City of Ukiah officials were joined by representatives of the Pomo Indian Nation this week for a ceremonial ground-breaking of construction on a new Mendocino County Courthouse behind the Railroad Depot on East Perkins Street.
According to the Judicial Council of California, the $144.924 million project was put on hold in 2016, then “reactivated utilizing a new delivery method” in Fiscal Year 2021-22.
The Judicial Council describes the Ukiah project as “in the Immediate Need priority group and consequently is one of the highest priority trial court capital-outlay projects for the judicial branch. Currently in the Design-Build phase, it is estimated to complete in May 2027.”
The building specifications provided by state officials have it containing seven courtrooms in a total of 81,169 square-feet. The “Design-Build Entity is Hensel Phelps | Fentress Architects, Design-Build Architect: Fentress Architects; the Design-Build Contractor is Hensel Phelps (and the) Criteria Architect is Cannon Parkin, Inc., dba Cannon Design.”
In describing the current courthouse, state officials note that the building in Ukiah “hears all case types, though it is substantially out of compliance with regulatory safety, seismic, accessibility codes, and Judicial Council space standards. It has no secure in-custody access and circulation as well as two entire floors without elevators or ADA accessibility.”
When asked to respond to concerns regarding the possible relocation of Alex R. Thomas Jr. Plaza following the potential removal of the current courthouse, Deputy City Manager Shannon Riley noted that a recent story written by Mike Geniella and published in the UDJ had prompted those concerns, and provided this clarification from Geniella as her response:
“A Clarification Is Needed. Some believe the City of Ukiah intends to demolish Alex R. Thomas Plaza. A fledgling petition drive has been launched to block such a move. It is based, apparently, on comments I included in a recent article on the construction of a new $144 million Mendocino County Courthouse, and how a completed project will bring significant changes to downtown Ukiah. In a lengthy interview, Deputy City Manager Shannon Riley mentioned the possibility of the city acquiring the current courthouse site — the historic heart of downtown since 1860 — and recreating the Thomas Plaza there. That move would open up the historic center of town to the public, instead of being developed commercially, or worse yet, allowing the squat, 1950s current courthouse, owned by the county of Mendocino, to become another white elephant downtown. To date, county representatives have not publicly discussed future uses of the current building. The existing Thomas Plaza is located on downtown’s southern edge, not in Ukiah’s historic center. Relocating Thomas Plaza is not a new idea. Two years ago, a group promoted demolishing the current courthouse and turning the site into a new Thomas Plaza. It included the notion that the Mendocino County Museum would take over the limestone-clad courthouse addition fronting School Street for use.”
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