Marin's Juvenile Services Center to Receive Makeover

Marin County’s 50-year-old Juvenile Services Center in Lucas Valley is getting an interior makeover this summer.

Murray Building Inc. of Sonoma was awarded a construction contract for the project June 3 during a meeting of the Marin County Board of Supervisors. The total budget for the project, factoring in a 10 percent contingency, is $817,874. Funding is from the County’s Capital Improvement Fund.

The building, located at 4 Jeannette Prandi Way near Marin County Juvenile Hall, originally was built as family rehabilitation center and dormitory and since the 1970s has served as headquarters for the Probation Department’s Juvenile Services Division. Core functions of the division include the screening of all crimes and status offenses; assisting the Juvenile Court in making detention and sentencing decisions through the conducting of investigations and preparation of Court reports; and providing supervision and referrals for treatment to the juveniles on probation.

Construction is likely to start in July. Division personnel temporarily will be relocated about two miles away to a County-owned building at 1600 Los Gamos Drive in Terra Linda.

The renovation at the Juvenile Services Center will include a lobby area redesign and retrofit, interior refinishing, accessible restrooms, new lighting, new windows, security system upgrades and improvements to the heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems.

Kevin Lynch, Director of Juvenile Services, said the construction work will be symbolic of the massive renovation that juvenile probation is undergoing across the state: fewer cases, but more that require a larger staff commitment.

“Although there is a substantial reduction in caseload sizes in recent years, there is nonetheless a corresponding increase in the complexity of cases and the demands on staff to perform, document and substantiate their work,” Lynch said. “Often that means spending more time with a young person or a family. Because of the sensitive nature of the work we do, we need to have a comforting and welcoming place to conduct that kind of service.”

Murray Building Construction previously was contracted to build new security barriers to separate the courts area from the general public area in the Marin County Hall of Justice at 3501 Civic Center Drive. That project required tighter-than-usual architectural standards because the Marin County Civic Center is a national historic landmarkdesigned by famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright.