Douglas County Courthouse - Future expansion/renovation

[ita]

Space Master Plan: Douglas County courthouse facilities will run out of room by 2035

he Omaha Douglas Building Commission is deciding the best way to build or configure space to handle court cases in downtown Omaha.

The commission hired HDR to uncover existing space needs, develop a department-level space program, and plan to support operational performance and efficiency inside the Omaha Douglas Civic Center and Hall of Justice.

"We really need to figure out, now that we've got the issue of juvenile justice addressed, how can we help plan for the future," said Paul Cohen, Building Commission administrator.

Cohen says the new juvenile justice center, set to fully open summer of 2023, doesn't take into account county and district courts — along with the other city and county operations inside the current complex.

An HDR study from July determined: "For the courts, security concerns and a lack of space are major operational impediments. As the District Courts add judgeships, there are no courtrooms available to house them. The Hall of Justice has been stretched far beyond its original intended use; as past studies have also concluded, the Hall of Justice is between two and three times smaller than is required."

HDR also determined the current courthouse would run out of space near 2035 if departments are not renovated.
...
One option proposes no new construction, only sustainable for the next five years.

Option two proposes a new standalone county courts center, while leaving the district courts in the current courthouse. Option three is vice versa.

Option four vacates the current courthouse in order to construct a new combined center. The vacated courthouse would be decommissioned as a courthouse and repurposed or sold.

The fourth option presents a challenge: significant fundraising and investment.

Is it just me, or should this have been addressed with the Juvenile Justice Center? If this was already a known issue with the Juvenile Center was being planned, shouldn't the County just have added more space in the Juvenile Justice Center? There is not much space nearby for building another courthouse, unless they build in the courtyard or something.

Edit: Another thought; the Keeline Building is going under renovations. It sounded like the current owner was anticipating some public office use. Maybe some services at the DC Courthouse can be moved there to allow for more courtrooms?

[Coyote]

Downtown Omaha courthouse could run out of space near 2035

The Omaha Douglas Building Commission is deciding the best way to build or configure space to handle court cases in downtown Omaha.

[GetUrban]

Space Master Plan: Douglas County courthouse facilities will run out of room by 2035

he Omaha Douglas Building Commission is deciding the best way to build or configure space to handle court cases in downtown Omaha.

The commission hired HDR to uncover existing space needs, develop a department-level space program, and plan to support operational performance and efficiency inside the Omaha Douglas Civic Center and Hall of Justice.

"We really need to figure out, now that we've got the issue of juvenile justice addressed, how can we help plan for the future," said Paul Cohen, Building Commission administrator.

Cohen says the new juvenile justice center, set to fully open summer of 2023, doesn't take into account county and district courts — along with the other city and county operations inside the current complex.

An HDR study from July determined: "For the courts, security concerns and a lack of space are major operational impediments. As the District Courts add judgeships, there are no courtrooms available to house them. The Hall of Justice has been stretched far beyond its original intended use; as past studies have also concluded, the Hall of Justice is between two and three times smaller than is required."

HDR also determined the current courthouse would run out of space near 2035 if departments are not renovated.
...
One option proposes no new construction, only sustainable for the next five years.

Option two proposes a new standalone county courts center, while leaving the district courts in the current courthouse. Option three is vice versa.

Option four vacates the current courthouse in order to construct a new combined center. The vacated courthouse would be decommissioned as a courthouse and repurposed or sold.

The fourth option presents a challenge: significant fundraising and investment.

Is it just me, or should this have been addressed with the Juvenile Justice Center? If this was already a known issue with the Juvenile Center was being planned, shouldn't the County just have added more space in the Juvenile Justice Center? There is not much space nearby for building another courthouse, unless they build in the courtyard or something.

Edit: Another thought; the Keeline Building is going under renovations. It sounded like the current owner was anticipating some public office use. Maybe some services at the DC Courthouse can be moved there to allow for more courtrooms?

