Construction of the two buildings was necessitated by the scheduled renovation and seismic upgrade of the existing classically inspired Capitol structure, and would also complete the master plan for Utah's Capitol Hill designed by architect Richard Kletting in the early 1900s.

Due to the highly detailed nature of the stonework and its importance to the success of the project, the Capitol Design Team asked design/build subcontractor Kepco+ to serve as a stone consultant, providing a thorough evaluation of the granite work during the project's preparatory planning. Since many of the ornate cubic elements required long fabrication lead times, a traditional bid process after completion of final construction documents would not have allowed for adequate time to meet the project's aggressive schedule. As a result, the Capitol Preservation Board allowed for the early selection of a competent stone contractor to aid the architects in preparation of design development documents, with the ultimate goal of finalizing granite details prior to issuance of drawings for construction. After an extensive proposal and interview process, the collaboration of Kepco+DBI was selected.