Despite Warnings, Repairs on San Francisco’s Millennium Tower Caused Additional Sinking

By Abigail Sterling and Max Darrow

SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX 5) — Construction on a fix for San Francisco’s leaning Millennium Tower came to a stop in late August because the fix was actually making the tower sink even more. Now it appears some of that damage could have been avoided.

“Millennium Partners wanted to get the thing wrapped up,” said Robert Pyke, a geotechnical engineer and early critic of the current so-called “perimeter pile upgrade.” He says the $100 million plan to shore up the sinking tower should have been stopped months before it was.

“Certainly by the end of June it was obvious that there was additional settlement as a result of installing the casings and the piles,” said Pyke.

KPIX asked him to review engineer logs and internal emails obtained by KPIX 5. A chart produced by the team shows the accelerated sinking started in mid-May but work on the project continued through June and July.

He says the continued drilling may have even exacerbated a sewage problem at the luxury high-rise, described in an August 26th email as “third-floor kitchens experiencing some plugging.”

Full Article Here: https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/20...ional-sinking/