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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 01-21-2010 - 6dORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT Meeting Date: January 21, 2010 Action Agenda Item No. (p -~ SUBJECT: Reallocation of Space at the Whiffed Buildin DEPARTMENT: Asset Management & Purchasing Services, County Manager PUBLIC HEARING: (Y/N) No ATTACHMENT(S): Whiffed Building Floor Plans Orange County Schools Correspondence INFORMATION CONTACT: Frank Clifton, County Manager, (919) 245-2300 Pam Jones, Asset Management & Purchasing Services, (919) 245-2652 PURPOSE: To consider endorsing the Manager's recommended reallocation of space within the Whiffed Building. BACKGROUND: With the recent relocation of Social Services to the newly upfit leased space at Hillsborough Commons, much of the Whiffed Building is vacant. As the Board is aware, the Manager is recommending the space be used to the maximum extent possible to accommodate Orange County Schools, the Health Department and Housing/Community Development. To that end, the Manager is recommending space within the Whiffed Building be reallocated as follows: 1. Basement level of Building A will be allocated for use by the Health Department (see attached drawing #1). This reallocation of space will enable the Health Department to develop clinic space to meet operational space requirements for the next three to five years, pending future decisions relative to the Hillsborough Commons project. The Health Director has expressed an interest in moving medical clinical services to the expansion area, thereby providing some much needed expansion area for the Dental Clinic. Dental Clinic expansion in Hillsborough would allow the County to release the leased space in Carr Mill Mall at least by expiration of the lease in December 2011. OPC Mental Health contractors currently occupying space on this level will be encouraged to seek alternative arrangements in order to allow the orderly development of clinic space on the lower level. z 2. Offices on the second level of Building B will be allocated for use by the Housing and Community Development Offices (see attached drawing #4) and will provide sufficient operational space, pending future decisions on space at Hillsborough Commons. The records room previously used by the Department of Social Services (DSS) will remain intact and assigned to DSS at this time. Some offices will remain unallocated on this floor pending future Manager recommended relocations. 3. As proposed, the second and third levels of Building A will be allocated to Orange County Schools Administration (see attached drawings #2 and #3). As Commissioners will note from the attached correspondence use of the Whiffed space by the Board of Education will allow the school system to consolidate administrative staff currently housed at four school sites. This will in turn allow the repurposing of approximately 14 classrooms (approximately 14,700 square feet) for instructional use. FINANCIAL IMPACT: Health Department Renovations of clinic space will be kept to a minimum using available Medicaid Maximization funds. Preliminary estimates indicate renovation costs will be in a range $200,000--$250,000, with an additional estimated $50,000 allocated for equipment costs. It should be noted that equipment such as dental chairs, x-ray equipment, etc. would transfer to future facilities as they are developed. Development of architectural estimates within the coming months will pinpoint costs more specifically. The annual $113,000 lease payment for space at Carr Mill Mall is shared by the Dental Clinic (52%) and the Public Defender (48°f°). The relocation of the Dental Clinic will allow the portion of the rent to be reallocated for other important needs following the expiration of the lease. An alternative location for the Public Defender will be sought by the expiration of the lease as well. Orange County Schools Upfit cost for space allocated for use by Orange County Schools appears to be minimal and would be borne by the school system. It is likely the most positive financial impact of this action is the ability to defer capital costs for construction of additional classroom space, estimated in excess of $3 million. The Superintendent and the AMPS Director will develop a mutually acceptable means of expense allocation for the Whitted Building operations to become effective July 1, 2010. RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends the Board endorse the allocations as stated. J ~~ ~ v~~ .~ ~I ! Cr.~. ntu: ~ ~ ~..... ....r. (1,~, p 9p ' ~'j } ......... ...............l.~.._...._t. I~ ------: 44...... (Li ct~A~~ L- . w K t'IiG1`~ ~lvr'1 A ^~ S ~ ~ ~ c~S `~' gvic-~ r~ G- r3~S~.,~.~~J i W Draw ~--~ ~ ~ ScCOND PLOCR ?! i.N ~-c-~~a~o L. wry t ~t~~ ^~ScCONp FLGQR PLAt: 'a ~ ~vaf...~ i X16 - SC-LorJD r~ncz CP,~~vcodSc.Y ~,)s5 a=~u~s) ~, ~ W i.