I agree. All of those involved should have had enough foresight to project the court system needs for the next 25-30 years and build-in future court expansion possibilities into the new building nearing completion now. I would hate to see them go with option 4 mentioned above to stop using the Historic original courthouse as a courthouse. With HDR involved, they’ll probably try to sell the biggest totally new building they can design, close-off streets, and get design accolades for. You’re right, maybe they can find enough already built nearby space to meet the court’s needs.

[PotatoeEatsFish]

They really couldn’t plan this before they built the expansion

[Athomsfere]

They really couldn’t plan this before they built the expansion

Anyone who has ever worked corporate knows how this works.

Steve, in accounting hired a new intern. Got the approvals. Asked facilities for a desk, and was told there wasn't space where Steve wanted the desk. So He asked where there was space, and it was in the next room. That room has been empty for 5 years, so it's going to take a few weeks.

While starting to get the room ready, it turns out another team "owns" that room, and won't give it up. So now facilities is scrambling to find another empty spot, and the higher ups for all three teams brought it up to the tippy-top. The tippy top admits they had heard of similar problems before, but they always seemed to get resolved quickly. They then "inventory" space, and realize it's getting low, for real.

And that's how we get to here. At least they aren't talking about desk hotels, and standing desks instead of adding space.

[iamjacobm]

Was a bit slow at work so was cruising some recent Omaha sales on Costar and apparently the record owner of 1819 Farnam aka City Hall was transferred to the Fourth District Court of Nebraska last January. Can't find anything on the assessor site so couldn't verify anything. I mentioned in another thread that moving city hall and giving the courts that building could be a solution for this space crunch, maybe actually in the works?

[nebport5]

Was a bit slow at work so was cruising some recent Omaha sales on Costar and apparently the record owner of 1819 Farnam aka City Hall was transferred to the Fourth District Court of Nebraska last January. Can't find anything on the assessor site so couldn't verify anything. I mentioned in another thread that moving city hall and giving the courts that building could be a solution for this space crunch, maybe actually in the works?

Nice find. I would love it if City Hall relocated to nicer digs. I can't imagine it would be as interesting as the original "Red Castle" City Hall but I think the preeminent government building of a city should have a more stately presence than the current banal edifice.

My fantasy...a consolidation of police/fire HQs and city hall at the civic site with a clock tower.

[NEDodger]

Was a bit slow at work so was cruising some recent Omaha sales on Costar and apparently the record owner of 1819 Farnam aka City Hall was transferred to the Fourth District Court of Nebraska last January. Can't find anything on the assessor site so couldn't verify anything. I mentioned in another thread that moving city hall and giving the courts that building could be a solution for this space crunch, maybe actually in the works?

Nice find. I would love it if City Hall relocated to nicer digs. I can't imagine it would be as interesting as the original "Red Castle" City Hall but I think the preeminent government building of a city should have a more stately presence than the current banal edifice.

My fantasy...a consolidation of police/fire HQs and city hall at the civic site with a clock tower.

Had the exact same thought. The timing sure is interesting for this.

[Linkin5]

A consolidation of all these agencies would be a pretty significant building. I agree with the poster that stated it sounded like Jean said the new HQs for police and fire would be located outside of the downtown CBD.

[Mapguy]

I predict a move to 72nd and Dodge area. It would make the mayor's and Police Chief's commute a lot shorter from West Omaha.

[Brooklyn Decker]

I predict a move to 72nd and Dodge area. It would make the mayor's and Police Chief's commute a lot shorter from West Omaha.

St Louis is actually closer to downtown.

[ita]

Was a bit slow at work so was cruising some recent Omaha sales on Costar and apparently the record owner of 1819 Farnam aka City Hall was transferred to the Fourth District Court of Nebraska last January. Can't find anything on the assessor site so couldn't verify anything. I mentioned in another thread that moving city hall and giving the courts that building could be a solution for this space crunch, maybe actually in the works?

Did Costar say when the transfer occurred? 1819 Farnam is still showing that DC Building Commission owns the building, which isn't a recent change in the GIS. Also, I didn't see any deeds in the public record in the last 6 months.

[ShaneofCal]

There is no other way to put it: Option 4 is absolutely unacceptable.

As pointed out by others, prudent use of taxpayer dollars when developing the new Douglas County Juvenile Detention Center should have accounted for the long-term needs of the county court system as a whole.

