MINUTES OF THE JOINT INFORMAL MEETING OF JOHNSON COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE COORDINATING COMMITTEE:
JANUARY 6, 2010
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Report on Activities of Committee Coordinator......................................................................... 1
Report from Alternatives and Treatments Subcommittee........................................................... 1
Report from Facilities Subcommittee........................................................................................ 2
Presentation by Novak Design Group Architect Jim Novak Regarding Space Needs Analysis 2
Report from Funding/Grants Subcommittee.............................................................................. 4
Additional Comments from Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee Members.......................... 4
Set Next Meeting Date........................................................................................................... 5
Board of Supervisors Chairperson Sally Stutsman called the joint meeting of the Johnson County Board of Supervisors and the Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee to order in the Johnson County Health and Human Services Building at 4:31 p.m. Members present were: Supervisors Pat Harney, Terrence Neuzil, Janelle Rettig, Sally Stutsman, and Rod Sullivan; Department of Corrections Supervisor Jerri Allen; Iowa City City Council Member Connie Champion; Citizen Representative Bob Elliott; MECCA Director Steve Estes; Iowa City Public Library Adult Service Coordinator Kara Logsden; County Attorney Janet Lyness; Bar Association Representative Jim McCarraghar; Judge Douglas Russell; Citizen Representative Professor Emeritus John Stratton; and Consultation of Religious Communities Representative Dorothy Whiston; absent: County Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek and Public Defender John Robertson.
Former Justice Center Coordinating Committee Coordinator Bob Elliott said he appreciates the opportunity to have served as coordinator of the Committee. He said that since Board members are serving on each subcommittee of the Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee (CJCC), and with each subcommittee having a chair, there is no longer a need for the coordinator position. Stutsman said Elliott will continue to serve on the CJCC as a Citizen's Representative.
County Attorney Janet Lyness said the subcommittee conducted all the requested evaluations. She added that quite a few were conducted during December, 2009, and that many of those were on the weekends.
Novak Design Group Architect Jim Novak gave a PowerPoint presentation on the process of programming a building. He said he will use the Hiawatha City Hall as the example throughout his presentation. He said programming is primarily information gathering, and the information can be used by anyone at any time to design a building. The programming evaluation breaks down the building into work spaces, to which a dollar amount is calculated. This provides a very accurate initial cost estimate for the project.
Sullivan asked Novak to introduce himself for those present who do not know him. Novak said his firm, Novak Design Group, is an architectural firm which has been in business 24 years. They have designed private and public buildings which include the new Cedar Rapids Police Station, Cedar Rapids Xaiver High School, law offices in Cedar Rapids, the Hiawatha City Hall, and the Johnson County Health and Human Services Building (HHS). Novak said his firm is more committed to sustainable, timeless buildings rather than trendy structures.
Novak said his goal is to understand all the individual space needs in the building and how the staff functions in the space. Eventually, all the individual spaces will be merged into one diagram which helps define the design of the building. A space analysis is conducted on all spaces, including shared space. Harney asked Novak to define how needed space is interpreted and if future expansion will be considered during the design stage. Novak replied that they usually conduct a 10 and 20 year expansion program.
Novak said a major part of the programming stage is to first understand how the project will be sold to the public. The public can understand the design much better if a layout of the plan is provided. He added that security is always a major concern in structures such as a jail, courthouse, and sheriff's office. Novak continued with the PowerPoint presentation, showing a number of completed projects and he also provided details of the programming and marketing process.
Novak said one of the best examples is the recently renovated Hiawatha City Hall. This building was sold to the public by breaking down the monthly cost; it cost the tax payer $5.32 per month to update the building. The bond issue passed with almost 80% approval on a $5.5 million building in a community of only 6,000 people. Novak said the key here was in how it was sold to the public.
Facilities Manager Dave Kempf asked Novak to talk about the programming sheets and the process used to identify needed spaces. Novak said the programming sheet outlines the function of the space and the needed equipment for that space. These sheets collect information about how staff works in their space. Novak said that the staff surveyed is supposed to report only what they do in their office, not how much space they think they need.
