Drafter
Clerk 10/08/2008
Title
AN ORDINANCE approving temporary additional King County agency tenants to occupy the Chinook building located on Fifth Avenue and Jefferson Street in Seattle; expressing the intent that the executive and council be collocated in the King County courthouse in the future; and amending Ordinance 15390, Section 2, as amended, and Ordinance 15390, Section 5, as amended.
Body
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF KING COUNTY
SECTION 1. Findings:
A. The King County space plan states that the county should move from dependence on short-term leased space in the downtown Seattle area to owned or long term leased space when this will provide a long term cost benefit to the county and that the county backfill vacated spaces in county-owned buildings by moving agencies from leased space.
B. The office of the executive, office of management and budget, office of business relations and economic development and department of executive services, administration, currently lease space in the Columbia Center.
C. The King County executive has identified that significant cost savings will be achieved by terminating the leases for space in the Columbia Center and temporarily moving the office of the executive, office of management and budget and department of executive services, administration, to vacant space in the county's Chinook Building and moving the office of business relations and economic development to the county's Yesler Building. The move of the executive and office of management and budget to the Chinook Building would be a temporary measure until criminal justice planning efforts and budgetary constraints allow for the colocation of the executive and council in a county-owned building.
D. Ordinance 15390 established a list of final King County agencies authorized to occupy the Chinook Building and provided that no other county agency shall be located in the building unless authorized by ordinance.
E. Ordinance 15390 further provided that the executive shall submit a list of any such proposed additional agencies.
F. Ordinance 15390 also indicated that certain executive offices were to remain in Columbia Center until they could be relocated to the King County\xmlclose courthouse following the completion of criminal justice planning efforts.
G. In response to budget shortfalls facing the county, the executive directed that a comprehensive capital improvement projects prioritization analysis be completed. In addition to identifying the capital projects that could be deferred to save costs, this process also lead to identification of the significant savings to be achieved by terminating the Columbia Center leases and moving those county agencies to other county owned spaces. While the intent remains to colocate the executive with the council in a county-owned building, temporarily relocating the executive and office of management and budget makes economic sense now even before completion of the criminal justice planning efforts that may lead to a colocation option. Given the magnitude of the county budget shortfalls and the cost savings achievable by the termination of the Columbia Center leases, it is in the best interests of the county for office of the executive, office of management and budget and department of executive services, administration, to relocate to vacant space in the Chinook Building.
SECTION 2. Ordinance 15390, Section 2, as amended, is hereby amended to read as follows:
The final King County agency tenants authorized to occupy the Chinook Building shall be:
Agency Current Location
DES Finance Exchange Building
DES ITS (not including data center) Key Tower
DCHS Exchange Building
DCHS Crisis and Commitment Bank of California
DPH Wells Fargo
DPH Lynn Trust
DES/BOE Administration Building
DES Office of Information Resources Management Columbia Center
((Office of Business Relations and Economic Development Columbia Center))
Council Ombudsman Yesler Building
Department of Executive Services /Administration Columbia Center
Office of Management and Budget Columbia Center
Office of the Executive Columbia Center
SECTION 3. Ordinance 15390, Section 5, as amended, is hereby amended to read as follows:
The move of the executive and office of management and budget to the Chinook Building is deemed temporary. Upon completion of the law justice planning efforts currently underway, the executive shall relocate his offices ((currently in the Columbia Center,)) and be ready to conduct county business, in the county courthouse. ((The offices currently in the Columbia Center include the executive, the office of management
and budget ("OMB"), DES/administration director, business relations and economic development ("BRED") and office of information and resource management ("OIRM").))