To boot, the current Douglas County Courthouse is a historic building with a rich (though at times painful) history. As a strong proponent of renewing historic structures through private commercial development, the mere thought of this being the possible future for our current courthouse is hard to fathom and equally hard to accept.

To make matters worse, much of the current city leadership will almost certainly no longer be in place by the beginning of the next decade; and thus holding them accountable for what could prove to be extremely poor planning and imprudent use of taxpayer dollars won't be an option. Let's hope this issue does come to a head before then so that we can see them held to account.

[Coyote]

Douglas County Sheriff plans new Courthouse office
The sheriff’s office has more than 100 employees in or near the county courthouse.

We think of sheriff’s deputies out on patrol keeping our streets and homes safe. But there’s another part of the job that involves a large number of them. The new Douglas County Sheriff says he’ll have a second office at the Courthouse. Whether leaving a contentious court hearing or helping citizens find the right courtroom, Douglas County Sheriff’s deputies and security officers are highly visible and maintain order in the civic center or courthouse next door.

“I think it’s important to be in touch with the people in that building, whether it be city government, county government, or various people within county and city government and my staff,” said Douglas County Sheriff Aaron Hanson. The Sheriff’s main office is located at 156th and Maple, which is 19 miles from the courthouse and civic center where about 60 Sheriff’s employees work.

And the Sheriff having a second office at the courthouse or civic center would be a time saver as well. The drive from Sheriff’s headquarters to downtown Omaha is about 20 minutes or more depending on traffic. So barely moved into his west Omaha office, Sheriff Aaron Hanson says he plans to have a second office downtown.

[Coyote]

Douglas County Sheriff plans new Courthouse office
We think of sheriff’s deputies out on patrol keeping our streets and homes safe.
But there’s another part of the job that involves a large number of them.



The Sheriff says he plans to spend more than one day a week in a second office close to where the public deputies and justice system interact every work week. The warrants division and civil process unit is located near the Douglas County Jail downtown. So, all together the Sheriff has more than 100 employees in or near the courthouse.

[Coyote]

Douglas County Sheriff wants downtown office

Douglas County Sheriff Aaron Hanson says he plans to have a secondary office downtown in the city-county building.

[meliketrains]

With the new 72nd and Dodge Police & fire Headquarters proposal in the news, I figure now is as good a time as any to necrobump this thread to discuss 1819 Farnam and the Courthouse broadly. For those of you who haven't been to either of these facilities in a while, they're both pretty run-down. Old, tight hallways, poor facilities (bathrooms are filthy and regularly broken), poor energy management, roach infested, and all sorts of other issues. City Hall itself would quite literally qualify for one of the structured PACE loans the City offers for private corporations to modernize.

That recent study by HDR had more to do with Courthouse occupancy, but I think Omaha in general needs to have a serious discussion about what the long-term future of a DC/Omaha Civic Center looks like, because the current campus is falling apart at the seams. This is a building that had its frame and foundation built in 1917 with a major reconstruction in 1966. It's had some small renovation work done since then, but not much and not enough. It was built cheaply and quickly, and it shows.

I personally feel no attachment to this building in general and would not be against seeing it torn down and rebuilt with modern standards and a future work layout in mind. Granted it would need to connect to the old Courthouse, which should certainly be preserved (with major renovations), but this current iteration of brutalist architecture is ugly as sin and well past its welcome, at least in my mind.

Thoughts?

[NEDodger]

Hard to justify the cost with all the other pricy projects going on. This would be even more expensive than the new police/fire HQ.

[meliketrains]

A full new build on a different site would be pretty pricey, but could potentially be offset by sale of the existing lot (not the Courthouse, just the 1819 section) to a private developer, which could potentially be used to alleviate the cost. Much more likely is a comprehensive renovation, but the structure has bad bones and the repairs needed would be significant. There's no easy solution here, but in 10 years, there's going to be a real issue of space and facility management. Perhaps it's something that occurs once the new headquarters is complete, assuming Omaha approves that as envisioned. Depending on the success of that project and the general public reception to it, it might shed some light on whether the citizenry has the appetite for another large pricey project in the future.

