The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation is replacing deteriorating railings and asphalt pavements at Prospect Point and along the north shore of Goat Island within Niagara Falls State Park. The work includes installing new railings, pavements and landscape areas to improve safety and aesthetics and return the Park to the original vision of the park designer, Frederic Law Olmsted.

McMahon & Mann provided geotechnical engineering services for the project to TY Lin International and the LA Group. The geotechnical work began with a review of existing information including work that the US Army Corps of Engineers completed when the American Falls was dried up in the late 1960’s. We then collected subsurface information along the pathways and railings and completed laboratory tests on selected samples to provide information on engineering characteristics of the soil and rock. Using this information, we prepared geotechnical recommendations for design and construction of the new railing foundations, pavement support and subsurface drainage.