HomeMy WebLinkAboutSpecial Committee of the Whole August 5 20031 WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL
2 Special Committee Of The Whole
3
4 August 5, 2003
5
6 The meeting was called to order at 10:00 a.m. by Council Chair Dan
7 McShane in the Council Chambers, 311 Grand Avenue, Bellingham, Washington.
8
9 Present: Absent:
10 Barbara Brenner Sam Crawford
11 Laurie Caskey-Schreiber
12 Seth Fleetwood
13 Sharon Roy
14 L. Ward Nelson
15
16
17 SPECIAL PRESENTATION
18
19 1. IN-DEPTH PRESENTATION ON THE MASTER FACILITIES PLAN FOR
20 WHATCOM COUNTY (AB2003-288)
21
22 Harris Falkin, HDR Engineering, submitted a copy of his presentation and
23 other handouts (on file). They are still months away from actual proposals for
24 layouts. Today they want to discuss concepts to provide a sense of the volume
25 Whatcom County needs for the future. This project must serve the next 20 years,
26 but would ideally serve through the year 2050. Come up with solutions that are
27 flexible enough to provide more solutions for the future. The parking issue is a
28 compelling driver of this project.
29
30 There are two master plan concepts that have merit, and which they would
31 discuss during phase three of this project. The final solution may be a composite of
32 both plans. The first of the two concepts is to keep law and justice functions as a
33 component of the civic center area. Consider an administrative center located
34 away from the downtown civic center area. The second concept is to develop a law
35 and justice complex remote from the downtown civic center area. Make the
36 courthouse area an administrative operation for Whatcom County. There are
37 hybrid options, but these are the two options he wants to study. From those two
38 studies, he predicts a hybrid option will come forward.
39
40 Dewey Desler, Deputy Administrator, stated the scope of work for this
41 planning team directs the team to do detailed work around two alternatives. Part
42 of the effort today is to get Council affirmation of examining those two concepts.
43
44 Nelson stated it seems that they've picked two decisions. He doesn't know
45 the criteria they used to make the decisions. Falkin stated that information would
46 come forward in his presentation. In addition, they are coordinating with the local
47 Centennial Group and the City of Bellingham's public facilities effort.
48
Special Committee of the Whole, 8/5/2003, Page 1
1 The first planning session was held on April 18, 2003. They implemented the
2 requirements survey, prepared a demographic and service level analysis, prepared
3 workload services level and personnel projections, and meetings held with each
4 department head. They looked at the suitability of each of the existing facilities.
5
6 They have also discussed the findings on parking and space standards with
7 the steering committee.
8
9 McShane asked if there is detail about the parking analysis and variety of
10 options in the draft Countywide Facilities Master Plan.
11
12 Ron Taylor, Omni -Group, Inc., stated there is information on the parking
13 demand. Part of what they'll look at during the next phase is solutions to the
14 parking issue. It will vary based on where the functions are located, whether they
15 have to look at structure parking versus surface parking. They will also look at the
16 County policies on providing parking.
17
18 McShane asked if they could manipulate the needs for parking through other
19 efforts. Taylor stated they could. They are at the beginning of that issue. There
20 are initial staff and space projections that will form the basis for defining the needs
21 in future years. Before they look at alternative approaches, they want to make
22 sure everyone at the County is comfortable that the basis they are going forward
23 with is reasonable for long-term facility planning purposes.
24
25 Fundamental to the need for County facilities are the programs, services,
26 and staff that are incorporated in those facilities. Looking at population projections
27 provides a fundamental basis for the long-term needs. They've looked at historical
28 trends. Over the last ten years, the County has increased in population by about
29 31 percent. The most recent population estimate is 170,000 in 2001. Over the last
30 decade, Whatcom County was the sixth fastest growing county in the state.
