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Contra Costa County supervisors broke out shiny new monogrammed shovels on Tuesday afternoon in an empty Brentwood dirt lot to commemorate the beginning of construction on a new county service center.
The East County Service Center is one day closer to completion after members of the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors gathered for a groundbreaking ceremony for the new building that will house services from nine county departments.
Board of Supervisors Chair Diane Burgis, whose district includes the building site in Brentwood, said the event is a culmination of a coordinated effort by the county to make it easier for residents to access important services and reduce transportation-related challenges.
“For years, East County residents have had to travel long distances and navigate multiple offices just to access county services,” said Burgis. “Our goal is simple, make services easier to find, easier to access, and more connected. Instead of traveling across the county, residents will be able to access services from Health and Human Services to public safety to voter services in a single visit.”
Burgis said the $155 million cost of the 117,000-square-foot center will not come at the expense of taxpayers.
“The project also reflects responsible fiscal planning through disciplined savings and long-term investments in our capital reserves,” said Burgis. “We are able to fund major infrastructures like this without compromising our financial stability.”
Eric Angstadt is the chief assistant county administrator with Contra Costa County and said the building will incorporate environmentally friendly elements. According to Angstadt, the building will include mass timber as its main building material, geothermal heating and cooling, and energy-efficient solar panels.
“The board has their focus on sustainability, and so every time we do one of these projects we try to push that envelope as far and as hard as we can,” said Angstadt.
Supervisor Shanelle Scales-Preston said she saw the struggle her family had when accessing county services as she was growing up in neighboring Pittsburg. She said the presence of a local government building in eastern Contra Costa County will make it easier for people to get the attention they need rather than needing to travel to the county seat of Martinez 30 miles away.
“Sometimes that barrier to Martinez can be really hard for people to access,” said Scales-Preston. “I remember my mom, she always would say that she’s not driving over the hill.”
The main partners on the project are Bay Area contractors Webcor and architecture firm Perkins&Will.
— Story by Andres Jimenez Larios, Bay City News
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