Subject
title
King Farm Farmstead Master Plan
Department
Recreation & Parks
Recommendation
Staff recommends that the Mayor and Council receive the presentation, discuss, and provide feedback, additional considerations, and direction on which building use options will be incorporated into the final King Farm Farmstead Master Plan.
The presentation and discussion will be facilitated by staff and the City’s consultant, Design Collective, a firm with experience in historic preservation, adaptive reuse, and using public feedback to develop forward-thinking and creative, but equally realistic, practical, and cost-effective designs.
Discussion
Purpose
The purpose of this work session is to provide the Mayor and Council with an update following the July 14, 2025, work session, where guidance was provided to staff regarding which programs and building uses should be located at the King Farm Farmstead Park. This work session includes a presentation of the construction cost estimation and economic analysis for programs and building uses presented during the July 14, 2025, work session. Staff is requesting Mayor and Council direction on which building use options will be incorporated into the King Farm Farmstead Master Plan.
The City retained Design Collective as the consultant for the adaptive reuse and master planning process. For the past year, Design Collective has led the conceptual planning process for the project, and they are supported by Costcon for construction cost estimation and Partners for Economic Solutions (PES) for economic/operating costs analysis. Costcon Construction Services, Inc. has over 45 years of experience in the construction industry. The firm specializes in construction cost estimating, building assessment evaluations, preconstruction services, and construction management. Partners for Economic Solutions has more than 30 years of experience providing operating cost analyses, economic and fiscal impact and benefit analyses, market demand studies, and commercial revitalization and real estate advisory services for municipal and government agencies. Both Costcon and PES have previous experience providing operating cost and building assessment analysis for King Farm Farmstead, having been involved with past studies and/or projects for the park. Construction cost estimation and economic/operating analysis reports have been included as attachments for this staff report.
For the past nine months, the City has worked with the Communications and Community Engagement Department and Design Collective to implement project outreach and engagement to inform the community about the project and to solicit community feedback. This has included the development and launch of the King Farm Farmstead: Preservation and Potential website - King Farm Farmstead: Preservation and Potential | Engage Rockville <https://engagerockville.com/kingfarm>, social media promotion, Rockville Reports articles, community surveys, and hosting several in-person and virtual community engagement sessions.
Four options for programs and building uses were presented to the Mayor and Council during the July 14, 2025, work session. The options <https://rockvillemd.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&ID=14331774&GUID=2A4023DB-BD7D-4E3F-BF44-A2C0AFA363A3> represented community preferences obtained from online surveys and several community engagement meetings, and represented minimum, medium, and high levels of construction intervention. The community’s preferences for programs and building uses were Option #2 (medium intervention) and Option #4 (high intervention). The community’s preferred programs and building uses include a multipurpose hall, multipurpose rooms, community kitchen, arts & tech spaces, makerspaces, wellness, daycare/childcare, and youth/teen center.
Feedback from the Mayor and Council during the July 14, 2025, work session indicated a desire to learn more about projected construction costs and economic analysis for Option #2 (medium intervention) and Option #4 (high intervention) to render a more informed decision regarding which building uses and programs will be incorporated into the King Farm Farmstead Master Plan.
Construction Cost Estimation: Below is a summary table with construction cost estimates for Building Use Option #4 and Option #2. Full projected costs are included as an attachment to the staff report.
|
Building/Structure |
Option #4 (with addition) |
Option #2 (without addition) |
|
Dairy Barns |
$9,406,595 |
$7,399,985 |
|
Horse Barn + Tenant House 1 |
$2,115,170 |
$2,115,170 |
|
Tenant House 2 |
$503,190 |
$503,190 |
|
Garage |
$602,485 |
$602,485 |
|
Farmhouse |
$2,171,635 |
$2,171,635 |
|
Sitework |
$1,865,000 |
$1,865,000 |
|
TOTAL CONSTRUCTION ESTIMATE |
$16,664,075 |
$14,657,465 |
Assumptions & Exclusions: The provided construction estimates are based on refined concept plans to be presented during the work session. The cost of the addition included in Option #4 was separated from the work on the existing building to provide an estimated cost for Option #2. Proposed programs and building use components for Option #2 are similar to those of Option #4, so the cost information provided offers a good estimate for projected construction costs if the Mayor and Council decide to move forward with Option #2.