31
32 At the County's direction, they used the Econ-Northwest population
33 forecasts. They developed three different population models: high, low, and mid-
34 range. His group is using the mid -range forecast for planning purposes. They've
35 also looked at the high and low range population forecasts to see their impacts on
36 recommended levels that the mid -range forecast presents. The mid -range forecast
37 between now and the year 2022 is projecting a 39 percent increase in population,
38 up to 232,000 residents in the county. The low forecast is seven percent less, at
39 216,000. The high forecast is 13 percent higher, at 262,000 by the year 2022.
40
41 The County has invested in significant improvements in County facilities,
42 such as the courthouse expansion. As a result of growth during this time, the
43 County occupies a number of facilities throughout the area, which results in
44 significant fragmentation of functions. His group determined that the jail is the
45 most significant need. There are approximately 3,000 misdemeanants that are not
46 going to jail. The court sentences are being reduced by 15 percent. People are let
47 out of jail early to make more room. This causes considerable problems for local
48 businesses. Warrants are not being enforced. The lack of capacity in the jail is
49 undermining the credibility of the justice system, and has the potential for far -
Special Committee of the Whole, 8/5/2003, Page 2
1 reaching problems. There is a real liability exposure because of the age and
2 condition of the jail and supervision capabilities.
3
4 Over the next 20 years, the population will age. That increase will have
5 impacts on County health and social services. The 18 to 24 year old age group as a
6 percentage is going down. That bodes well for stabilization. However, the absolute
7 numbers in that age group will rise. There may be stabilization in the rate of
8 increase of needs for jail and detention.
9
10 The jail is a significant issue right now, and it is the most expensive facility
11 the County needs to construct. In addition to the expensive capital costs are the
12 expensive operating costs, which are far more than the construction costs over the
13 life of the facility. Over the life of the facility, construction costs are about six
14 percent of the total costs. Up to 94 percent of the cost is operational cost. They've
15 looked with great care and detail at what generates growth and demand for
16 capacity, to make sure they have the best data available. They can make
17 reasonable assumptions and estimates about what those trends and requirements
18 may be in the future.
19
20 There are two components of the jail population. The first is the booking
21 rate per 1,000 population. There has been a dramatic reduction since 1986 when it
22 was at 54.4 per 1,000 people. Booking is currently at about 36 per 1,000 people.
23 That reflects increased use of citation release. Most misdemeanants are being
24 issued a citation in lieu of being taken to jail. The second component is the
25 average length of stay. In 1986, the average length of stay was 9.1 days. That
26 has doubled to over 20.8 days. That increase is because more serious offenders
27 that make up the greatest percentage of the population and because the people
28 who would serve short amounts of time in the jail aren't going to jail. The only
29 people in the jail are people with serious offenses. As a result, they don't try to
30 make predictions, given the context of the Whatcom County situation, where the
31 historical information is distorted by lack of capacity. They've worked with the
32 Sheriff's Office to make a best estimate that is still conservative about the number
33 of people who would be in jail if there were adequate capacity. He has adjusted the
34 baseline numbers to reflect those estimates. He's looked at a variety of
35 methodologies to forecast capacities by the year 2022. Those range from 362 to
36 577 inmates. He proposes a methodology that represents the average of all
37 methods, at an estimate of around 450 inmates, as the basis for long-term
38 planning. In conjunction with that, his group should carefully collect data on who is
39 being cited now, how long those offenders would have been in jail, and a continuing
40 calculation of how many additional jail days an inmate would serve for a full
41 sentence as issued by the court. Develop a very good profile of information on the
42 people going to jail, such as their residency and whether or not they are repeat
43 offenders. Make sure they are not over -using or under -using the jail facilities by
44 applying alternatives to incarceration appropriately. Whatcom County has a very
45 good jail alternative program going.
46
47 His group has developed staffing forecasts for all departments. They looked
48 at a variety of factors, such as historical trends and adequacy of current staff. They
49 determined there is justification for additional staff, but the funding wasn't there.
