MILTON — Santa Rosa County Commissioners continue to discuss building a judicial center, but only time will tell if this latest effort will be any more successful than the multiple failed starts of the past 15 years.
The board received an updated proposal from the HOK, Inc., architecture firm Monday morning on moving forward with a new judicial center. HOK has been involved with the design of a new judicial center in Santa Rosa County for the past 13 years.
Duncan Broyd, senior vice president of HOK, told commissioners the most important step for moving the project forward is for the board to finalize a site.
See an overview of the project. >>
“We could design a courthouse on a generic site, but if we know what the site is, what the access is going to be like, what the stormwater is like, traffic, parking, all of those things, we can get you a more accurate number and a more precise definition of the project,” Broyd said.
The existing courthouse was built in 1927, was expanded in 1959 and had a modular addition installed about five years ago. The facility totals about 51,000 square feet.
A needs assessment that was updated last year by HOK recommended the county build a 146,000-square-foot judicial center to meet existing needs and allow for growth.
At the time, construction was estimated to cost $31.8 million. That did not include land.
Commissioners on Thursday are expected to vote on retaining HOK and going forward with their proposal.
The first step for HOK would be to update their program verification to determine the current needs for the building, which is expected to take four weeks. That work can be done as the commission works to find a location for the judicial center.
Broyd said the design of the actual judicial center would come next and take about eight weeks to complete, which would be followed by another four weeks to complete the construction cost and project budget estimates.
Broyd said if they get started in the next few weeks, they could be through with this process by the end of the year and give the commission most of 2014 to take their plans to the public. Earlier this month, commissioners discussed placing a sales tax increase on the ballot for residents to approve next year to fund the construction of a new judicial center.
“I appreciate the work they’ve done in the past and the proposal you’ve put together,” said Commissioner Lane Lynchard. “I look forward to working (with HOK) over the next few months to come up with a viable plan we can present to the people next year.”
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