Thurston offices may expand, reorganize at a new site. Here’s what’s being considering
Thurston County officials are considering leasing a 90,000-square-foot building on Pacific Avenue as part of a plan to significantly reorganize county offices.
County Manager Ramiro Chavez has presented the Board of County Commissioners with the option of issuing a non-binding letter of intent to the developer of the Atrium building, MJR Development, every week over the past month.
However, the board has repeatedly delayed acting on the letter as commissioners have attempted to determine the specifics of the multi-million-dollar project aimed at addressing county space needs.
If the county goes forward with this plan, Chavez said general government offices will move to the Atrium while the main campus will be reorganized into a law and justice center. He said the county has been pursuing this lease as an alternative to asking voters to approve the creation of a new courthouse.
In March 2020, the commissioners paused a proposal to raise property taxes to pay for a new county courthouse and office complex, citing COVID-19 concerns. However, the county still needs more space, and the current complex has aged into an inconvenience, the Olympian previously reported.
After recommending approval of the letter of intent on the Atrium for a few weeks, Chavez recommended the board delay considering the proposal for three additional weeks during last week’s agenda-setting meeting.
He said the county needs to be sure if it can meet the costs of the project. In three weeks, he said he hopes to return to the board with more tangible costs.
“In the last week, additional elements have transpired and some of the requirements that I have seen related to this particular move have raised concerns to me that perhaps we may not be able to deliver this project within the allotted budget,” Chavez said during the May 25 meeting.
A draft of the letter of intent dated May 10 indicates the lease could begin in February 2022 and last seven years with two five-year options to extend the lease term.
During that time, the base rental rate would be $17.50 per square foot with 50-cent annual increases, per the letter. In addition to the base rent, the county would be expected to pay some operating expenses, according to the letter.
Chavez said the county needs to consider the cost of moving several general government offices to the Atrium. This would include the Auditor, Assessor, Treasurer, Community Planning and Economic Development, the Board of County Commissioners offices and more.
A potential lease could cost the county an additional $18.2 million, said Assistant County Manager Robin Campbell during a May 18 board meeting.
Commissioner Tye Menser said he supports the idea of the expansion to the Atrium but is concerned the move may be too costly.
“Although I’m certain that this move will really benefit county government in a substantial way, I’d have to be confident that the financial requirements fit within our available resources,” Menser said.
Menser added he felt heartened to know the owner of the Atrium is willing to continue working with the county to determine more specifics of the deal.
When Chavez first introduced a draft of the letter of intent on May 4, Commissioner Gary Edwards said he did not approve of the plan to pursue leasing the Atrium due to COVID-19 uncertainty.
“I voted against this move, but I did it because I don’t think we have a good understanding of what’s to come from our workforce,” Edwards said on May 4. “We don’t know what’s going to happen and I just feel it’s premature.”
All three commissioners, including Carolina Mejia, have continued to approve delaying the proposal in the interest determining more specifics.
However, Mejia previously said during an April 6 meeting that she feels the county needs to finally address its long-term space needs.
“Leasing a space, for me, is not a long-term plan,” Mejia said at the time. “It’s just something that we can do really short term. My priority always lies with how we can fix the current buildings.”
The Atrium is at 3000 Pacific Ave. SE in Olympia and is currently undergoing renovations to meet the needs of potential government tenants, according to the developer’s website.
The building features a centralized atrium connected to the main lobby and is divided into four general quadrants, per the website.
This story was originally published June 1, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