Special Committee of the Whole, 8/5/2003, Page 3
1 His group identified those staff as additional needed staff, and assumed that those
2 positions would be filled if there were money for it. His group used whatever the
3 budget and County have determined as appropriate staffing levels historically
4 relative to workload and population growth to guide their projections. They've also
5 looked at expansion and addition of services and used the same approach.
6 Different departments have different projected rates of growth. Departments that
7 focus on health and human services and planning and public works issues are
8 projected to grow slightly less than general population growth. However, law and
9 justice departments are going to increase approximately 89 percent over that time.
10 The percentages are based upon the results of comparing historical staffing levels
11 to workload and population trends, and then look at them relative to whether or not
12 there needs to be new programs. It also takes into consideration the impacts of
13 technological applications. The County has made significant progress in
14 technological applications.
15
16 Nelson asked if there is a statistical analysis program they have used. Taylor
17 stated there is. There is more detailed information in the draft master plan. All the
18 assumptions are based on facts. He spent time with each department on what they
19 do and how they do it.
20
21 There are some assumptions about service, delivery, and organizational
22 impacts. He's assumed a continuation of current in-house services. They could
23 choose to contract out certain services in the future. They are assuming that cities
24 do not provide law enforcement services outside of the city limits, but they may do
25 that. The master plan provides opportunities to look at alternatives, co -location,
26 and consolidation of services.
27
28 The County currently occupies approximately 345,000 square feet of usable
29 space, excluding the County Parks and Recreation facilities, which is not part of
30 their scope of work. To meet needs, approximately 482,000 square feet of space is
31 needed. Seventy-five percent of that is for law and justice functions. The vast
32 majority of that space is related to the jail. By the year 2022, 628,500 useable
33 square feet is required. The total shortfall currently is about 40 percent. Now they
34 need an additional 136,000 square feet. Once that current need is satisfied,
35 additional growth is only about 140,000 to 150,000 square feet in 20 years. The
36 County's initial accomplishment needs to get proper functional space today,
37 especially in the law and justice system. The amount of space needed will vary
38 depending on the decisions made in master plan development. Continuing to use
39 the jail will reduce that requirement. That facility will never provide the kind of
40 space that a contemporary jail facility can provide. Use of the existing courtrooms
41 will also decrease the need for square footage. Some courtrooms should not be
42 used in terms of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements and other
43 requirements for separation of staff and public from those in custody.
44
45 Roy asked how much of the functional square footage they need today is
46 needed by law and justice services. Taylor stated law and justice services need 75
47 percent of the total additional square footage that the County needs today.
48
Special Committee of the Whole, 8/5/2003, Page 4
1 Parking is an increase in cost consideration. If everyone who wants to drive
2 a car was provided a parking space, including the public and staff, there is a need
3 for just over 1,600 parking stalls. There are 500 to 600 stalls available countywide
4 today. Of that, half is related to law and justice. Where law and justice is located
5 will have a tremendous impact on parking and traffic. If parking is provided
6 downtown, they will have to use structure parking, which is much more expensive
7 than if those functions were located somewhere where the parking could be surface
8 parking.
9
10 His estimates are forecasts, based on the past, not predictions. They've
11 tried to look at the County's exposure to risk if his forecasts are not correct, in
12 terms of additional space requirements. The impacts from the low and high
13 projections were compared to his forecasts. If Whatcom County built based on a
14 recommendation that called for an initial phase of development to meet
15 requirements in the year 2012, and then a second phase of development to meet
16 requirements for the year 2022, then the additional space required would be about
17 230,000 additional square feet of space. If the lowest projection were realized,
18 then the ten-year solution would be a 20-year solution. They would simply defer
19 any further commitment to construction until growth catches up. Three or four
20 phases of development will provide greater ability to reflect on and update the
21 master plan projections and to make sure that the projections are in line with the
22 reality that transpires, before they commit to capital construction.
23
24 (Clerk's Note: End of tape one, side A.)
25
26 Brenner stated she has a problem with the County building anything bigger
27 than absolutely necessary, in hopes that the space will fill in time, especially jail
28 space. Taylor stated he doesn't recommend building something that is necessary.
