Nicholson Installing Soil Nail Walls for the University of Pittsburgh's New Recreation and Wellness Center

March 3, 2020
Pittsburgh, PA

The Mascaro/Barton Malow Joint Venture recently contracted Nicholson Construction as part of the enabling work for the University of Pittsburgh’s new Recreation and Wellness Center.

The new facility is estimated at 300,000 square feet and will include yoga and meditation spaces, a test kitchen, recreation pool, jogging track, weight-lifting equipment,basketball and volleyball courts and academic gathering spaces.

Nicholson’s portion of the work includes the construction of two soil nail walls as permanent support of excavation along newly constructed roads from the lower to the upper part of the campus. The contract also includes exploratory drilling to find voids and if needed, mine grouting to fill the voids in the area of the soil nail wall construction.

“With so many alumni on our team, we are pretty excited to be working at Pitt again,” said Dino Kartofilis, Pitt Alumnus and Vice President of Nicholson’s Eastern Division.“The University is making a lot of great updates to the campus and it’s great to be part of it.”

The company has worked on several other projects on campus over the last several years.


Nicholson’s portion of the work will begin this month and be completed by summer of 2020.

The Mascaro/Barton Malow Joint Venture recently contracted Nicholson Construction as part of the enabling work for the University of Pittsburgh’s new Recreation and Wellness Center.

The new facility is estimated at 300,000 square feet and will include yoga and meditation spaces, a test kitchen, recreation pool, jogging track, weight-lifting equipment,basketball and volleyball courts and academic gathering spaces.

Nicholson’s portion of the work includes the construction of two soil nail walls as permanent support of excavation along newly constructed roads from the lower to the upper part of the campus. The contract also includes exploratory drilling to find voids and if needed, mine grouting to fill the voids in the area of the soil nail wall construction.

“With so many alumni on our team, we are pretty excited to be working at Pitt again,” said Dino Kartofilis, Pitt Alumnus and Vice President of Nicholson’s Eastern Division.“The University is making a lot of great updates to the campus and it’s great to be part of it.”

The company has worked on several other projects on campus over the last several years.


Nicholson’s portion of the work will begin this month and be completed by summer of 2020.

About Nicholson Construction Company

Nicholson has been both a leader and an innovator in the geotechnical construction industry for more than 60 years. With regional offices across the country and headquarters located in Pittsburgh, Nicholson is a nationally renowned specialty contractor, offering proven expertise in the design and installation of deep foundation elements, earth retention systems and ground treatment solutions. We pride ourselves on our ability to consistently provide our clients with innovative, high-quality design-build options for projects of varying size and complexity. Nicholson is the North American subsidiary of Soletanche Bachy, one of the world’s leading geotechnical contractors, and is part of a global network of unparalleled geotechnical resources and expertise.

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