Page 16
— Property Management Quarterly — July 2016
A
ll buildings have plazas and
walkways for pedestrian
access. They come in all
shapes and sizes, and they
can be built with concrete,
brick, stone, asphalt or a combina-
tion of many materials, including
timber accents. Plazas and walk-
ways can be set on the ground or
on a structurally supported deck.
Most have stairs
and ramps and
some even include
heated snowmelt
systems.
Of the many
challenges facing
building owners
and managers,
pedestrian access
has to be at the top
of the list. Pedestri-
an pathways have
to be safe, clean
and as aestheti-
cally pleasing as
possible. They are
decorated, land-
scaped and exposed to the elements.
They must meet Americans with
Disabilities Act requirements, have
nonslippery surfaces, drain well
and be well lit. Plazas over occupied
spaces must be waterproof. Architec-
tural concepts and design details are
available from many sources, such
as Google “plaza design” and “plaza
waterproofing,” but these sources do
not address maintenance.
Ongoing maintenance and repair
of these property elements are the
responsibility of any organization,
regardless of age and condition, in
order to provide safety and ease of
circulation under all operating peri-
ods, including emergency situations.
The basic concepts of plaza design
should be recognized to implement
proper maintenance. Some plazas
will require minimal to no mainte-
nance, while some will require peri-
odic care.
Plazas are inherently porous.
Although most of the surface water
is handled with surface slopes and
area drains, water will infiltrate the
top wear system whether it is con-
crete, stone, asphalt or brick. Basi-
cally, it is impractical to design and
install a regular plaza that will not
percolate water down to its sub-
base. And, based on their subbase,
there are only two types of plaza
and walkway systems – one plaza
system is set on ground and the
other is set on structural deck. They
behave entirely differently.
Plazas on ground are more forgiv-
ing and flexible than plazas on deck.
They are set on a drainable subbase
to allow the seeping water to slowly
continue to soak into the soils below.
Plazas on deck are more compli-
cated. One must first assure that
the structural deck is adequate to
support the plaza and applied loads
without significant deflections. A
waterproofing membrane has to
be present to prevent “percolated”
water entering the building inte-
rior. The waterproofing membrane
typically is installed on top of the
structural deck and below the plaza
system – hence a buried membrane.
Placed on top of the waterproof-
ing membrane, a drainage medium
(drain mat or other system) deliv-
Maintenance
Luis Estenssoro
Senior restoration
consultant, Walker
Restoration
Consultants,
Greenwood Village
Ongoing maintenance and repair of plazas and pathways are the responsibility of any organization, regardless of age and condition.
