New Courthouse Funding Approved

The state Public Works Board approved $439.1 million for the new courthouse which is a lower cost for the project than expected to allow the expanding of courtrooms from 35 to 44 and more space for holding cells. The new 405,000-square-foot courthouse is funded by Senate Bill 1407, which provided $5 billion in funding for “critically needed new and renovated court facilities” that use court-user fees rather than the state general fund. Both Nacht & Lewis and HOK have been hired to design the courthouse and The Administrative Office of the Courts expects to choose a site and complete the deal for the property in 2011, and begin construction in 2013. The new courthouse should open in 2015.