29 However, the reality of development of facilities requires some judgments about
30 future needs. Once they've committed funding to a construction project, it takes
31 three to five years to construct it. They have to forecast a minimum of three to five
32 years. They must site a building in a manner that does not preclude logical and
33 economical expansion in the next phase of construction. In order to know where
34 the building needs to be placed on a site to accommodate expansion in the future,
35 they have to consider needs for the next increment of construction.
36
37 Brenner stated they plan now for 20 years. She asked who would pay for
38 any construction that's larger than what they need. Taylor stated he does not
39 recommend constructing a building that is based on needs 20 years in the future.
40 At the most, commit to construction based on needs eight to ten years in the
41 future.
42
43 Brenner stated there would still be an initial, up -front cost of infrastructure
44 that will not benefit the people who are currently residents. She asked if they are
45 supposed to pay for it up front. Desler stated no one intends to overbuild. They
46 are trying to prevent huge problems by not addressing the key areas where they
47 need to grow in the future. It's logical to use current resources, paid by current
48 taxpayers, and a bonding structure that allows future residents to pay for whatever
49 develops.
Special Committee of the Whole, 8/5/2003, Page 5
1
2 Don Hogan, HDR Engineering, stated his primary part on the team is to focus
3 on the law and justice component. Potential building areas contiguous to the
4 courthouse include parcels to the north, the existing public safety building site, and
5 the south site. The site to the north has potential soil contamination problems and
6 has a large setback next to Whatcom Creek. The south side would have a floor
7 plan potential of 40,000 square feet. The courthouse has the longest potential life
8 use of all the buildings. The alternative corrections buildings are not particularly
9 good. The public safety building has numerous problems also. It is not the type of
10 building they would construct now with modern guidelines.
11
12 The law and justice report looked at reducing the number of inmates in the
13 current jail. The difference would have to go into the new construction. The
14 projection for the years 2022 is for over 500 beds total. One proposal is for a 13-
15 floor building on the north site, a 12-floor building on the south site, or a
16 combination of purposes on both the north and west sites.
17
18 Fleetwood asked where the administration center would be in the scenario
19 with a combination of buildings for different purposes. Hogan stated the
20 administration center could be offsite or included in the courthouse building.
21
22 Hogan stated the Centennial project recommends an office building on the
23 south site to create a connection from the civic center to the waterfront. A
24 potential for the south site is for mixed uses and shared parking. If parking were in
25 this structure, the County operations could use it during the day and citizens can
26 use it for cultural events in the evening. This site is more sensitive than the other
27 sites.
28
29 Nelson asked if these options would meet current needs and needs in the
30 future. Hogan stated these options would provide about 400,000 gross square feet
31 for the year 2022.
32
33 Desler stated 230,000 square feet are currently required for 2012. These
34 are just conceptual ideas. These ideas aren't built on the two alternatives
35 presented by Mr. Falkin.
36
37 Hogan stated he is trying to get an idea from the draft master plan of the
38 magnitude, as a point of departure for how to proceed. They will begin to look at
39 the permutations that result from the two master plan options. Another concept is
40 for a remote law and justice site not at the Civic Center. The acreage would
41 probably have to be a minimum of 20 to 25 acres. A King County structure is only
42 on 13 acres. Look at a site large enough to handle expansion. Examples at the
43 civic center don't take into consideration expansion beyond 2022. There is not a lot
44 of adjacent space beyond what they currently have. Another option is to move the
45 governmental operations, other than law and justice operations, to the remote site.
46
47 Roy asked if they are communicating with the Centennial Group. Hogan
48 stated they are.
49
Special Committee of the Whole, 8/5/2003, Page 6
1 Their contract is to look at two master plan alternatives. They hope to be
2 back in two months with greater detail on the two plans.
