AGENDA DATE: 11/16/2017
TITLE:
Title
Government Operations/Courts Relocation Opportunities Analysis - Adjacency report review and closed meeting to review Public Private Partnership Scenarios
BODY
SUBJECT/PROPOSAL/REQUEST: Progress update by the consultant and staff on the status of work related to evaluation to analyze the feasibility, cost, benefits, partnership opportunities and other impacts to relocate Courts and/or County Administrative functions to a County location.
ITEM TYPE: Regular Information Item
STAFF CONTACT(S): Walker, Letteri, Henry
PRESENTER (S): Trevor Henry
LEGAL REVIEW: Not Required
REVIEWED BY: Jeffrey B. Richardson
BACKGROUND: Albemarle County has been engaged for some time in a thorough analysis and assessment of the County’s future court needs and the best way to meet those needs. The Board of Supervisors discussed five potential options last October 24, 2016 and took public comment. The court expansion project reflects a major investment of County funds and is the most expensive project in the County’s Capital Improvement Program budget; therefore, the Board is particularly interested in ensuring all options have been properly vetted and giving County taxpayers an opportunity to review the identified options and provide comment.
There are two Courts options primarily remaining in consideration.
• Option 1: Renovation of the existing downtown courts complex for the Circuit Court and expansion of the General District Court on the Levy Opera House parcel, which is co-owned by the County and City of Charlottesville.
• Option 5: Build a new General District Court, Circuit Court and associated functions on a parcel in Albemarle County’s designated development area, presumptive location identified as the Rio Road/Route 29 area.
The Board established in its November 2, 2016 resolution that the Courts project, in any scenario, must ensure the fair and equitable administration of justice. The Board also directed staff to investigate the potential to which this project could promote its highest strategic priorities of urban development, redevelopment and revitalization. The Board additionally directed staff to further analyze the extent to which Option 5 would be sufficient to encourage a developer to enter a public/private partnership (P3) integrating the Courthouse and/or County Office Building as part of or adjacent to a larger mixed-use development.
At the December 14, 2016 Board meeting, staff presented a proposed process for moving forward with the exploration of a P3 to relocate the courts and/or County administration to a site in Albemarle County. At the conclusion of the presentation, the Board directed staff to proceed as proposed. Staff then developed a Request for Proposal (RFP) and proceeded with the solicitation process to contract with a Development Services Advisor during the spring; an RFP review committee selected and contracted with Stantec Consulting Services in June 2017. At the November 8, 2017 Board meeting, staff and Stantec presented an update on the analysis work in progress including a review of the Board’s feedback on decision-making criteria that will help frame the ultimate decision-making process. Stantec presented Program Analysis information on the County Office Building and Courts options that will feed into the Fiscal Impact Model and laid out the procurement process for a P3.
STRATEGIC PLAN: Infrastructure Investment: Prioritize, plan, and invest in critical infrastructure that responds to past and future changes and improves the capacity to serve community needs. Thriving Development Areas: Attract quality employment, commercial, and high density residential uses into development areas by providing services and infrastructure that encourage redevelopment and private investment while protecting the quality of neighborhoods. This work directly supports two strategic plan initiatives: Redevelop Rio/Route 29 Intersection Area; and By June 2019, establish direction, complete design, and be under construction for the project to expand the General District.
DISCUSSION:
The deliverables of the Developer Advisory work are:
1) Review data related to Option 1 with a specific focus on understanding the adjacencies of the Courts to the City Courts and impacts of separating them through an adjacency study.
2) Analyze the feasibility, cost, benefits and other impacts of Option 5, with the following sub-options:
• Court House Complex Only
• County Office Administrative Building Only
• Combined facility
The purpose of today’s work session is to finish a review of content provided to the Board in advance of the Nov 8th work session. Staff along with the National Centers for State Courts (NCSC) consultant, who lead the Courts Adjacency study, will present a summary of findings from the Adjacency study and respond to Board questions. Staff and consultants from Stantec will also answer any follow up questions related to the Programming Analysis from the November 8th work session. The Board will then go to a closed meeting to discuss specific P3 potential scenarios related to site-specific locations in the Rio/29 area.
Staff will also update the Board on the next four weeks of the process, including the December schedule, the timing of deliverables of final documentation, work session, public hearing and proposed meeting for Board action/direction to staff on next steps.
BUDGET IMPACT: There are no budget impacts at this time.
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
This material is being presented for informational purposes. Staff welcomes any Board feedback or questions.
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