Fresno’s getting a new courthouse? Terrific. We know what to do with the old one
Did you hear the big news? Fresno is getting a new county courthouse.
Terrific. How soon till we can take a wrecking ball to the old one?
Demolishing courthouses has long been a Fresno tradition. Except this time, we won’t be repeating any architectural sins of the past. Rather, there’s an opportunity to rub out that mistake and replace it with something fresh and interesting — not to mention more functional.
Turns out the nine-story cheesegrater in Courthouse Park (described as “insipid” by architectural historian David Gebhardt) that has housed the Fresno County Superior Court since the 1960s isn’t simply an eyesore. The building also ranked among California’s most deficient in several critical areas, according to a Judicial Council survey of more than 200 court buildings, and is near the top of the priority list for replacement.
“The Fresno County Courthouse is the superior court’s oldest and largest facility and is substantially out of compliance with regulatory safety, seismic, accessibility codes and space standards,” a Judicial Council report states.
To rectify that, more than $21 million in state funding was set aside to acquire the land necessary to construct a new courthouse large enough to bring all of the court’s operations under one roof (including trials currently held in the North Annex Jail and M Street Courthouse) and accommodate for future growth. The new facility will open in 2031, according to the project’s estimated timeline.
Justice Brad Hill, who presides over the state’s 5th District Court of Appeal and chairs the Judicial Council of California’s Court Facilities Advisory Committee, also specified the new courthouse will be located in downtown Fresno.
“It’s very exciting for Fresno, I think,” Hill said in an interview with The Bee. “For a criminal courthouse, proximity to downtown is important.”
Good thing. Because if that decision were left up to the Fresno County Board of Supervisors, it would probably be built on the outskirts of Clovis.
I’m only half-joking.
But other than a projected price tag ($750 million!) and the land acquisition requirement (2.09 acres, large enough for 413,299-square foot building with 36 courtrooms), pretty much everything else remains undecided.
Courthouse Park remains ideal site downtown
Ideally, the new Fresno County Courthouse would be built in proximity to the current one. Similar to what occurred in the 1960s when the mid-century cheesegrater went up right next to the domed neoclassical structure it replaced. The historic courthouse’s subsequent demolition remains one of the saddest events in Fresno history.
Whether history repeats is unclear. Courthouse Park, site of the Fresno County legal proceedings since the 1870s, spans roughly 4 acres and also contains the South Annex Jail, Hall of Records and the Fresno County sheriff’s office.
Is there enough room in Courthouse Park to construct a new courthouse large enough to satisfy all its needs and requirements without demolishing any existing buildings?
Yes, actually, there is. But only if the new courthouse is designed as a high-rise structure, similar to a few others that have been built in California over the last decade. The San Bernardino Justice Center, a gleaming 11-story edifice with 35 courtrooms that opened in 2014, might serve as a good comparison.
It’s also possible the new courthouse gets built at another downtown site but still near the cluster of county jails and government offices. While there aren’t any 2-acre parcels of vacant land, one (or more) could certainly come available considering how much the state is willing to pay.
No matter where it goes up, the new county courthouse will likely be the first major addition to the downtown skyline since 2005 when the Robert E. Coyle federal courthouse opened at Tulare and O streets. (That nine-story building is some 400,000 square feet and sits on 1.5 acres, by comparison.)
Despite the space constraints and having to build around existing structures, Courthouse Park still makes the most sense. The new courthouse could be erected along Van Ness Avenue directly in front of the current one (straddling a reopened Mariposa Avenue between Van Ness and Fulton streets). Then, after the new courthouse is completed and occupied, knock down the cheesegrater to reclaim some open space.
After all, demolishing courthouses is a Fresno tradition. Except this time, few tears will be shed.