3
4 Caskey-Schreiber asked if the remote site has to be in the Bellingham city
5 limits. Hogan stated the courts have to be in the county seat. Most of the open
6 areas are to the east and north. If they get a site at a remote area, there are
7 criteria they have to take into consideration, such as adjacency to schools and
8 housing. By the time they get through siting criteria, it will restrict the number of
9 places they can go. They need to find parcels that are available, reasonably priced,
10 and of the correct size.
11
12 Caskey-Schreiber asked if it is viable to explore the option because land
13 might not be available. Hogan stated there might be land available.
14
15 Brenner stated it's better to have a jail near a cultural center than residential
16 areas and schools. Hogan stated residential areas and schools limit locations. A
17 siting committee will help to identify the criteria that they will use to weight
18 possible sites.
19
20 Desler stated the County has had an Essential Public Facilities Site Evaluation
21 Committee looking at those criteria and that effort. That is a requirement of the
22 Growth Management Act.
23
24 Hogan stated he is looking at operational efficiencies as well as location.
25
26 David King, Stewart + King Associates, stated his role is to deal with non-
27 justice functions. They are splitting the non -justice functions into two different
28 groups. He listed the current off -site facilities for the Health and Human Services
29 Department, Planning Department, and Public Works Department. They have a
30 combined square footage of about 46,000 square feet. In 2022, the areas they will
31 need will be about 71,000 square feet.
32
33 Onsite facilities include about 50,000 square feet, with a 2022 projected
34 need of about 60,000 feet. In total, the area needed in 2022 is about 135,000
35 square feet total.
36
37 Building evaluations of existing facilities were done. The Northwest Annex is
38 100 years old and is a very rigid building. That building does not have a place in
39 the long range plans. Although the health department building on Girard is better,
40 it needs updating.
41
42 Fleetwood asked what it means that the Northwest Annex is rigid. King
43 stated cement walls prevent rearranging the floor plan to accommodate better
44 programmatic functions.
45
46 Brenner asked about the historic value of the building. That building is a
47 very interesting -looking building. King stated the Council, not his company, would
48 set those priorities.
49
Special Committee of the Whole, 8/5/2003, Page 7
1 Brenner asked about changing the use of the building to something that
2 could work. King stated that within the 20-year phasing plan, there is opportunity
3 to use the building. Council feedback will establish to what extent they want to do
4 that. The building is not current to seismic standards. It will cost a lot to update it.
5
6 Brenner asked if they could say that about all historic buildings. King stated
7 they can. As part of the study, they can provide some numbers so the Council has
8 a better understanding about this dollar decision.
9
10 Caskey-Schreiber asked if the land is worth retaining. King stated the
11 resource out there makes it a large target for future facilities. There is potential for
12 that.
13
14 The Girard Street building has about 12,000 square feet. The Civic Center
15 building has about 23,000 square feet, and also has significant upgrades that will
16 be required. To occupy that building, it will likely require a fairly significant cost.
17 The Forest Street Annex is a smaller building that is relatively sound. There are
18 some required system updates.
19
20 The County functions they are trying to locate include a projected current
21 required square footage for the Health Department in the amount of 28,000 square
22 feet. The goal is to find a facility where the Health Department can be in one
23 location. They are looking for 30,000 square feet of space. None of the current
24 County buildings have that amount of space. The question is if they develop the
25 Health Department in the courthouse complex or another, remote, site. The Health
26 Department needs to be accessible to public transportation, so it should be in the
27 civic core.
28
29 The Planning and Public Works departments should be grouped together. In
30 2022, they would need 39,000 square feet of space. None of the current offsite
31 facilities lend themselves well to that need. A major decision as they move ahead
32 on the two options for the master planning is what they do with the existing offsite
33 facilities. There is some opportunity in phasing the master planning options to
34 continue using these facilities. The Health Department building could house the
35 Public Works Department. The area available in the Health Department building on
36 Girard is large enough to accommodate the projected needs for the Public Work
37 general office functions. However, it is optimal to have the Public Works
38 Department sited the same place as the Planning Department. Those two
39 departments can be north of town, but the Health Department needs to be located
40 in town, where public transportation is best.
