Greetings from District 3

As we head into the Labor Day weekend, I want to take some time to share my appreciation of all those who are part of the workforce in Placer County. We have so many amazing workers including those in our own county government. One of the departments that really shines, in my opinion, is Facilities Management, which is led by Steve Newsom, Director. The men and women of this department are relied on to manage a host of responsibilities including capital improvements, real estate, building maintenance and museums.

Placer County Museums led by Ralph Gibson, Museums Administrator has a total of eight museums he oversees and keeps the archives of paper and fragile items. The museums team regularly hosts school field trips and manages a volunteer staff of docents. I encourage you to check out our museums to see the fine work our staff has done to provide Placer County with a tremendous historical offering.

The Real Estate Division led by Paul Breckenridge, Deputy Director, doesn’t interface with the public in the same way as Museums, but my hat goes off to them for their efforts to handle property leases and sales, as well as real estate searches. They are credited with moving forward the purchase of our county property at 1000 Sunset Avenue in Rocklin after crunching the numbers to figure out we would be better served by owning the building rather than leasing. A great move for our county and for taxpayers.

Our Building Maintenance Division led by Brad Boulais, Deputy Director, is full of unsung heroes. They are the ones who keep our older county facilities in excellent working order and address after-hours emergencies. During COVID, this team had the job of cleaning and passing out personal protective equipment as well as installing plexiglass at workstations. They do everything from basic work orders to moving walls and installing doors. We love our Building Maintenance Division!

The team with the highest profile is that of our Capital Improvement Division led by Genevieve Vargas, Capital Improvements Manager. They are responsible for new construction, tenant improvements and renovations, infrastructure improvements and master planning. 

Their largest effort to date is the construction of our new Health and Human Services building in the Placer County Government Center in Auburn. HHS provides an array of services including food assistance and CalFresh, child welfare services, mental health services and In-home Supportive Care as well as Medi-Cal and support for people experiencing homelessness.

The 150,000-square-foot facility will bring all the county’s HHS programs under one roof and provide a large conference center that will seat up to 163 people in a community room and provide additional conference rooms for up to 240 people. The HHS building will be the first county facility to produce all its needed electricity thanks to an array of solar panels that are doubling as carports in the parking lot. County facilities take years to design and build and we are looking forward to the day when residents can obtain Health and Human Services in one convenient location.  The $90 million facility will be completed in early 2024.

To facilitate this new construction, our Capital Improvements Division had to update the government center’s utility infrastructure. An $11 million rebuild is underway to replace aging water, drain and sewer pipes that will allow for additional development on the campus. County planners are working from an approved master plan that envisions the campus as a vibrant community center with both business and residential offerings.

Please let me take the time to recognize some employees who work under the leadership of Steve Newsom, the Director of Facilities Management. Deputy Director Paul Breckenridge oversees the Placer County Government Center Master Plan that has been years in the making with still more to come. Capital Improvements Manager Genevieve Vargas who managed the construction of the long overdue Coroner Facility at the Santucci Justice Center in Roseville and, now has the tremendous responsibility of managing the construction of the new Health and Human Services building on Richardson Drive in North Auburn. Bill Lardner, a member of the Auburn pioneer Lardner family of architects, undertook and managed the construction of the Placer County Clerk-Recorder-Elections Office in Rocklin.

The next project on the list is the $10,000,000 rehabilitation of the Placer County Library in Auburn.

The Placer County Board of Supervisors is proud to have the resources and the management team that brings Placer County Government Facilities into the 21^st Century.

Warm Regards,