The “biggest milestone” on the Salt Lake Temple renovation project “by far” has been completed, said Brad Bohne, general superintendent with Jacobsen Construction.
Salt Lake City’s house of the Lord now rests on its new base isolation system, allowing it to move 5 feet in any direction during an earthquake. Starting Thursday, June 25, construction crews removed over 1,500 bolts connecting 392 plates to the base isolators.
These “are what held the temple isolation system together through construction,” said Bohne. “This is the last piece. Remove all of these, the temple is set free, free to move now during an earthquake.”
In a new Church News video titled “The Temple Is Set Free,” construction workers and engineers explain their work from two decades of planning and 6½ years of seismic renovations.
Nathan Espinoza, assistant project manager with Jacobsen Construction, said the project has given him renewed perspective about the tough things in life. “I think of it as a challenge to overcome rather than a hindrance to my ability to accomplish something.”
