RICHMOND, Ky. (LEX 18) — Two years and 17 million dollars later, the work is done at the Madison County Circuit Courthouse.
“It will be open for business next Monday,” said County Judge/Executive Reagan Taylor.
Taylor offered LEX 18 a tour of the entire facility, which he knows inside and out. He highlighted every new detail, including the brackets used to mount a new handrail.
“We actually used these so they wouldn’t get into the marble,” he said of the creatively curved brackets that allowed contractors to avoid drilling into original 1860s marble.
“We call this the Madison County White House, and we're very proud of it,” Taylor said. “It’s a beautiful building, so we're glad we got to preserve it,” he added.
Work included taking the building down to the studs, and in some cases, the beams. State legislators approved the project with a $ 22 million bond through Kentucky’s Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC). The overall price tag allowed them to come in under budget, and Judge Taylor said the construction process went smoothly.
“So, this was a complete gut, we have two courtrooms, plus a little hearing room on the 3rd floor. We have a sallyport (for inmate transport) and secured holding for inmates,” Taylor explained of some of the new features that will make the building more secure and user-friendly.
The three judge’s benches are complete with bulletproof material in the wood, and the new holding area means inmates coming for hearings won’t be near employees or members of the community who are here to handle civil matters. New windows, and flooring were also installed, and the acoustics are much better in the courtrooms, which is something they has focused on improving. They also needed to get the building more compliant in other ways as well, given its age.
“From ADA compliance, new elevators, and secured corridors for inmates. It’s a lot safer for our judges, court staff, jail staff,” Taylor said.
Court will be in session on Monday morning, May 12, after spending two years across the street at a bank building.
