Importing ESRI Shapefiles with Topo to their proper elevation

You can import ESRI Shapefiles that contain an ELEVATION attribute into MicroStation Design Files as 3D elements using Bentley Map.  This works with Point, Line, and Area Shapefiles.

1. Select the Import GIS Data Types... command from the File menu
2. Right-click on the Imports option and select New Import
3. Right-click on the Import node and select Add File (or Folder if importing more than one .shp file)
4. Look in the General section / Elevation row and choose the ELEV attribute from the drop-down list
5. Define the Symbology to suit your needs
6. Right-click on the Feature name under the Import node and select Import

* If the elevation units in the .shp file differ from those in the .dgn file, apply a conversion factor to during import, i.e. [Contours.ELEV] * 3.2808333 

You can verify that the data was imported to the proper Z value/elevation in the MicroStation design plane by snapping to an element and reviewing the X, Y, and Z value.  The Element Information tool shows you the ELEV attribute in the Feature section of the dialog, as-shown here:

Working with elements that are not planar

We can also import shape files that have been saved as 3d. In this process, you do not need to define the attribute that contains the elevation because the element is NOT planar. In this case you just import the shape data. It should plot at the correct XY location with the Z set for the different vertices.