41
42 One scenario is to put all three in the courthouse expansion center. The
43 County would not use the various current facilities that house these locations. A
44 second scenario is to develop a remote site. A third scenario is to use the Civic
45 Center building to house some of these departments.
46
47 (Clerk's Note: End of tape one, side B.)
48
Special Committee of the Whole, 8/5/2003, Page 8
1 King stated there are opportunities to add to the Civic Center to double the
2 size. That would include converting the existing parking under the building to office
3 space. The problem with this option is that it doesn't accommodate parking.
4 Private property adjacent to the Senior Center on the other side of Whatcom Creek
5 could be used for parking.
6
7 McShane asked about possible parking scenarios at the library. King stated
8 he understands it's not currently one of the preferred locations, although it's a
9 geographically strategic location.
10
11 The fourth and fifth scenarios are to split out the Health Department from
12 the Planning and Public Works departments at various locations.
13
14 A sixth scenario is to put all administrative County functions at a remote site
15 that is not as compact as the Civic Center area, and leave the court functions at the
16 courthouse.
17
18 The driver of the two master plans will be law and justice, but other
19 functions will be a rider. He hoped to get a sense of the direction the Council wants
20 to go.
21
22 Desler stated choosing these scenarios aren't as critical as the two options
23 Mr. Falkin outlined the two different options. These options can be discussed
24 further at the steering committee. The administration can talk further about the
25 options with the Council.
26
27 Falkin stated the first of the two options is whether or not the law and justice
28 operations are removed from the downtown location. Civic Center buildings would
29 be for the administrative services.
30
31 The second option is to have general operations in a remote location and put
32 the criminal justice services at the Civic Center area. To grow, they are talking
33 about having buildings that can grow vertically. That doesn't solve the question of
34 what they do in 2050. Twelve to fourteen story structures are needed for growth
35 by 2022. The question is whether it's appropriate for the dominant downtown
36 structure to be a County corrections and justice facility. Parking is a component of
37 law and justice services. The land isn't there for the volume of parking required at
38 the civic center area. That is one scenario they would study.
39
40 The reverse option is making the downtown facility an administrative
41 complex, and moving law and justice services to a remote location. They have to
42 go through an alternative site review with rational, objective evaluation of very
43 stringent criteria for a remote location. Many criteria preclude siting of a justice
44 facility. That would preempt concerns about inappropriate locations for a law and
45 justice facility. An administrative center may be more compatible with developing
46 arising downtown. The pressure of parking for a law and justice center would be
47 taken to the remote location. His contract would provide an analysis of the
48 positives, negatives, and costs of both options. The costs will be impressive.
49 They've got to phase this intelligently, but they can't lock themselves out of having
Special Committee of the Whole, 8/5/2003, Page 9
1 satisfactory service in the future. Parking is a surprising driver of these issues. It's
2 likely that they will come up with some kind of hybrid of the two options. His
3 challenge is to come up with the most cost-effective and productive solution for the
4 County that incorporates the best of both scenarios.
5
6 Roy stated programs should match facilities. She asked if department heads
7 have been involved and discussed functions. What matters is if the staff can do
8 their jobs better. Desler stated they have been involved. A steering committee of
9 ten department heads is more intimately involved.
10
11 Brenner stated this is a very important decision. They should not even pick
12 these two alternatives at this point. The councilmembers need to read this
13 information. The councilmembers need to get this information ahead of a meeting
14 so they can ask intelligent questions. She is very concerned that they get this
15 much material about these enormous decisions at the last minute.
16 Councilmembers need to realize that criminal justice functions need to be kept
17 downtown if there is any way to do so. People are used to having it where it is
18 now.