Harney asked how decisions are made to assign private offices versus modular space. Novak said that is usually the discretion of the department head. Harney asked how Hiawatha went about promoting the City Hall to the public. Novak said they had a citizen's committee who served as an interface, and with a population of 6,000, there were 35 people on the committee. Novak said it worked out fantastic, and members of the citizen's committee actually delivered brochures door to door to market the City Hall renovation. Harney asked if the space analysis is independent of the design and location. Novak said the program can be applied for future use and is not dependent upon the design and location. If space needs change over the course of time, the design can be modified as necessary to accommodate the change.
Elliott asked if the Board of Supervisors will be the definitive body determining how much space staff will be allocated. Sullivan said they have experience with this as they just completed the HHS Building. Kempf said the staff is not asked what size office they need because everyone will say they need a large space. The programming sheets are designed to collect information about the functions performed in particular spaces, how many people are regularly in the office, and how many linear feet of filing space is needed. The office standards for the HHS Building were determined based upon information collected from those sheets, and every office in the HHS building is 10 feet by 12 feet.
Novak said much of the process is consensus building and the ideal situation is when employees are happy with the final results. Neuzil said there are entities at the State level and within the Court system, that will want more than the County can afford. He hopes to be able to complete the project in phases in order to spread the cost out over time. Novak replied that the Board will eventually tell him what is sellable and what is not. Iowa City City Council Member Connie Champion asked how Novak's firm would accept phasing the project. Novak said phasing is a separate component that will be determined after the programming is completed.
Department of Corrections Supervisor Jerri Allen asked if there is green building potential and if so, would that be a selling point. Novak said yes, green initiatives are now considered basic.
Harney summarized that they had asked Novak to provide a space needs programming analysis presentation. There is quite a bit of information that can be gleaned from the Durrant Report, but they are not asking that of Novak at this time. Stutsman asked why the Board can't make a decision today to hire Novak to do the space needs programming analysis. Harney said it is not on the agenda. He said the Facilities Subcommittee wanted to recommend to the entire CJCC to go ahead with the space needs program analysis, and that is what is being presented today.
Bar Association Representative Jim McCarraghar asked what the cost is for the space needs programming analysis. Kempf said it would cost around $15,000 and this does not give Novak priority on the design portion, this is just for programming. The price is so low because Novak has already completed some work and has also studied the Durrant Report. Kempf said they have some project money available to pay Novak Design.
McCarraghar asked how the final space needs report will be presented. Novak said it will be presented in binder form and will include a space analysis of each individual space, department by department. It will also include an analysis of the whole building and a cost estimate. Kempf said it will not include a floor plan, but will include some schematics and typical office layouts. Novak said the bottom line is that this report will show how big the total building needs to be, but it will be broken down by department.
Citizen Representative Professor Emeritus John Stratton said that a number of years ago, they were told that construction costs increase by about 5% per year. He asked if that is still the estimated annual increase. Novak said right now, inflation has been flat and he expects that will not change much at all.
Neuzil said that the ability to use the existing Courthouse space is exactly why they are discussing centering the facility on the Courthouse. He asked if that will be incorporated into the programming analysis. Novak said they will inventory everything in the Courthouse and try to reuse everything in order to maintain its original character.
Kempf said there is roughly 28,000 square feet in the Courthouse and if they determine they need 97,000 square feet for the total project, they will calculate some space at renovation costs and other space at new construction costs. Consultation of Religious Communities Representative Dorothy Whiston asked when phasing would begin. Kempf said that would be determined later. Whiston asked who would decide how to phase in the various stages of the project. Neuzil said those determinations will be made at a later date and will be based on needs and wants. Stutsman said costs may ultimately be the determining factor.
It was moved by Elliot, and second by Stratton, to recommend to the Board of Supervisors to engage the Novak Design Group to begin the space needs analysis. The motion passed.
Sullivan said the Funding/Grants Subcommittee has not met. He reported that Rettig is joining this subcommittee and Sullivan said he will be moving to the Facilities Subcommittee.
Neuzil said that he received a phone call from General Services Administration (GSA) Senior Property Manager Roger Foster stating that GSA has received the letter from the Board of Supervisors. He said that Foster said he will respond to the Board as soon as he meets with his superiors.
Stutsman said the next Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee Meeting is scheduled for February 3, 2010, at 4:30 p.m. Kempf said that the newly renovated Board Room in the Administration Building should be ready for use by then.
Adjourned at 5:16 p.m.
Attest: Tom Slockett, Auditor
By Nancy Tomkovicz, Recording Secretary