Plans for a major expansion of the building that houses Gwinnett’s county offices and courthouse are moving forward after a long delay.
By a 4-1 vote, the Gwinnett Board of Commissioners on Tuesday awarded a $74.6 million contract to Gilbane Building Company to do the work, which was delayed by the Great Recession.
The company will build a 180,485-square-foot addition to the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center, the county’s main courthouse and administrative building in Lawrenceville. It also will build a 1,500-space parking garage.
Most of the money for the project comes from a sales tax that voters approved in 2008.
The center, which opened in 1988, is home to a variety of courts and criminal justice offices, as well as administrative offices like the Board of Commissioners, county manager and tax assessor. The expansion would add as many as 10 courtrooms, a new jury assembly area and other facilities.
Gwinnett officials say the project will make the county's criminal justice system more efficient. Superior Court Judge George F. Hutchinson III recently told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that a lack of criminal courtrooms at the existing facility makes scheduling trials and hearings more difficult.
By adding criminal courtrooms – complete with holding facilities to separate the accused from witnesses and others – the expansion will speed up cases, Hutchinson said.
The project was originally scheduled to be finished in 2013. But, with county revenue plummeting amid the Great Recession, commissioners postponed the project in 2010.
Tuesday, commissioner John Heard voted against awarding the construction contract. He expressed concern that the county interviewed only two of four companies that sought the contract.
In a separate unanimous vote, commissioners tabled a proposal to add $2.2 million to an existing contract to Pieper O’Brien Herr Architects to finish designing the expansion. Commissioner Tommy Hunter said he had questions about the contract.
Commissioners originally awarded the contract in 2009, but the project was suspended. County Commission Chairman Charlotte Nash has said the additional money is needed update plans to make better use of scarce space at the site and to provide easier access to the public.
With the additional money, the county would pay the architect about $5 million – 78 percent more than the original contract.
About the Author
