Meetings Steering Committee(Folders 1-2)

Home Browse Search

i that was not included in these proposals was seismic upgrades to the buildings. There has not been a study as to the needs of the building for seismic upgrades are concerned. The Sheriffs office square footage was discussed. The Court subcommittee said that the Sheriffs civil division does not have to be in the Courthouse. The Courts subcommittee made a presentation. The standards used for comparison of the square footage needed for court space was obtained from a recent publication jointly issued by the National Center for State Courts and the American Institute of Architects. The square footage outlined reflects a conservative midpoint and is also rounded down below this point. One example of the deficiency in space was courtroom size. The report's minimum space requirements were 3300 square feet while our biggest courtroom is 2400 square feet. Other details of the report were also gone over. The biggest discrepancy was shown in the jury assembly room where our rooms were 900 square feet and the recommended size was 5,000 to 6,000 square feet. Concern was raised regarding the record storage which is kept in the basement of the Senator building. A brief discussion took place regarding the proposal of a separate Criminal Courts building located at the jail site. The judges unanimously opposed this project because of the stigma that a Criminal Courts building creates affecting the consumers and because of the need for variety in cases tried by judges. The argument in support of the a Criminal Justice building centered around the need for consumer satisfaction with "one stop shopping". Efficient scheduling of courtrooms was also discussed. The issue that was of most importance to Judge West was the security of the Courts building - everyone entering the building should be required to pass a metal detector. The number of cases that go to trial were discussed. The suggestion was made that security could be prioritized by certain courtrooms. It was mentioned that security is already taken into consideration by individual case. The City responded to questions regarding co-agency locations. Co- locating of agencies is becoming more unnecessary because of the increase in technology in computer networking. The City has not analyzed the opportunity for co-agency locating except for police departments. Discussion was raised regarding consolidation effecting efficiency, communication and physical connecting barriers. Another factor which was not included in the adding of space to the Courthouse building was the phasing in of these changes.