The Contra Costa Water District’s administration building manages one of the largest urban water districts in California. The 40-year-old, 25,000 square foot, two story building had been well maintained, but was out of compliance with contemporary building codes and had outdated, inefficient systems. Additionally, the building was not designed to support interdepartmental collaboration or the technology now integral to providing service to more than half a million customers in the 21st century.

Modernization challenges include the consolidation of administration, HR, finance, customer service, public affairs, and information services functions under a single roof. Group 4 developed space plan options to improve department adjacencies, space allocations, and work flow, and to enhance customer service. We also evaluated options for voluntarily retrofitting the current facility to meet today’s seismic codes. Cost-benefit analysis of building renovation and new building construction revealed both cost savings and environmental benefits in re-using the existing building compared to new construction.