EDITORIALS : Devils and Details
Posted on Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Money transferred hands on Monday when Washington County officials finalized an agreement to take control of the Terminella Building (which sits across the street and just south of the Washington County Courthouse ) for $ 4. 5 million.
In doing so, it would seem part one of a multifaceted process to revamp the size and shape of county government in these parts has already been accomplished. The general idea is to renovate the Terminella space so that it might relieve pressing space issues facing the current courthouse - which isn't getting any bigger while county demand for space is.
The second part of the county's gambit would be a complete renovation of the old Washington County Courthouse's interior space, with cost estimates already somewhere in the ballpark of $ 5 million. If everything falls into place, 4 th Circuit Judge Mary Ann Gunn's court would be moved to the Terminella Building while renovations take place. Eventually Gunn (and the drug-court staff ) would head back to their current home in the old courthouse. Besides greatly assisting county archivists, County Judge Jerry Hunton hopes these renovations will create space for a second courtroom that could someday be put to excellent use.
County justices of the peace are also proposing construction of a parking deck on a church's parking lot close to the intersection of College Avenue and Dickson Street. With a sky walk connecting the deck to the courthouse, the space would help the county deal with the parking issues they face directly across the street, and the deck would also provide great parking for St. Paul's Episcopal Church, which owns the property in question. A couple hundred more places to park could also be used to help alleviate parking issues that have plagued downtown Fayetteville for years. As for the parking deck, a lot of questions remain. The preliminary images the public has seen certainly reflect a parking deck lined along College Avenue with enough space to house shops or even a restaurant. As far as such structures go, it doesn't look that bad. But having a parking deck just a hair away from the intersection of College Avenue and Dickson Street is a big pill to swallow. It's going to take awhile for that idea to soak in for a lot of folks, we suspect. At times, we can't help wondering if county government isn't spreading itself too thin as part of its evolution. Would expanding from one to three courthouse settings create inefficiencies in security and operations involving the courts ? For the record, Judge Hunton says security issues will be manageable under the current proposal. Will it be affordable ? No doubt the facilities question is only part of the challenge. More space generally means a need for more employees and more equipment. The county will have to tread carefully to ensure it doesn't create a burden to its annual operational budget. In other words, are the Quorum Court's current objectives the most efficient course ? Washington County may be home to a new judgeship in the decade to come. A legitimate question to ponder is whether the county is best served by having any additional courts in one building, rather than spreading the local judicial operations to three buildings. Hunton points to a study indicating that Washington County may require space for nine courts by the time 2030 rolls around. That's 22 years from now. Let's hope the millions that will be expended in this effort are just what the doctor ordered.
- Northwest Arkansas Times
FEEDBACK:
Something to say about this topic? Submit a Letter to the Editor online