proposed and to ensure best practices are followed in the planning and design processes.
Emma describes the UMP planning process as “Essentially a master planning procedure in which you carefully examine every action under consideration and then propose those that meet the criteria. All actions or projects are then evaluated through the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA).” That’s a careful evaluation process that assesses the natural and physical resources within the defined unit a venue is located in. Ultimately, that process identifies the potential actions or uses that are consistent with the ability of the resources and ecosystems to accommodate them.
“The physical UMP document ends up being a huge binder that provides an analysis of any potentially significant environmental impacts and details our plan for avoiding them,” says Emma. “And if there are any impacts that we cannot avoid, it specifies what we will do to protect those natural resources.”
Planning must be done far in advance because the document typically takes two years to produce and secure approval, and amendments to it at a later date require a similar time frame. “Once you have all the figures and planning and analysis, it goes to the DEC for review. When you have preliminary approval there, the UMP is turned into a public draft that is posted in the Environmental Notice Bulletin seeking public comments. Those comments are compiled and organized and responded to, and often can lead to revising a proposed action.”
The APA reviews the UMPs and proposed developments in the Adirondack Park. After the first public comment period, the Olympic Authority makes a presentation at the APA Board Meeting, after which a second public comment period is initiated through APA. The APA accepts comments on the document’s compliance with the APSLMP and must respond to and present their findings at another APA Board Meeting. After the completion of these two public comment periods, the Olympic Authority team can revise the UMP as needed and submit for final review and approval by the DEC Commissioner. Another document called an errata is produced that summarizes any and all changes to the document from the first draft to the final and is published with the final UMP document.
Permitting Processes
There are other permits required along the way for projects of all kinds. Anytime a tree needs to be cut, for example, an Olympic Authority venue needs a Forest Preserve Project Work Plan approved by the DEC. This application requires a full analysis of the action’s UMP approval and SEQRA assessment and must include a count of the trees to be cut, by species, sized one inch at diameter rising to breast height and above.
Additionally, any earthwork requires a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan, detailing how erosion will be mitigated and sediment controlled. That permitting process is dependent on delineating wetlands for each project as those are areas especially vulnerable to erosion and sediment. In fact, the Olympic Authority delineates wetlands for every project to avoid any and all impacts to those valuable carbon sink areas in the Forest Preserve.
Work proposed for an area in or bordering water also requires authorization from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Such work is subject to approval of project plans, best management practices for erosion and sediment control, and confirmation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that there are no federally endangered species in the project area.
Emma insists that with no exceptions, permits must be acquired prior to starting any work. “Even if we want to simply upgrade an existing building in some way, for example, by adding a restroom,” says Emma, “We have determinations to make. If we’re increasing any flows to an existing septic system, there’s a permit that needs to be modified. We have permits for wastewater discharges, industrial discharges, water withdrawal permits, dam safety permits, and Department of Health permits for potable water supply.”
For Olympic Authority Venues not located on State forest preserve lands, any change in land use requires an APA permit, and if there is any question as to whether the work fits into an existing permit, the Environmental and Construction Planning teams must submit a jurisdictional inquiry to the Adirondack Park Agency to determine if the permit must be amended.”
Saving Winter
“The Olympic Authority’s commitment to environmental preservation is absolutely a strength for the region,” says Emma. “The environmental assessments, the screenings, and reviews we do before we embark on projects are all crucial. We will always find ways to improve the sustainability of our operations, but those are things we do already, and they are incredibly important.”
To advance further on this front, Emma is currently making improvements to the process of screening each Olympic Authority project on the basis of its environmental impact and permits needed. “I take every potential project and screen it at every level on its environmental impact, including issues related to wetlands, water bodies, vegetation, wildlife, historic preservation, air quality, noise, light and more. All the components of the Environmental Review Act.” The screening she feels is not only streamlining the entire process and saving time but also improving the quality of the reviews and the Olympic Authority’s ongoing efforts toward environmental stewardship.
The Multi-Year Major Renewal Effort
For a period of years from 2016 through 2022, the Olympic Authority venues were transformed by major renewal projects. In the process, New York State’s winter sport venues have once again been elevated to an enviable position on the world stage.
That transformational period was an unprecedented with a high volume of specialized projects. “We had a lot of great support during that time from around the organization,” says Bob. “We brought in an assistant planning director, and that’s also when we added Emma and the environmental sustainability position.”
In addition to having large design build projects happening simultaneously, Bob’s team faced the added challenge of doing it all with the venues open for operation during construction. Remarkably, through it all, events and recreation alternatives were sustained, and visitors continued coming in ever greater numbers.
With a few additional staff and a lot of extra work, Bob’s team persevered through it all. Yet he also recognizes, “We were successful through it all with the collaboration and assistance of venue managers and staff. In many cases, venue staff came in to help us fill gaps and finish parts of projects or sometimes take on entire projects themselves. We learned from it all, and what we accomplished in the past is going to make for an even better future.”
A Bold New Era
With the multi-year period of renovation and renewal complete, the Olympic Authority venues have returned to the world stage and entered a bold new era of possibilities. One with more athlete training and events of all kinds, more recreation and activity alternatives for everyone, more community programming, and an ever increasing numbers of visitors.
Within the bold new era, the Environmental, Planning, and Construction team is continuing to advance the development of the alpine ski centers with major lodge development and renovations as well as the continued modernization of the snowmaking systems. They are achieving these goals while also working to shift their focus to ongoing maintenance, upgrades, and improvements to optimize operations and guest experiences at the venues. And they do this work while always upholding the Olympic Authority’s ongoing commitment to environmental sustainability and preservation.
It’s a time of new opportunity in which a seasoned, expert team will continue to realize opportunities and produce great new moments in the history and legacy of these remarkable venues.