The City should expect and plan for additional project costs to include items such as escalation, soft costs, construction contingency, hazardous material testing/abatement, permit and development fees, utilities, site work, and landscaping. Below is an additional estimate that includes projected design and construction contingency costs:
|
Design & Construction CostsOption #4 (with addition)Option #2 (without addition) |
|
|
|
Design (8%) |
$1,333,126 |
$1,172,597 |
|
Construction |
$16,664,075 |
$14,657,465 |
|
Construction Contingency (20%) |
$3,332,815 |
$2,931,493 |
|
ESTIMATED TOTAL |
$21,330,016 |
$18,761,555 |
Economic Analysis:
As part of the economic analysis, staff provided the city’s cost recovery guidelines to the consultant, and a summary of how similar community facilities have operated in the past. The cost recovery analysis begins with a utilization schedule of classes and private events that considers the availability of parking. The base scenario (“Existing Parking”) assumes no new parking with the existing 47 spaces providing the only on-site parking. The second scenario (“Limited Parking”) assumes that the existing 47-space parking lot is supplemented by a second asphalt-paved parking lot with 44 spaces. The third scenario (“Expanded Parking”) assumes the further addition of a 100-space parking lot developed with grass pavers and used only for events to maintain the overall historic aesthetic of an open grass field down the hill from the Dairy Barn. All programmed uses in the King Farm Farmstead buildings represent uses selected by the community during the winter and spring 2025 community input process, reflecting in-person, virtual and community survey outreach to the city at large. The analysis report is included as an attachment to the staff report.
Previous staff reports provided an in-depth history of the park’s past planning and evaluations. Click here <https://rockvillemd.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=7452907&GUID=C9C270E8-ED47-4A39-B6F8-24A5477C1628&Options=&Search=> to review.
Mayor and Council History
The King Farm Farmstead has been discussed by the Mayor and Council on multiple occasions, and Capital Improvement Projects at the King Farm Farmstead are discussed annually as part of the budget process.
A work session was presented to the Mayor and Council on July 14, 2025, which included an update on the project’s community engagement, a presentation of four building use options, and the community’s top-ranked choices for building uses and program concepts. The Mayor and Council advised staff to pursue construction cost estimation and economic analysis for two of the four options (Option #2 and #4).
• Work Session Video: <https://youtu.be/hmAnR8k1GJY?si=jRTZ44oKjAZgiEOJ>
A project launch work session was presented to the Mayor and Council on October 28, 2024, to discuss and receive direction on priorities for King Farm Farmstead Adaptive Reuse. The work session provided an overview of the park’s planning history, property milestones, site conditions and considerations, the adaptive re-use planning process, and proposed community engagement.
• Work Session Video: <https://youtu.be/huIJKdwj7Zw?si=LcEqRXsVISz0A0sU>
Previously, the Mayor and Council received a report by the King Farm Farmstead Task Force on June 12, 2017, and received a presentation regarding the King Farm Farmstead Real Estate Market Analysis Report on July 18, 2022.
Public Notification and Engagement
Significant community engagement has been included during this planning process to include an Engage Rockville project website, social media, Rockville Reports Articles, in-person and virtual community sessions, online surveys, fliers and posters at city buildings, and monthly email updates. Several attempts were made to contact the land grantor, King Farm Associates, to notify them about the King Farm Farmstead adaptive reuse planning process and to invite them to participate. Project updates have been maintained on the project’s Engage Rockville website and periodic emails about the project have been sent to the community.
Boards and Commissions Review
Updates on the project have been shared monthly with the Recreation and Park Advisory Board and members have been active participants in community engagement sessions. Project information and invitations to participate in the planning process were also shared with all Boards, Commissions, and Task Force Chairs and City Liaisons.
On September 18, 2025, a project update was presented to the Historic District Commission (HDC). The current master planning process identifies proposed programs and conceptual building uses and does not include formal designs, engineering drawings, and/or building plans. Once the master planning process has concluded and a plan is adopted, the Historic District Commission will be re-engaged during the design process to include any required reviews and/or approvals.
Fiscal Impact
The fiscal impact will depend on the Mayor and Council's direction and approval of the project’s master plan in October 2025. Currently, projects associated with the adaptive reuse of buildings and structures at King Farm Farmstead are not included in the City’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP). Once direction is provided from the Mayor and Council regarding preferences for phased implementation, staff can determine the city’s funding capacity and sources for incorporating approved master plan elements into the Capital Improvement Program and operating budget.
Next Steps
Based on direction received from the Mayor and Council during this work session, the staff and the consultant will incorporate the direction into the final King Farm Farmstead Park Master Plan, which is planned to be adopted at the October 20, 2025, Mayor and Council meeting.