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Monday, March 18, 2024

Two new high-rise office buildings coming to Sacramento

KYLA ROUNDS / AGGIE

State begins largest Sacramento building project to replace old structures

The Department of General Services in Sacramento has announced the commencement of construction for two high-rise state office buildings downtown, on O Street and P Street. The state hopes that both buildings will provide continued success and prosperity for the city and improve working conditions for state employees.

The O Street Project will include the demolition of an existing building and the construction of an 11-story building that will house staff from the Health and Human Services Agency, which includes the Department of Developmental Services and the Department of State Hospitals. The P Street Project includes a building of approximately 20 stories that will house staff from several different state departments, including the California Natural Resources Agency and the Department of Water Resources.

“The state’s largest Sacramento area building project of the new millennium is in motion,” said the Department of General Services in a press release. “The replacement of aging state office buildings represent[s] an important step in the state becoming a full partner in the downtown renaissance currently taking place in Sacramento.”

The O Street Project has already been assigned a design team, Rudolph and Sletten, which is partnering with ZGF Architects. In order to effectively determine how to mitigate environmental impact, studies are taking place in order to assist in the construction process and make it as efficient as possible.

According to Mike Meredith, the program manager, the high-rise projects resulted from recognition that these buildings would improve the working conditions and overall state of the city of Sacramento.

“There was a master plan done that basically was trying to identify a systematic evaluation of a condition rating,” Meredith said. “Several buildings were evaluated and ranked. There was ultimately support by the legislature and the governor’s office to have a plan in place to deal with these work spaces to deal with these agencies and departments that occupy them going into the future.”

Meredith explained that the government employees would be moving into these new buildings from other decrepit buildings that are also in need of improvement in order to enable further construction and remodeling in the city.

Meredith also recognizes that the process of construction can often disrupt the neighborhood, but he explained that measures will be taken in these projects to minimize any problems.

“We’ll definitely be in constant communication with the neighbors,” Meredith said. “We want to have a lot of self-awareness that we are building in someone’s neighborhood. Neither project is going to have driven piles, so none of that constant banging and loud noise and vibration. We’ve come up with a different structural foundation system that mitigates that, so we think that’s a real plus. We’ll also be accessible to the neighbors if they have any questions. We expect to be well received in the area because we’re going to execute what we indicated we intended to do.”

The projects are aimed to benefit those involved, including the community as a whole. The city hopes to see an increase of jobs, since the project will create jobs for construction and design. Additionally, retail and food service will be included in the buildings and open to the public.

“I think it would help tremendously because the building that is being replaced is dated and is not contributing to the area at all,” said Rafat Alafranji, the former project manager. “The building also would add significant square footage to the immediate area, which would probably contribute to the local businesses in the area.”

The buildings are also slated to be among the most efficient structures in Sacramento, using the latest techniques to maximize energy and water efficiency.

“We’re maximizing the benefit of state-owned property, so I think that’s really positive,” Meredith said. “It contributes to all of the development that’s going on in downtown Sacramento and certainly creates a more energized urban area.”

 

Written By: Hadya Amin — city@theaggie.org

 

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