Civic Campus Plan

In July 2017, San Juan County solicited Requests for Qualifications from qualified consultants to develop a campus master plan on county-owned property in Friday Harbor, San Juan Island. The County wishes to consolidate a number of county departments and functions currently housed in a number of aged facilities into a single new facility that supports and facilitates county operations, provides for civic (community) use, and reflects the County’s sustainable energy ethic.  The County entered into a contract with consulting firm Miller/Hull Partnership LLP to work with the county to help develop a proposed, preferred building site and design for a new building. 

BACKGROUND:

San Juan County’s functions are housed in a variety of facilities and sites that have developed sporadically over time.  Administration, Community Development, Health and Community Services, several Elected Official offices, and Public Works functions are located in several facilities in the Town of Friday Harbor. The current configuration does not support efficient operations or customer service. A new Civic Campus is being designed to bring these departments together to increase efficiencies, reduce operating costs, and provide better service to County residents. The new Campus will also provide new inside and outside spaces for community use.  Other functions such as the Prosecuting Attorney, District, and Superior Courts and Sheriff’s Office will continue to be located in the Courthouse.

The current project is to develop a plan for the new Civic Campus. The plan will detail how County departments and functions are to be incorporated into a new single facility and include community space to support public gathering and programming. The planning process will include producing two design concepts on two potential sites and then further developing one preferred alternative on the selected site.

We want to be transparent with the public during this planning process and ensure that the preferred alternative reflects an understanding of community priorities in addition to County staff priorities and departmental needs. To this end, an online survey form seeking input from the community about this project was available for 24 days in March. Thanks to the 272 people that completed the community survey which closed on March 23rd.  The responses will assist the county in the initial design concepts for a new Civic Campus.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ) can be found in our Civic Plan FAQs.

PUBLIC INFORMATION AND INVOLVEMENT: 

Community Survey #1 – In order to be transparent with the public during the initial planning process and ensure that the preferred alternatives reflect an understanding of community priorities, in addition to County departmental needs, an online survey was available for 24 days in March.  Thank you to the 272 people that completed the community survey which closed on March 23rd.  The responses were used to help draft the initial design concepts presented to the County Council.

County Council Meeting – July 10, 2018 – Online presentation to the County Council by Miller Hull Architect consultant on the two preferred concept alternatives.  Link to council video.  (Click on an agenda item that starts at 12:55 p.m.)  Link to the SAN JUAN COUNTY MASTER PLAN. 

County Council Meeting – July 16, 2018 – Discussion and decision by the County Council with the goal of selecting a preferred site location.  The Council unanimously selected Site A which is located between 1st and 2nd Streets between the Courthouse and San Juan Community Theatre.  Link to council video.  (Click on an agenda item that starts at 11:08 a.m.)

County Council Meeting – August 21, 2018 – Virtual Open House - Online presentation of the alternative design concepts to the County Council by Miller Hull Architect consultant and launch of the 2nd community survey to gather feedback on the alternative design concepts.  Link to council video.  (Click on “9:19 a.m. DISCUSSION” agenda item and the video presentation starts at 9:26 a.m.)  Link to the Executive Summary Document. 

Community Survey #2 – In conjunction with the Virtual Open House, the county had a 2nd survey that solicited public feedback on the alternative design concept presented in the Virtual Open House.  The survey ended on September 12, 2018, and the consultants will provide the county with the survey results at the end of September.  The survey results will be considered and incorporated into the anticipated schematic design step in 2019.  Thanks to all that participated in the survey!

County Council Meeting – September 10, 2018 – Miller Hull provided an in-person presentation and discussion with the Council where they gave a brief summary about the alternative design concept, provided information on previously identified questions, provided total project cost estimate information, and discussed next steps in the planning process. Link to council video.   (Click on an agenda item that starts at 10:45 a.m.) Click for the presentation materials.

Final Report - The county received a final report from Miller Hull on the conceptual design phase of the Civic Campus planning project in early October.

FUTURE STEPS

The county has approved capital expenditure appropriations in its 2019 budget to perform the schematic design (30% design) step.  However, the 2019 Budget also includes a proviso stating that additional, preliminary work will be performed and provided to the County Council prior to undertaking the schematic design work.