City says interim agreement for downtown government campus redevelopment expected March 18; resident offers pro-bono review

City staff told the City Council that an interim agreement to formalize roles and responsibilities for the downtown government campus redevelopment will be presented for introduction on March 18.

Deputy City Manager Mark Kaszek (introduced by Mr. Brown) updated council members that the TerraFrisbee development team held an open house attended by about 208 people and that staff received 49 separate public comments from that event. Kaszek said the interim agreement will “establish the roles and responsibilities of each party as we're going through the process of refining the development plan and developing the terms of the master development agreement in the future.” He also said the city is actively searching for temporary office space for city staff while redevelopment proceeds and is reviewing options roughly in the 70,000—100,000 square-foot range with a preference for a single consolidated location.

A resident, Elizabeth Decker, used public comment to raise concerns about project outreach and offered to provide her services at no charge to review the city's public-engagement and project-management approach. Decker told the council she'd observed residents who were unaware of the project despite the city's use of web, social media and newsletters, and she recommended more inclusive communications that reach those without reliable digital access. “Because I'm the resident affected by this project and because I do want this project to be successful in a way that meets the needs of all residents, I would like to offer my services at no charge to assist the city to review how they have this project set up and ensure that everything is being done to obtain residents feedback and responsibly adjust the project accordingly,” Decker said.

Why it matters: The interim agreement is intended to clear the procedural path for negotiating a master development agreement and to allow the city and developer to coordinate planning, phasing and temporary accommodations for city services and staff. The temporary office-space search is aimed at keeping the city operating during site work and potential buildout phases.

Timing and next steps: Kaszek said the interim agreement will be provided to council members in advance of the March 18 meeting for review and that staff will continue outreach and evaluate office-space options, then present recommendations back to the city manager for selection. Councilmembers and staff acknowledged continued public comment opportunities and said they would keep residents informed of outreach activities.