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Prevention, Restoration, Accountability
October 2026

Justice Project Makes Progress on Facilities, Financing and Reforms

The Design-Build team, in consultation with County staff and community advisory groups, has been hard at work this Fall on the new Justice facilities. Check out below details on the updated New Jail programming and the draft programming for the Behavioral Care Center.

The County has been meeting with the cities to draft an updated Interlocal Agreement outlining the funding of the Justice Project. See below for more details on that work and next steps on the financing side.

Finally, read on to learn about how the Whatcom Superior Court is making critical reforms to help clear the backlog of cases using Discovery Hearings.

As always, these updates and more are available on the Justice Project page on the county website here. 

Draft Programming for the Behavioral Care Center

On Oct. 13th, Justice Facilities consultant STV reported out to the County Council about the progress made on the Behavioral Care Center (BCC), to be built adjacent to the Anne Deacon Center for Hope on Division Street.

You can watch that presentation here. Progress includes the development of the draft program for the BCC which describes the major spaces, functions, capacities, and operational relationships planned for the facility. 

Key features of this facility include:

• Two 16-bed Co-occurring Disorder (COD) units

• One 23-hour Crisis Relief Center (CRC) adjacent to an intake area

• Dedicated, private drop off area for EMS/LE vehicles

• Accommodates efficient and appropriately sized back-of-house areas

• Allows for future expansion

You can review a summary of the draft BCC program here.

Schematic Design Phase Refines Jail Features

In August, the County Council reviewed and accepted the program for the new jail facility, set to break ground off Hannegan road in 2027. Since then, the Project Team has further refined the program scope as part of the schematic design process. STV presented on those changes to the Council on Oct. 13th.

Key updates include:

• Aligning facility features with cost limitations imposed by construction market conditions

• Added a second Courtroom within Courts area

• Added two visitation booths planned in each courtroom for attorney access

You can review the New Jail Programming Scope Summary addendum here.

Council Approves New Interlocal Agreement for the Justice Project Financing

On Tuesday, the County Council voted to approve an updated Interlocal Agreement between the County and the Cities that outlines the funding agreements for the Justice Project. 

The initial agreement, signed in 2024, was based on the estimated capital costs of $150 million and stipulated that the cities would contribute towards those costs for the initial six years for a new jail and BCC that would be co-located at LaBounty road in Ferndale.

Since then, the County has engaged in robust community engagement, adjusted to the shifting and worsening financial climate, and selected a new location for both facilities.

The new agreement, as negotiated between representatives of the cities and the County, extends the amount of time the cities will contribute a portion of their Justice Project sales and use tax revenue to help the County finance the new facilities. 

Now the interlocal agreement goes to each city council and mayor for approval and signature, with the goal of having all participants sign by the end of the year.

Superior Court Gets Creative to Expedite Aging Cases and Clear Backlog

Whatcom County Superior Court is getting creative to address older cases lagging in the system. Starting mid-November, Superior Court will implement a new calendar of Discovery Hearings specifically designed to encourage faster resolutions of criminal cases.

“Individual criminal cases are delayed for a variety of reasons. Incomplete discovery, ongoing investigations, necessary witness interviews, cases in other jurisdictions, ongoing plea negotiations,” said Judge Evan Jones, Whatcom County Superior Court, Department 2. “The trick is to identify these reasons early and work with the parties to resolve them as efficiently and quickly as possible. These new Discovery Hearings should allow the Court to do just that.”

Utilizing a new local Criminal Rule 4.7 - Discovery Hearings, Superior Court is able to schedule an older case for a Discovery Hearing any time prior to trial. 

At the hearing, the judge will specifically inquire about the reasons for case delay and craft specific court orders to get those issues resolved more quickly. The case will then be reviewed by the same judge, who can monitor compliance with court-ordered timelines. 

With delay-causing issues identified and resolved early, cases will be better prepared for quicker resolutions in court.

“We are always looking for ways to improve operations, clear the backlog and provide fair and equitable access to justice for our community,” said Judge Jones. 

The new Discovery Hearings will be held three Monday’s a month at 10:30 am in the assigned Criminal Department of Whatcom County Superior Court. Please see the Whatcom County Superior Court website for more information about innovative efforts of the Court.