{, ~Go ~[_-1 ~ SECOND FLOOR PLAN n-c l~~~~~ ~~.(LU~~S FIRST FLOOP. PLAN A_y .~n -~'M -N~O~~ X r~BASEMENT FLOOR PLAN 4--~-•.--~----ter 2~{~ ~~l~t ~ir~g ~~~~~~ G, Patrick Rhodes (919) 732-8126 Telephone Superintendent (919) 732-8120 Fax December 17, 2009 www.orange,Itl2.nc.us Orange County Board of County Commissioners 200 South Cameron Street PO Box 8181 Hillsborough, NC 27278 Dear Commissioners: This letter serves as a forma{ request by the Orange County Board of Education to ut~7ize the vacated space in the Richard E. Whined building. Two previous requests are attached. The N The administrative offices of Orange County Schools are scattered in multiple buildings around the county. The Hoard of Education buiding ai 200 East King Street (6,210 sq. feet) Is Insufficient to house the district's support staff. As a result, 32 support personnel (Vocational Education Director, Child Nutrition Services, Technology Services, Elementary and Secrondary Edueatbn Directors, Director of Testing & AccounfabAity, Director of Special Education, eteJ are can-entry housed in four different schools and occupy 14 classrooms. This lack of sufficient space for support staff was described in detail as part of a space analysis conducted by SFLA Architects in 2007. In order to remedy Ehis prob{em, the study recommended construction of a new 31,700 square feet facility estimated to cost $3.8 mlflion. These 14 classrooms represent 14,700 square feef of useable teaching space and c~u1d potentially be used to provide for up to 250 ch~dren. By relocating the district's support personnel, the district will better accommodate student growth. This wilt delay the need to construct new classrooms or purchase mobs{e units as the student population increases. Other Benefits: There are also positive benefits to having operations! staff in dose warking proximity. Relocation of Orange County Schools' departments to the Whined Building wilt reduce travel reimbursements, create meeting space, promote collaboration, and allow far maximization of clerical staff. The current Board of Education meeting room is compatailvely small to other public boardrooms with a rnax)rnum capacity of 44. Conducting board or staff meetings in schools generates indirect costs such as custodial overtime and heating and cx~oling expenses. The vacant library wilt create essential meeting space necessary for the public's access to board meetings. Thank you for considering this request. Please let me know should there be any additional informafion that we can provide to assist w)th your deliberations focused on this matter. Sinc~eriely, Anne Medenblik, Board Chair t ~r G~~ G, Patrick Rhodes, Superintendent cc: Board of Education Frank Clifton Attachments: Summary of SFIA Recommendation Memo from Dr. Goorge McFariey dated 11/3/09 irevious letters to Orange County staff requesting use of Whined building 8~ The Administration Offices of Orange County Schools is currently scattered in muitipte buildings around the Gounty. One building houses the Superintendent, Assistant Superintendents, Human Resources, and Finance. Other departments are Paused in various Schools around the County. In an effort to increase efficiency and reduce operating costs, it was decided to consolidate most of the Administrative Offices into one building. To help in this effort, SfL+a Architects was hired to provide a preliminary space analysis to determine the size and cost of a new building. To determine the space requirements for each Department, SfL+a Architects conducted interviews with the Directors of the Departments. Those interviews determined the amount of people to accommodate,, space requirements for each person, spatial relationships with other Departments and with the Public, furniture and equipment needs, and any other special considerations, The Departments to be housed in the new Administration Building are as follows: 0 Accountability and Data Services o Exceptional Children ~ CTE and Secondary Instruction ~ Finance © Child Nutrition 0 Healthful Living o Curriculum Coordinators ® Human Resources ® Elementary Education m Technology Also housed in the new building will be the Superintendent's Suite, two Assistant Superintendent's Suites, and the Board Room for public meetings of the School Board. The most efficient scheme for the new Administration Office is a one story building. it is this solution that was used for the square footage calculation and the cost estimate. The special relationships could work for a two story scheme if the new site was constricted. The two story scheme would have a total square footage larger than a single story scheme and would cost tir-ore. The one story scheme is approximately 31,750 square feet and would cast, if built this year, approximately $3.1i million. We would recommend a 5-7 percent inflation factor per year in determining a future budget. Included in this report is the space analysis