Steamboat Pilot & Today

Plans for the exterior of the new justice center are not finished, but the building likely will have blond brick and look similar to the Routt County Jail.

After seeing a preliminary exterior design from the architects last week, Routt County Commissioner Nancy Stahoviak's first reaction was that the brick color -- red in the preliminary design -- needed to change.

"We have constantly said that this building ... needs to flow from the jail," Stahoviak said. "The first thing I said to them was we need to have blond brick with red accents."

The new center will be built on an undeveloped 5-acre lot in the Curve Subdivision, south of the Routt County Jail along Shield Drive.

The architects' goal is to have, by the end of the year, a design that can be presented to the public during an open house meeting, Stahoviak said.

The new justice center will have a square footprint to create efficiencies. It will have three stories, one of which is a garden level, and basement area and is estimated to be about 50,000 square feet.

The building will house three courtrooms, as well as a fourth large room that will be finished but will not have courtroom fixtures. About 40 percent of the garden level will remain unfinished space to save costs now but provide room to grow, commissioners have decided.

The design of the building allows for an addition with two more courtrooms and extra space.

Commissioners recently decided not to build separate parking for judges because of the additional cost associated with that and because there are other, less expensive ways to provide security for judges if it's necessary, Stahoviak said.

To facilitate the process, county commissioners will discuss the building's progress each week with Routt County Building Maintenance Director Tim Winter.

"It's an important enough project," Routt County Commissioner Doug Monger said. "We need to be able to meet as a board and with staff."

The schematic design already is complete. An initial cost estimate is expected the first week of December, Routt County Manager Tom Sullivan said.

The minimum total cost the county is considering is about $12 million, with the high-end cost predicted at about $14 million. About $7 million from the county's reserves have been set aside for the building, with the remainder coming from certificates of participation.

The existing county building was designed for $210 per square foot, but the county hopes the square-foot cost for the justice center will be below $200, Sullivan said.

Commissioners received a court order to build a new justice facility by Sept. 1, 2006.