GSBS report recommends new Public Works campus in Spanish Fork, major downtown renovations

GSBS Architects presented a county facility needs assessment and recommended a multi‑phase capital program to address safety, space and adjacency problems across Utah County’s downtown and Public Works campuses.

Christine Richmond, principal at GSBS, said the county is space constrained and that the firm used building walkthroughs, department interviews and projections through 2040 to determine needs. The report recommends constructing a new Public Works facility on county‑owned land in Spanish Fork, adding two new administration buildings on the downtown Provo campus, performing a seismic upgrade and remodel of the historic courthouse, expanding parking at the Health and Justice Building, and improving pedestrian public space.

Architect Brian Jacobson outlined conditions at the existing Public Works site: fleet and maintenance buildings that do not meet seismic or vehicle‑clearance requirements, a fuel island and tanks past their design life, salt storage failing stormwater‑pollution prevention standards, staging and septic constraints, and extensive utility relocation needs that make onsite expansion costly and operationally difficult. The Spanish Fork site, by contrast, is undeveloped county land without those constraints and would simplify phasing and reduce utility relocation costs.

For the downtown campus, GSBS offered several site options. One favored option would demolish the current administration building and construct two connected five‑story administration buildings with a skybridge, finish three floors now and reserve additional floors for future growth, and perform a seismic upgrade on the historic courthouse to preserve public meeting space. Planning‑level cost estimates for downtown scenarios range from about $72.3 million to $92.0 million depending on scope; parking needs increase from a current baseline of roughly 561 spaces to a projected 905 with 2040 builds.

Architects said building Public Works in Spanish Fork first would create temporary capacity (“empty chair” space) to relocate staff during downtown renovation. They also recommended including some county functions that are more logically sited with Public Works—surveyor crews, extension services and 4‑H—on the new campus to free downtown space.

Commissioners asked about statutory requirements for elected officials’ presence in the county seat (the architects recommended a small downtown administrative office for the surveyor to meet that requirement), coordination with Provo City and state agencies for potential shared facilities, building‑type and height tradeoffs, and phasing/parking strategies. The presentation concluded with staff noting next steps for cost estimating, phasing and interagency coordination.