19
20 Caskey-Schreiber stated that the councilmembers have been aware of the
21 issues. She supports exploring the feasibility of going offsite. The question is if
22 these services need to be in downtown Bellingham. They might not. Moving to an
23 offsite design would afford the County room to grow. Until they answer whether or
24 not moving criminal justice services is feasible, they can't make decisions on the
25 Health, Planning, and Public Works departments.
26
27 Nelson stated the decision they are asking for is whether or not the two
28 scenarios they've outlined are ones that they need answers to. He would like to
29 look into whether or not law and justice could be maintained in the downtown
30 corridor, the costs, occupancy, geological and building factors, and transportation
31 needs. Look at a remote law and justice center with administration remaining
32 downtown, and look at transportation and infrastructure needs and communication
33 systems. There will be possible hybrid solutions, so they are not making a
34 definitive decision. The Council is allowing the group to proceed to gather that
35 information. Falkin stated the Council would have a good opportunity to challenge
36 and review these findings during phase three.
37
38 Roy stated she supports the group going ahead and looking at the two
39 options. The Council needs more information before it makes a decision.
40
41 Brenner stated the councilmembers are being spoon-fed an already -formed
42 opinion. This is not an objective way to do this. They have a huge amount of
43 money invested in this courthouse, more than should have been spent. The public
44 will be irate if they put criminal justice somewhere else and making this useful only
45 for aesthetics. Keep the criminal justice facilities downtown. She liked the idea of
46 the Planning and Public Works department located together.
47
48 McShane stated there is general support for evaluating the two scenarios
49 and possibly coming up with a hybrid scenario.
Special Committee of the Whole, 8/5/2003, Page 10
1
2 Fleetwood stated he agrees with going forward with the study. He also
3 agreed with keeping law and justice downtown. The vast majority of the lawyers
4 are located downtown.
5
6 McShane stated it sounds like there is consensus to go ahead with phase
7 three and looking at these scenarios.
8
9 Caskey-Schreiber stated some of the courthouse activities ought to remain in
10 the courthouse, but there are financial advantages to a jail layout that is spread out
11 versus going up. It can be staffed easier that way. Staff needs to visibly see the
12 inmates, which is difficult when there are different floors. Falkin stated the study
13 will include capital impacts and advantages to operations. Operations costs are 90
14 percent of the cost over 40 years, not capital costs.
15
16 Brenner stated she doesn't want to see the court system be separated by
17 much from the jail system. The extra risk to the community by transporting
18 criminals is not what she wants. Have the court system and detention system
19 close.
20
21
22 OTHER BUSINESS
23
24 Dewey Desler, Deputy Administrator, stated another issue is the temporary
25 jail facility, which he will report on during the Finance Committee today.
26
27 McShane suggested they discuss it now.
28
29 Desler stated HDR Engineering found there was a feasible alternative to the
30 temporary jail space they had planned. Something could be constructed on a
31 separate site on the County's own, without having to lease a facility. There are
32 savings in operations and construction costs over the life of the building.
33
34 Harris Falkin, HDR Engineering, stated the cost of a temporary facility was
35 $2.6 million. That cost doesn't make sense for an eight -year lease. The same type
36 of facility for 30 years that is owned by the County would cost $3.3 million. The
37 County should do this project so it controls and owns the facility.
38
39 Desler stated the administration is not asking for a decision today, but will
40 come to the Council soon with more detailed recommendations. It does require
41 going to the public to talk about revenue. They can't afford to operate at additional
42 capacity without talking to the public about how to generate that revenue.
43
44 McShane stated a great concern is that the jail is filled and people are turned
45 away. The possibility of a temporary solution includes shipping some inmates
46 outside of the county, such as to the Yakima County facility. He would want to
47 discuss why that is not happening. Developing a temporary facility will take time
48 anyway, and there is a need right now.
49
Special Committee of the Whole, 8/5/2003, Page 11
1 Desler stated cost is about $50 to $55 per day. There is resistance on the
2 part of many law enforcement agencies to use a facility such as the one in Yakima
3 County because of the restrictions and criteria on the use of their space for other
4 prisoners. The costs and the potential restrictions put the breaks on the use of
5 those facilities.
