Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Capital Projects topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council hires Gemma Architects for $857,312 design of combined city hall and public-safety facility
Summary
After presentations from Gemma Architects and Navigate Building Solutions, the council authorized a contract not to exceed $857,312.49 for professional design and construction administration services to repurpose the former Aubrey Medical Center as a combined city hall and public-safety facility, and staff outlined a schematic-to-bid schedule through mid-2027 with anticipated construction completion in 2028.
Council on July 13 authorized the city manager to sign an agreement with Gemma Architects for professional design and construction-administration services to convert the former Aubrey Medical Center into a combined city hall and public-safety facility.
Staff described a competitive RFQ process that shortlisted two firms; Navigate Building Solutions helped the city evaluate proposals and recommended Gemma (also written in the packet as Gemma/Grama/GEMA in places). Gemma’s representatives introduced their team and presented two conceptual design approaches: a contextual option that references the existing building materials and a more contemporary contrast option that reuses much of the original structure while adding east and west additions for council chambers, police and fire apparatus bays.
David Lowell of Navigate (senior project manager) introduced the Gemma team. John Emmert, partner with Gemma Architects, and Matt Sutherland, principal and project manager, walked the council through prior public-safety and renovation projects the firm has completed and displayed conceptual images showing reconfigured council-chamber orientation, a public plaza, and a four-bay apparatus garage. Emmert and Sutherland emphasized reuse of existing structure where possible to manage cost and limit renovation scope.
Gemma’s schedule presented to the council sets schematic design through October 2026, design development through January 2027, construction documents through May 2027 and bidding in June 2027, with construction anticipated to begin in mid- to late-2027 and substantial completion around July 2028, assuming approvals and procurement proceed on schedule.
The contract amount presented to council for Gemma’s services was $857,312.49. Staff told council that contract terms had been reviewed by the city attorney and that the use of modified AIA documents was part of the negotiated contract. Council members asked about scope, basic services and potential additional services; staff said the RFQ and negotiated scope include engineering and construction administration, with additional ad-hoc services (graphics, branding, etc.) priced separately if requested.
Council passed the resolution authorizing the agreement and welcomed the design team to proceed with program verification and schematic design steps.
