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Board questions $90K furniture and walls after staff presents administrative-suite reconfiguration
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Summary
Staff presented a reconfiguration of the county administrative suite designed to add enclosed offices and acoustic separation; commissioners pressed staff on the cost (including $90,000 for furniture) and the timing of purchases, and asked for assurances that the reconfiguration will bring employees back into the building.
Pitkin County’s construction assets manager presented a proposed reconfiguration of the administrative suite on April 14 intended to add enclosed offices, improve acoustics for frequent Zoom meetings and create collaborative high-top workspaces. Kevin Warner said the primary intent was to provide more acoustical separation and to reuse much of the existing furniture where possible.
Warner described new layouts that carve private offices from open space, add walls and doors for quieter work areas and locate collaborative high-top tables for shared work. He said some furniture and wall systems had been purchased under a budgeted project to address hybrid-work noise and privacy issues.
Several commissioners challenged the timing and cost. One commissioner raised the specific figure of $90,000 for new furniture and described the broader project as “a quarter of $1,000,000,” asking whether the county should spend that amount when many employees continue hybrid schedules. "It's a lot of money," the commissioner said, and suggested the board had been left out of the procurement path when furniture and walls were ordered.
Other commissioners emphasized the need for staff to have appropriate, quiet workspaces for Zoom calls and asked whether the copier location could be shifted to reduce noise in the BOCC area. Staff said some furniture and walls are custom and already ordered, which limits their ability to return items; staff offered solutions such as relocating the copier or adding a small partition if that is a concern.
What’s next: staff will work with the commissioners on small adjustments (copier placement, partitions) and acknowledged they should coordinate more proactively with the BOCC before future workplace purchases. Commissioners also asked staff to return with clearer cost breakdowns and a plan to minimize disruption during construction.
