STV is supporting Whatcom County in delivering a new multi‑building justice center that includes a jail with integrated medical services, a behavioral health diversion center and related support infrastructure. The facility is intended to redirect individuals away from incarceration and toward treatment and recovery resources that strengthen their re‑entry into the community.
What challenges is STV addressing?
The County is undertaking a significant systems transformation, aiming to create a justice facility that supports diversion, behavioral health treatment and community-centered care. This requires balancing the operational and service needs of multiple stakeholders while ensuring that the facility advances the County’s goals around treatment-focused, humane support for individuals in custody‑centered care. This requires balancing the operational and service needs of multiple stakeholders while ensuring that the facility advances the County’s goals around treatment‑focused, humane support for individuals in custody.
What solutions is STV delivering?
Beyond managing budget and schedule, STV serves as a strategic advisor guiding the County through its first alternative delivery experience. The team helped the County secure state-required approval to pursue Progressive Design-Build and is now leading the work to define scope, schedule and budget where they did not previously exist. Acting as a trusted partner, STV is developing decision frameworks, facilitating executive-level alignment and translates complex project information into clear pathways forward.
STV leads a transparent communications strategy that connects technical progress to community priorities, advancing local participation goals and strengthening confidence in the process. Through structured outreach, governance planning, and proactive facilitation, the team helps the County move from uncertainty to informed action, positioning leadership to make timely decisions that support project momentum and long-term success.
How will the project benefit the community?
By integrating medical services, behavioral health treatment and diversion programming into the justice center, the project is designed to reduce reliance on incarceration and promote pathways to care, recovery and long-term community stability. The work emphasizes dignity, transparency and improved outcomes for individuals and families across Whatcom County.
Key stats and accolades
- Multi‑building justice center includes a jail with integrated medical services, a behavioral health diversion center and related support infrastructure.
- Facility designed to divert individuals from incarceration into care and recovery pathways and support their return to families and communities with stability and dignity.