for each Department with accompanying spatial block diagrams and proposed suite layouts. After all of the individual suite layouts is a conceptual building layout that includes support spaces. The last page is a Preliminary Cost Estimate showing Construction Costs and a Total Project Cost, ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OP EDUCATIOI~I INTL+ItOFFICE MEMORANDCIM TO. ANNE DIEDE+NBLIK CIIAIK, OKANGL? COUNTY BOARD OF L;DUCATION FROD4: GF.QRGE MCFARLEY, Jti. CAiEF OPEI2AT~IG OFFICEK SUBJECT: CEN'l1tAI.OItFiCE STAFF SPACL7 STUDY ISSUk?S DATE: NO~~IiRiRIitt 3, 2009 CC: ~~ALELiIB FOUSIIIIG+; PA7'KICK ItIIODIS; FRANK CL IF'tON Currently, 32 Central Office staff members are housed in a nun2bex of different locations within indi<~idual school buildings. In most cases, these staff members are located in school classrooms. A'1`TACIiMENT 1 lists these individuals, their office location, and their major job responsibilities. Several of the directorates have specific facility needs, e.g. limited access, a secure stoxage area for testing materials and confidential files. Ali of the directorates listed in AZTACHNIENT 1 require an area where confidenpal conversations can take place with parents, students, and/or other staff members. The spaces occupied by Central Offtee staff members in the individual schools work well for those staff members within the specific space, but in addition to the limitations listed above, these spaces lack the proximity needed for more collaboration with other district staff metnbexs. The itnpartance of close staff' coordination should not be minimized. With the Central Office staff members located throug~tout the county, txaveGng from otle location to another consumes valuable work lima There was no reasoned plan executed to place Central Office staff members where they are. When the decision vas trade in 2003 to xeno~ntte Hillsborough Elementary School, those Centt~al Office staff members located there were simply moved to any available space in the district \C/e need to develop some type of coherent plan for locating those Central Office stafimembers not currently able to fit into the existing Central Office. A~lorc importantly, at some point aad tithe, we are going to have to dealwith the issue of classroom space being used as Central Office staff spaces, espeaally as student growth continues iii our cletnentary schools. The bottom Iine is that approximately 15,000 square feet of classtoom space could be reclaimed for its intended purpose if au alternative location could be secured. 10 ~0® ~~ i~~ ~t~~~t ~3Ca~lslb®;r®u~~, ~ 2727 G. Patrick Rhodes Superintendent I~Fovember 7, .200$ I+'IEMCrRANDITIVT 7E'~: Laura Blackiu,on County Manager ~'R®M: Steve Hallciotis Chair, Orange County Board of Education Patrick Rhodes Superintendent ~~3ECT: Request iior space in the Vt~t:itted $uilding wear La'a.Fa, (919) 732-8126 Telephone (919) 732-8120 Fax www. orange.kl 2.nc. us ps county agencies move out ofthe Whitted Building on Tiyon Sheet; we are requesting the opportunity to utilize the vacated space. ~unentiy, we have a large number ofdistrict-level support staffplaced in various schools ~hronghout tie district. This l~.as resulted in class:aom space. Going used far non-teaching activities. . ,p~ttached •is a copy of a letter to the Board of County Commissioners dated April 21, 200$ which makes a similar request. please kt us know if you need additional information Sincerely, ~~ Steve Halki zs Board Chair Patrick Rhodes Superintendent Cc. Board of Education 11 `~ra~ge ~auuty SO~CI of April 21, 200$ Educa~ioxa Board~lvlembers: Orange County Board of County Commissioners P.Q. Box 8281 Ted'lYiebet, Chair Hillsborough, NC 272?8 Debbie Piscitetti, Vice Chair EGzalxth Brown susan Hallman I}ear Commissioners, A] Hartkopf Anne Medenblik ~; Future Use Of Whltted Building • It has come to our attention that portions of the space in the Whiffed Building on Cr. PatrickXhodes Tryon Street may beco>une available between 200$ and 2010. Currently Orange Superintendent County Schools district-level support staff are located in classroom space throughout the district. The system is in need of a common work axes for staff. This need has been reflected in the February 2007 Administrative )?aoility Study and in the Orange 2A0 Ease Ku3g strut County Schools' Capital Improvement Plan. F[Illsborough, NC 27278 Telephone: 919-732-8124 Should building space become available, Orange County Schools would appreciate FAX: 919-732-8120 being a part of discussions associated with the Tryon Street complex. Please let us know if you need any additional information. We would also ask that you have the County Manager notify Superintendent Rhodes as to vtThen tl~ese discussions might take place. Sincerely, T~rfe"be G. Patrick Rhodes Board Chair Superintendent lpmc Orturge CountySciioola "ProvWing edr~caflonal opporfwaflies jor sercces;fidfiKUres. "