Shortlisted teams pitch phased Law and Justice / county services center; commissioners eye July 3 decision

Shortlisted design teams presented to Carbon County commissioners on a proposed Law and Justice Center that would consolidate courts, sheriff operations and county administration functions.

Shannon Christensen of Cushing Terrell, introduced the firm’s role as principal-in-charge and said the team — including DLR Group — will focus on schedule, budget and deliverables. DLR Group’s Laurie Coppernet and other team members advised commissioners to validate programming, prioritize essential functions and consider phased construction to manage inflation and budget risk.

Presenters emphasized three core priorities: responsible use of public resources, maximizing functional use of space, and a design process that includes stakeholder engagement and ongoing value engineering. They noted the site can support two- to three-story options and suggested two possible approaches: a more compact, phased solution that builds essential court and sheriff functions first, or a three-story initial phase that includes shell space to reduce future escalation costs. One presenter said adding shell space could raise initial cost by about $3 million but could save money in escalation and foundations later.

Commissioners raised ADA access, archival storage for historic records, parking and public perception; staff emphasized operational savings from consolidating multiple county facilities (fewer printers, reduced maintenance duplication) as a key public-benefit argument. The teams said they can provide stakeholder-engagement plans and budget estimates and noted funding strategies could include grants, ARPA or bonds and public relations support for any eventual ballot measure.

The board expects to make a selection decision on the shortlisted teams around July 3 and asked the firms to return with refinement on phasing, cost estimates and outreach plans.