Fresno County supervisors eye escape from ‘antiquated’ home. What’s the next move? | Opinion
With its elaborate art deco stylings from the 1930s, the Hall of Records ranks among Fresno’s most architecturally significant and aesthetically pleasing buildings.
Numerous times while strolling through downtown I’ve stopped to check out the terra cotta figures of farmers, mechanics and bookkeepers carved above the entrances or get a closer look at the unique geometric shapes that adorn the aluminum-framed windows. Step inside, and you’re greeted by majestically high ceilings and a color splash of marble and terrazzo tiles. Even the drinking fountains are splendid.
Unfortunately, like many buildings its age (constructed in 1936 during the New Deal and expanded in 1955 with identical detailing), the Hall of Records has become a better place to admire than inhabit.
And while the historically listed landmark isn’t going anywhere, nor in danger of seeing the wrecking ball, its most noteworthy occupants want out.
How much unanimity we can expect from the newly reconfigured Fresno County Board of Supervisors remains to be seen. But during Tuesday’s meeting, all five agreed that the Hall of Records no longer adequately serves their needs, nor the needs of the public, and a new headquarters for themselves and county administrators should be placed on the front burner.
The discussion was kicked off by an agenda item requested by Supervisor Garry Bredefeld, one of the two recent electees, and concluded with a directive to County Administrative Officer Paul Nerland to bring back a funding plan, timeline and potential locations for a new building in 60 days.
When Bredefeld first raised the Hall of Records’ many issues Jan. 7 (i.e. a meeting chamber that’s too small, elevators that frequently go out of service, an ineffective, inefficient heating and air conditioning system, security risks), he received pushback from more tenured colleagues.
This time, they quickly joined in. Supervisor Nathan Magsig, part of a subcommittee that has been examining options for a new building, thanked Bredefeld for his “timely” request and expounded upon the deficiencies of their “antiquated” current home.
“Plumbing, the electrical systems in here are all original to the 1930s and 1950s.” Magsig said. “The main breaker is (from the) 1930s, and when that goes out we actually have to have people come out and manufacture parts because they don’t exist. They don’t make those kinds of parts anymore.”
County employees who work in the Hall of Records talk about needing to dress in layers in the winter and have a fan at their desks in summer, a result of single-pane windows that don’t entirely seal.
“Plus, the rumors of ghosts always make life interesting if you’re here early or late,” public information officer Sonja Dosti said via email, adding a smiling emoji.
County supes aren’t starting from scratch on this. Over the last few years they’ve set aside $41 million to renovate the Hall of Records – only to determine such a plan isn’t feasible.
“Can we vacate this building and completely remodel it?” Supervisor Buddy Mendes said. “We’ve come to the conclusion we can’t even do that.”
New courthouse complicates
Any plans for a new building, at least one at Courthouse Park, are complicated by the state’s ongoing effort to construct a new home for the Fresno County Superior Court and replace the much-maligned nine-story cheesegrater built in the 1960s.
The $749 million project remains in the acquisition phase. However, graphics posted on the Judicial Branch of California website identify Courthouse Park as the “preferred site” and depict the “conceptual massing” of a building that stretches along Fresno Street. (And would require the demolitions of both the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office and the South Annex Jail, neither of which would result in any tears.)
Construction of the new courthouse is estimated to begin in 2027 and be completed in 2031. Magsig said the county subcommittee, which includes Supervisor Brian Pacheco and Deputy CAO Sam Buck, has been meeting with representatives of the state courts to determine if the two projects can be coordinated.
During a subsequent interview, Magsig voiced concerns over waiting for the state’s courthouse timeline due to the possibility that future budget deficits in Sacramento could result in delays.
The District 5 supervisor then dropped this mini-bombshell: The future Board of Supervisors offices and meeting chamber might be located somewhere besides Courthouse Park, which has been the center of Fresno County government since 1874.
“Do we want to wait a minimum of seven years for the new courthouse, or should we move forward with a project on our own that would not be at Courthouse Park?” Magsig asked.
Magsig declined to identify alternative sites under consideration, saying they would be discussed at a future Board meeting.
However, it doesn’t take an urban planning degree to identify one possibility in close proximity to Courthouse Park: the empty lot at the south corner of Van Ness Avenue and Tulare Street, which is even larger now that the Fisk and Skopp Building has sadly been demolished.
Thankfully, the venerable Hall of Records will never meet that fate. (“Absolutely not,” Magsig emphasized.) But news that one of Fresno’s most beautiful buildings could soon be vacated brings a certain sadness.
