South Entrance Station Kiosks Replacement

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The goal of this project is to design and construct safe, secure, accessible, and high performance entrance station kiosks at the South Entrance of the park on Highway 41 (Wawona Road). There are two existing nonhistoric fee collection structures at the South Entrance Station that will be replaced and there is one historic fee collection structure that will be retained. The nonhistoric kiosks are unsafe and in very poor condition. These two nonhistoric structures were temporary kiosks that were placed in an accident prone location and were not made to withstand the continual damage they are taking from vehicle collisions. These nonhistoric kiosks also have temporary foundations (wood skids), insufficient utilities, and lack code compliance. In addition, the narrow lanes and the "T" intersection create a difficult turning radius for larger vehicles. As well, there are many safety concerns, along with traffic congestion problems that create two-mile backups which extend southward into the private community of Fish Camp.

This project entails relocating the kiosks along the Highway 41 (Wawona Road) approximately 350 feet (315 feet straight line measurement) south of the existing kiosks location. Work will include approximately 43,000 square feet of fill and 7,500 square feet of cut along the east side of Wawona Road to allow for placement of the three new kiosks and the entrance and exit paved surface around the kiosks. This requires the removal of approximately 135 trees between 4 inches and 48 inches diameter at breast height (tree species include White Fir, Incense Cedar, Sugar Pine, and Ponderosa Pine).

These nonhistoric kiosks have been damaged multiple times by vehicle collisions from large trucks and RVs entering or exiting the fee collection area. The interior widths of these nonhistoric kiosks is 4 feet wide for the large kiosk and 3.5 feet for the small kiosk, which is inadequate for two staff members to operate out of both sides of the temporary structure. This is the busiest entrance station in the park with up to 3,200 vehicles passing thru these kiosks on a peak day.

The proposed work includes:
• constructing three new, 8 feet x 14 feet permanent kiosks in a new location>>350-ft. south,
• relocating new utility lines (gas, electric, and telecommunications),
• installing curbing, signs, and landscaping around new-permanent kiosks,
• installing security upgrades including video cameras,
• conducting five geotechnical and pavement borings within the project area to determine the detailed soil conditions (8" diameter x 10 feet maximum depth), and
• installing an upsized culvert and a wildlife crossing.

Two of the existing non-historic kiosks are damaged; these would be removed and disposed. The third historic kiosk structure would remain in its existing location and be utilized as an office.


Contact Information

Superintendent
Attn: South Entrance Station Kiosks Replacement
P.O. Box 577
Yosemite, CA 95389