The Springfield City Council’s finance committee held a meeting Wednesday to give the public the opportunity to comment and ask questions about plans for a new courthouse in the city.
Officials with the state’s Division of Capital Asset Management, which is spearheading the effort, were there to provide information on the timeline for the project and to respond to inquiries from city councilors and the public.
The plan calls for the state to enter into a public-private partnership with a developer, which would own the building housing the courthouse. The state would then enter into a long-term lease for the facility.
Tim Sheehan, the city’s chief economic development officer, said Springfield would stand to gain under this model, since it does not receive property tax revenue from the current building since it is owned by the state.
Others speaking at the meeting said they want to see the courthouse remain in downtown Springfield for economic reasons, saying they are concerned if it went elsewhere in the city, it could hurt businesses and other property owners.
"We have our offices here in the heart of Springfield because we can walk to court," Attorney Patrick Markey said. "If the court is not in Metro Center, those offices will disappear. COVID was bad enough, there's all kinds of vacancies in these buildings."
Adam Baacke, the commissioner of the Division of Capital Asset Management indicated moving court operations to temporary facilities while a new building is constructed on the current site of the courthouse is not being considered.
Some speakers said they favored this due to the location. They also cited health problems among workers in the building. Some have said the condition of the building has led to a variety of ailments. Some of those addressing the meeting said a temporary location should be found as quickly as possible due to this.
State officials have said going the public-private partnership route would expedite the process of replacing the current Roderick Ireland Courthouse, which dates back to the mid-1970’s. They said having the state build a new building on its own would take far longer when the need for a new facility is acute.
It is anticipated the state will release a request for proposals in the next few months, with hopes a developer will be selected early next year.
