W.B. Hopke Continues Progress on Wet Utilities Project at Sidwell Friends in DC

W.B. Hopke continues to make progress with the ongoing wet utilities work at Sidwell Friends, a new Upper School located at 3720 Upton Street, N.W. Washington DC. The Upton Street Building, which was once the Washington Home and Community Hospice’s nursing home, has been transformed into a new upper school which is scheduled to open in the fall of 2026. It will be the largest building on campus, estimated at more than 130,000 square feet, replacing the existing 1964 structure and it’s 1997 addition, and reuniting the Lower, Middle and Upper Schools, all in one location.

Hopke began the wet utilities work in March 2025 and is working under general contractor MCN Build. The work which includes sanitary, storm and water is about 80% complete. Hopke’s contract included installing water lines of 1,150 linear feet of 4-inch to 8-inch water pipe connected to the DC Water system. The sanitary install includes a 540-foot long, 8-foot deep sanitary main and a precast sanitary grease interceptor. The stormwater installation includes roughly 130o linear feet of 6-inch to 24-inch PVC pipe. The final part of the project will include the installation of 3 large bioretention areas, each averaging 2,000 square feet and 6 feet deep, to manage stormwater.

Hopke project manager, Svetla Todorova stated, “All the storm pipes have been installed and the project is just about complete. There’ve been a few challenges. In particular there have been conflicts with existing utilities. We will also need to go back and excavate later this year near the entrance on 37th street where the students are dropped off for school. It is a busy area during the school season, so the plan is to wrap up the excavation work during the Christmas break.”

W.B. Hopke would like to thank its dedicated team for all the hard work and effort on this project including Estimator – Dillon McCoy, Project Manager – Svetla Todorova, Superintendent – Manuel Bonila, Forman – Eddy Mead and the crew – Carlos Martinez – Operator, Max Pacaja – Operator, Francisco Amaya Martinez – laborer, Warren Chambliss – Pipelayer and Jose Abel Martinez – Pipelayer.

Contact W.B. Hopke about a career in utility installation and site work at 703-971-0404 or info@wbhopke.com.

W.B. Hopke is a fourth generation, family-run construction business focused on building high quality utility infrastructure and lifelong careers. Hopke is located in Alexandria, VA and works throughout DC, Maryland, and Virginia. With almost 70 years of experience, Hopke prides itself on repeat customers across all kinds of market segments – schools, churches, data centers, distribution facilities, multi-family, mixed use, residential subdivisions, senior living, self storage, heavy highway, retail, commercial office, automotive, stream restoration, and parks.

Reference

“A New Upper School for Sidwell Friends,” Sidwell Friends, https://www.sidwell.edu/about/new-upper-school, Accessed October 1, 2025.