County changes architects on courthouse project

EVERETT — The Snohomish County Council voted Wednesday to switch the main architect on its future $162 million courthouse, after receiving designs that didn’t fit within budget.

The action reassigns the work from ZGF Architects of Seattle to Heery International, an Atlanta-based firm already consulting on the project.

A ZGF spokeswoman said Wednesday afternoon that nobody working on the Snohomish County project was available for comment.

The change again focuses attention on the costs of the nine-story building envisioned on the north side of Wall Street, between Rockefeller and Oakes avenues.

“There was a disagreement with the architect,” County Council Chairman Dave Somers said after the vote. “The council has made it extremely clear that we have set the budget, and that’s the budget.”

The change passed 3-1. Opposing the move was Councilman Ken Klein, who urged the council to come up with a “plan B” for a cheaper building.

Councilman Terry Ryan, later in the day, said he agreed with some of Klein’s concerns, but he’s not ready to push for a different plan.

“What we need is we need to make sure we get a quality building,” Ryan said. “I want to give … Heery the chance to provide it for us.”

As new council members who first took office this year, Klein and Ryan didn’t vote for the current proposal. They’ve been surprised to learn about the winding path the courthouse plans have traveled since their inception.

The county for years has been looking to replace its 1967 justice building. Problems there include asbestos, exterior concrete walls at risk of falling during an earthquake and a physical layout that makes it near impossible to keep the public or court staff separated from defendants in criminal cases.

After convening a study group in 2012, the county settled on a plan to remodel the old building and add a new wing. In early 2013, the $75 million proposal morphed into a plan to construct an entirely new building. That decision occurred after council members were told that it wouldn’t cost much more than the remodel. Even a complete overhaul, they reasoned, wouldn’t have cured some of the old building’s ills.

By the time John Lovick took office as county executive in mid-2013, the county already had taken out bonds to pay for the new courthouse. When Lovick’s staff reviewed the project at the council’s request, they determined the designs were inadequate — and the $75 million price tag unrealistic. They offered up a new set of options, which they said reflected true costs.

The County Council, with Lovick’s support, in November chose to build the new courthouse, mostly on a county parking lot across the street from the main campus. At $162 million, it would cost nearly $30 million more than estimates for a similar building next to the old courthouse.

About a half-dozen property owners stand to be displaced through eminent domain. Some are upset about the choice since the county could have built elsewhere for lower cost. The county filed paperwork in Superior Court on July 1 to condemn the properties, which include three law offices.

The new courthouse architect will work with the county’s general contractor, Hoffman Construction Co. of Seattle.

Lovick’s staff recommended changing firms.

The contract with ZGF, the outgoing architecture firm, was for a little over $1 million, but was bound to go much higher.

Early in the project, the county set a $4.6 million budget for architectural services. That was before the total price tag of the building more than doubled.

Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465, nhaglund@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @NWhaglund.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Imagine Children's Museum's incoming CEO, Elizabeth "Elee" Wood. (Photo provided by Imagine Children's Museum)
Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett will welcome new CEO in June

Nancy Johnson, who has led Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett for 25 years, will retire in June.

Kelli Littlejohn, who was 11 when her older sister Melissa Lee was murdered, speaks to a group of investigators and deputies to thank them for bringing closure to her family after over 30 years on Thursday, March 28, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘She can rest in peace’: Jury convicts Bothell man in 1993 killing

Even after police arrested Alan Dean in 2020, it was unclear if he would stand trial. He was convicted Thursday in the murder of Melissa Lee, 15.

Ariel Garcia, 4, was last seen Wednesday morning in an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Dr. (Photo provided by Everett Police)
Everett police searching for missing child, 4

Ariel Garcia was last seen Wednesday at an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Drive. The child was missing under “suspicious circumstances.”

The rezoned property, seen here from the Hillside Vista luxury development, is surrounded on two sides by modern neighborhoods Monday, March 25, 2024, in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Despite petition, Lake Stevens OKs rezone for new 96-home development

The change faced resistance from some residents, who worried about the effects of more density in the neighborhood.

Rep. Suzan DelBene, left, introduces Xichitl Torres Small, center, Undersecretary for Rural Development with the U.S. Department of Agriculture during a talk at Thomas Family Farms on Monday, April 3, 2023, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Under new federal program, Washingtonians can file taxes for free

At a press conference Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene called the Direct File program safe, easy and secure.

Former Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy Jeremie Zeller appears in court for sentencing on multiple counts of misdemeanor theft Wednesday, March 27, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Ex-sheriff’s deputy sentenced to 1 week of jail time for hardware theft

Jeremie Zeller, 47, stole merchandise from Home Depot in south Everett, where he worked overtime as a security guard.

Everett
11 months later, Lake Stevens man charged in fatal Casino Road shooting

Malik Fulson is accused of shooting Joseph Haderlie to death in the parking lot at the Crystal Springs Apartments last April.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.