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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 8.4 AlaCoJuvenileHall CITY CLERK FILE # 420-50 110-30 AGENDA STATEMENT CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: January 16, 2001 SUBJECT: Alameda County Juvenile Hall / East County Government Center. Report Prepared by: Richard C Ambrose, City Manager ATTACHMENTS: 1. Staff Report to Alameda County Board of Supervisors, dated December 15, 2000 RECOMMENDATION: 1. Direct staff to monitor County' s actions on Juvenile Hall and East County Government Center. Api~oint an ad-hoc committee of the Council to meet with representatives from the County Board of Supervisors to discuss the use of the Santa Rita Property. FINANCIAL STATEMENT: None at this time. DESCRIPTION: On December 15, 2000 the Alameda County Board of Supervisors approved taking the initial steps to locate a new Juvenile Justice Facility on property owned by Alameda County located between Gleason Drive and Broder Boulevard. The Board of Supervisors also directed County Staff to prepare a grant application to the California Board of Corrections for funding the Juvenile Justice Facility and to continue developing a financing plan for the project. City Staff met with County Staff on January 10, 2001 to learn more regarding the County's reasons for pursuing a Juvenile Justice Facility on the Santa Rita Property at this time, and gather more specific information regarding the County' s plans for the property. The County Staff provided City Staff with the following information: The current Juvenile Justice Facility in San Leandro is overcrowded and in poor condition. The County has identified a need to build a new Juvenile Justice Facility with 540 beds, which is nearly twice the capacity of the existing 300 bed facility. g:agenda/2OO1/AlamecountyJuvsr COPIES TO: County Administrator ITEM NO._~4 Recent extensive geotechnical studies performed by Alameda County on the current Juvenile Justice site in San Leandro have caused the County to conclude that it is not feasible or desirable to build the existing facility. The County has previewed a few sites in the County and has initially determined that the Santa Rita location is the most viable site for the Juvenile Justice Facility for the following reasons: The property is already designed for Governmental Uses in the City's General Plan. It does not have the geological constraints as the existing site. The project could proceed more expeditiously through the Planning process which would enable the County to compete for a state grant. In order to qualify for state funding, the County has to have a site identified. The grant application to the state is due on February 20, 2001 and the expected Grant Award is in May 2001. The estimated cost of the facility is $175 million It would enable the County to reduce operating costs associated with transportation to the Courts from both Santa Rita and the new Juvenile Justice Facility, as well 'as reduce food and laundry service costs. The County is in the initial planning stages for East County Government Center which would include courts adjacent to the proposed Juvenile Justice Facility and also between Gleason and Broder Boulevard. The total site including the existing berm is approximately 40 acres. The Juvenile Justice Facility would occupy approximately 16 of the 40 acres. Juveniles released from the facility can only be released into the custody of the parents. They cannot be released into the Community. The County is evaluating options to provide transportation to and from BART for parents who visit their children at the facility. BACKGROUND: At the time of City Incorporation in 1982 the Santa Rita Property was located outside the boundaries of City of Dublin. In 1985 the City was able to overcome objections of Alameda County to annex public lands including the Santa Rita Property, Camp Parks and the East Bay Regional Park District Property as part of the public lands annexation. The City Council recognized at that time that the future of the eastern portion of the City, could only occur by accomplishing this public lands annexation which had the City land locked to the east. As a condition of annexation the County imposed a number of restrictions on the City with respect to land use control on the Santa Rita Property. Those restrictions were identified in the City' s initial annexation agreement with the County in 1986 and in a subsequent amendment to the agreement, which was adopted by the City in May 1993. The County of Alameda proposes to locate the Juvenile Justice Facility on property designated as County/Governmental property in the annexation agreement. The annexation agreement provides any Governmental uses proposed for the County/Governmental property shall be reviewed by the City Planning Commission for conformity with the City General Plan in accordance with the state law and shall be subject to Site Development Review in accordance with the City' s Zoning Ordinance. The agreement further states that the County shall be the lead agency for the purposes of CEQA review and that the City and County will share the costs associated with processing the Site' Development Review equally. In 1994 the City adopted the Eastern Dublin Specific Plan which identified a County Center land use noah of Gleason Drive and light industrial uses immediately south of Gleason Drive which buffered the residential area from the County governmental property. The 1994 plan was modified in 1996. The 1996 modification relocated both the residential and industrial land uses placing the residential uses closer to the County Governmental Center. The Eastern Dublin Specific Plan indicates that the County Center sub area is intended to provide a compatible land use between the Santa Rita Jail to the north and residential uses proposed to the south. The public/semi-public designated area north of Gleason Drive is intended to accommodate private / government related uses, including existing uses such as the California Highway Patrol Regional Headquarters, the Alameda County Sheriffs Training Academy, and the Public Works Department Fueling Station incorporation yard, and such potential uses as an Agriculture Commission office, a Tri Valley Animal Shelter, a multi-use County Training Center and a possible courthouse complex. Recommendation: Staff recommends that the City Council direct staff to monitor County's actions on Juvenile Hall and East County Government Center. Staff also recommends that the Council should consider appointing an ad-hoc committee of the Council to meet with the representatives from the Board of Supervisors to discuss the future use of the Santa Rita property. CO UNTY AGENDA ADMIN! December 19, 2000 STR,ATOR SUSAN S. MURANISHI COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR December 15, 2000 DONNA LINTON Ae$1STANT COUNTY ADI',41NISTRATOR Honorable Board of Supervisors Administration Building Oakland, CA 94612 Dear Board Members: SUBJECT: Approve Site Selection for New Juvenile Justice Facility RECOMMENDATION: In order to proceed with an application for funding for the proposed Alameda County Juvenile Justice Facility, it is requested: , That your Board approve a building site for the Juvenile Justice Facility located on a portion of the County-owned Santa Rita property between Gleason Drive and Broder Boulevard; and Direct the County Administrator to prepare a grant application to the California Board of Corrections for funding for the juvenile justice facility, including the required resolution attesting to the County's possession of a suitable project site, and to continue developing a financing plan for this project. SUMMARY: In September 2000 the California Board of Corrections issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for Juvenile Local Detention Facility Construction Grants. Qne of the requirements of the RFP is that the County possess a suitable project site at the time of the expected grant award on May 17, 2001. ApplicatiOns are due to the Board of Corrections by February 20, 2001. With this timeline, a decision on site selection must be made now to allow the Project Team to prepare the grant application using cost estimates specific to the selected site. Careful cost estimating is critical at the proposal stage as the RFP response must be translated after grant award into formal architectural drawings and'construction plans that will meet operational, fire safety and physical plant standards in conformance with State requirements. DISCUSSION: On June 27, 2000 (Item #33, File # 14723) you[ Board authorized award of a contract to Subsurface Consultants, Inc. and directed GSA to proceed with site investigation of the San Leandro 'site. As that work progressed, it became apparent that the San. Leandro site has physical features that 'will significantly limit development of the Juvenile Justice Facility. The. San Leandro site presents several major factors which will impact construction costs: the presence of "no build" zones due to fault traces that run through the property; steep topography which will require substantial grading and building of retaining walls and the presence of wetlands. All of these factors limit the available acreage and force a facility design that is linear and less flexible in terms of operations. ATTACHMENTI 1221 OAK STREET · SUITE 555 · OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA 94612 * (510) 272-6984 FAX (510) 272-3784 Hon. Board of Supervisors -2- - December 14, 2000 After discussion and review of these factors, your Board directed GSA to review other sites for evaluation, including a portion of the County-owned Santa Rita property. It is the GSA Director'S professional opinion that the Santa Rita site offers a better buildable area and would allow more options for the configuration and siting of buildings to better meet program needs, such as recreation, school and other programs. Construction cost savings could range between $6-$9 million when compared to the San Leandro site. In addition, this site provides an opportunity to share services already located on the property, such as food and laundry services and emergency response. Inclusion of this project in the development of this property is consistent with and may enhance the County' s contemplated plans for an East County government Center. The Juvenile Justice Facility Steering Committee, which includes stakeholder representatives from Probation, Superior Court, District Attorney, Public Defender, Sheriff, Health Care Services, Community Development Agency, County Office of Education and the Juvenile Justice/Delinquency Prevention Commission, participated in the site evaluation. While the County Office of Education requested additional time to review the options, there was general consensus that the Santa Rita Site was preferred. Stakeholders expressed concerns about the distance families and court visitors must travel to reach the Santa Rita site and recommended that a plan to improve access to transportation be developed. The new facility will offer savings by consolidating juvenile courts and reduce the need to transport minors to various court locations in the County. These savings could be made available to mitigate the transportation concerns. The County Administrator shares this concern and is committed to developing a plan to improve public access to the site. FINANCING: No f'mancial adjustments are necessary at this time. The County Administrator will continue to work on financing strategies. State/federal grant funds are expected to be awarded in May 2001. To the extent the County is successful in securing grant funding for this project, the need for debt financing can be reduced. Very truly yours, Susan S. Muranishi County Administrator Aki Nakho Director, General Services Agency SSM:JW:cp V:\jw~siteselection.doc c:'.',:~ Juvenile Justice Facility Steering Committee