6
7 McShane stated he would like a better understanding of those restrictions.
8 The County charges a fee to the City for housing the City's inmates.
9
10 Desler stated they want to have a solution that includes alternative
11 corrections embedded into the master facilities planning process so it is part of the
12 solution. There are ways of dealing with it, assuming they can generate revenue
13 and get support from cities. They can also have flexibility in the future to use land
14 they acquire for another purpose or selling it to the private sector.
15
16 Roy stated they have had a lot of discussion about alternatives. The Council
17 has looked at people who are incarcerated to make sure the County wasn't
18 incarcerating people that shouldn't be. Speed on this project is important. They
19 looked at a lot of these issues. The County can't do alternative sentencing unless
20 an inmate is booked. An inmate can't be booked unless he or she comes forward
21 with citation in hand. They don't go out and find them. This is a very critical issue.
22 They need to move very quickly. She asked if they can't move on this unless they
23 get the money up front. Desler stated that is not what he is saying. They need to
24 be expeditious, however, this is a project of such magnitude that the County is not
25 staffed for working on it. The County needs to do it right. The administration
26 doesn't want to create another disaster. There are things they can do starting
27 today, in advance of the critical decisions that the public needs to be involved for,
28 so this facility can be constructed and operational according to the proposed
29 timeline. This is a key thing identified in the budget review session in June. If
30 construction is a high priority, then the County needs to identify the services it
31 won't deliver to do these other things. The County is not so elastic that it can take
32 on large projects like this.
33
34 Roy stated this is a basic need. Their role as a County government is to
35 provide a safe community. Health and safety are the reasons they are here. It is
36 their mission and role. They need to find a way to pay for it, not take it from other
37 areas. They need to do this.
38
39 Brenner stated Sheriff Elfo told the Council that the temporary building
40 would pay for itself. She knew that this would happen. Go with the building they
41 said they would go with. Don't suddenly change midstream. Desler stated the cost
42 to construct the site would be $1 million and it would cost another $1.2 million to
43 lease the facility. The County can construct a facility without the lease costs. The
44 project becomes less expensive and more flexible.
45
46 Bill Elfo, Sheriff, stated the estimate was for $500,000 to do construction.
47 The $2.2 million includes the lease payments for the duration of the lease and the
48 construction cost. He had planned on using inmate labor to do some of the
49 construction. However, the consultants recommended not doing that for a variety
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of reasons. Another issue is that the Port of Bellingham has imposed some
additional requirements, such as sidewalks and landscaping, that has added to the
potential cost of the site. In retrospect, looking at the two options, he agrees with
administration about doing an alternative site. He wants to move as rapidly as they
can. Regarding using a Yakima facility, they can do that with sentenced prisoners,
not people that have not been sentenced yet.
McShane stated he appreciated Sheriff Elfo pushing the County on getting
going on a temporary jail.
Brenner asked where the site is located. Desler stated the County doesn't
own one. The administration would come back with recommendations.
Caskey-Schreiber stated this is an obligation the County needs to fill, even if
they need to raise revenues. She asked if it would take a couple of years to move
in. Desler stated it would.
Caskey-Schreiber stated she appreciated the contractor looking at this
project to see if the Port site is viable. This other option will be an asset to the
county. She asked the administration to make this project a reality as soon as
possible.
Nelson stated that if this is an option, it be should incorporated into the
master facilities plan options. Desler stated it would be.
Nelson stated he hoped the administration has the flexibility in its staff to do
planning for future functions.
ADJOURN
The meeting adjourned at 12:23 p.m.
Jill Nixon, Minutes Transcription
These minutes were approved by Council on September 9 , 2003.
ATTEST:
Dana Brown -Davis, Council Clerk
WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL
WHATCOM COUNTY, WASHINGTON
Dan McShane, Council Chair
Special Committee of the Whole, 8/5/2003, Page 13