Summary

After a thorough review of proposals, King County is ending the current procurement process for replacement of all or portions of the Alder Youth Services Center. The process, known as a Request for Qualifications/Concepts (RFQ/C), allowed developers to submit general concepts for the project and demonstrate their qualifications.

Story

After a thorough review of proposals, King County is ending the current procurement process for replacement of all or portions of the Alder Youth Services Center. The process, known as a Request for Qualifications/Concepts (RFQ/C), allowed developers to submit general concepts for the project and demonstrate their qualifications.

“This is not the end of our efforts,” County Administrative Officer Caroline Whalen said. “Although none of the proposals for replacing the Youth Services Center met our criteria for affordability, we did learn some valuable lessons during the review. We will apply those as we move forward in the process.”

One of the primary goals of the process, as stated in the RFQ/C, was that “the [Youth Services Center] project should be, to the extent possible, cost-neutral to King County or at least minimize the financial contribution required to be made by King County.” Six organizations submitted proposals by the deadline. Some of the proposals envisioned remaining on the current site at 12^th Avenue and Alder in Seattle, while others involved moving operations to another location.

After reviewing all six proposals, Whalen said the county determined that none of the concepts met the county’s affordability criteria. The county is now considering its next steps after concluding this procurement process.