Press Releases - 2003

Emmert International Relocates Historic Structure To Make Way For Major League Baseball Stadium In San Diego

At left the structure is sitting on its new slab awaiting final placement outside the right field wall of the stadium. The photo above shows the ballpark under construction as seen from the roof of the Candy Factory.

September 2003 - The Showley Brothers Candy Factory, originally built in 1924 as a warehouse, is a 101-foot square, 30,000 square foot three-story un-reinforced masonry wall bearing structure. It has a height of approximately 45' including the parapet. The total weight of the structure when moved was about 1,500 tons, which included 603 tons of temporary support structure. To preserve the historic structure, the City of San Diego wanted it moved, but to do so required overcoming a multitude of challenges:

• Since the building was a historic structure, as much of the existing brick as possible would have to be saved for the renovation scheduled to occur after the move.
• The masonry walls were virtually the same thickness throughout the entire height of the building.
• The upper floors were wood beam and joist floor construction, connected to interior wood posts and inserted into the masonry walls.
• The mortar used in the construction was lime based and extremely weak.
• The parapet was very fragile and would require significant bracing to keep it intact.
• An elevator shaft in the center of the building required the design to position the support structure and the dollies around the shaft to redistribute the weight to accommodate the shaft.
• The structure would have to be moved up a 3% grade to reach its final destination.
• The move would not be a straight line, but rather the building would have to be steered during the move to achieve the correct position on the new foundation.

Emmert engineering and innovation relocated an extremely fragile historic structure to its current location just outside the right field wall of Petco Park in San Diego, California. It is planned to undergo renovation and seismic retrofit. When completed, a piece of San Diego history will have been preserved for generations to come.

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About Emmert International
Headquartered in Clackamas, Oregon, near Portland, Emmert International is a leader in the heavy haul and rigging industry. Founded by Terry Emmert in 1964, Emmert has over 40 years providing hauling and rigging services to customers worldwide.