Jurisdictions undertake the improvement of their judicial facilities for a variety of reasons:
- Growth and/or changes in the court's workload.
- Need for building repairs and alterations.
- Inappropriateness of existing spaces or systems to meet current needs.
- New services or programs.
- Changes to the court’s organization or jurisdiction.
Once a courthouse is constructed,
its operation reflects the choices
- deliberate or inadvertent -
made during planning and design.
McLean County, North Dakota Courthouse Drawing
Project Phases and Tasks
Planning
Design
Bidding
- Pre-Bid Conferences
- Submission of Bids
- Bid Evaluation and Award
Construction
Occupancy
- Staff Assignments
- Operational Policies
- Special Training
Planning and Design Issues
While Planning and Design are unique phases of the overall process to build and occupy a courthouse, many of the tasks take place concurrently.
Essential activities and considerations that may occur in either or both of the Planning and Design phases include:
- Project Management
- Planning Considerations - nine factors
- Court Organization and Administration
- Future Facilities Requirements
- Site Selection
- Calculating Gross Square Footage Requirements
- Space Planning - approximate square foot (sq. ft.) requirements by space and component
- Renovation
- Building Codes
- Designing for Flexibility
- Adjacencies - the location of functions within the facility
- Circulation and Zoning - public, private, and secure zones
McLean County, North Dakota Courthouse