[GenX]

I could see them building a new courthouse on the existing property. The new structure could partially go up on the northern half of the block, and once that’s finished demo and rebuild the south half of the block.

[Louie]

I could see them building a new courthouse on the existing property. The new structure could partially go up on the northern half of the block, and once that’s finished demo and rebuild the south half of the block.

That building is one of the few massive and historic buildings we have downtown. Tearing it down would be a travesty.

[meliketrains]

I could see them building a new courthouse on the existing property. The new structure could partially go up on the northern half of the block, and once that’s finished demo and rebuild the south half of the block.

Assuming you mean east/west. Though I agree with Louie in that this building should absolutely be preserved. We have so few historic buildings, and with some smart landscaping renovations (the front yard is hideous and is just a place for people to let their dogs take a |expletive|), it could be a genuinely beautiful lot.

The brutalist garbage dump that is 1819 Farnam needs to go though. Even if it was old to private owners after a move, they'd probably tear it down. The building is so rotted it isn't even worth renovating.

[NEDodger]

I could see them building a new courthouse on the existing property. The new structure could partially go up on the northern half of the block, and once that’s finished demo and rebuild the south half of the block.

That building is one of the few massive and historic buildings we have downtown. Tearing it down would be a travesty.

I agree with this. The courthouse isn’t being touched.

[GenX]

I could see them building a new courthouse on the existing property. The new structure could partially go up on the northern half of the block, and once that’s finished demo and rebuild the south half of the block.

That building is one of the few massive and historic buildings we have downtown. Tearing it down would be a travesty.

I am in no way suggesting anything be done, and agree losing the building would be a travesty. I was only speculating as to how it could be rebuilt or expanded on the same site, should that ever happen, which I hope it doesn’t.

[meliketrains]

Also, I think there is some really good precedent in this having happened locally and recently in Des Moines.

https://www.dsm.city/news_detail_T21_R412.php

I think if they can do it, so can we! Their existing structure situation is slightly different than ours (their old City Hall/Courthouse is stunning), but they still did a full construction of a modern glass office building. I think a future City Hall for Omaha might incorporate other materials than just glass and steel, but even if it didn't a building about the size of HDR's office in Aksarben would definitely cover everything needed.

For lots, there's a few options. City could use the lots just directly south of their current building, where the existing Housing Authority is in the old library building, then maybe try to build around that so as to preserve that beautiful building. They could also buy the lots a block to the southwest corner of them, which is mostly occupied by small warehouses and offices. I think there's plenty of space in the general area for them to choose a spot, and a ton of the land is already owned by Omaha or DC, which would drastically reduce the cost of initial land purchases.



If the old lot is retained, you could then turn it into a City Park, a community center, or maybe event space for City use, maybe with the help of philanthropy, which would help connect these lots and give an excuse for doing some landscaping revamp around the Courthouse.

[jomaha9]

This is a really random thought on a new city hall and probably won't happen, but I'll share anyways.

I believe UP bought the lot to the north of their current HQ and would likely consider a new headquarters for their newly merged UP/NS corporation. If this happens, could the city buy the current UP headquarters on the cheap and repurpose into a new city hall? That might be a win-win for the city and UP.

The only consideration is that it is not very close to the courthouse. Not sure if proximity to the courthouse is a determining factor in a potential new city hall. On the other hand, this building is close to the city's flagship park and that might be more important to city leaders than courthouse proximity.

[meliketrains]

Proximity is pretty important, which is why any future lot would need to be connected directly via sky bridges, tunnels, or both. There are a lot of City and County functions which require use of the Courthouse, and it's actually a cost saving issue, as the security checkpoints are shared across the buildings.

More than that, the new corporate headquarters building actually leases a decent amount of its office space, so it's possible they don't even do a true move since they still have room within that building. If the City were to buy it, they'd still have to do some significant renovations to build a modern legislative chambers and the supporting infrastructure for public use, which I'm not sure would be very efficient.

[iamjacobm]

This is a really random thought on a new city hall and probably won't happen, but I'll share anyways.

I believe UP bought the lot to the north of their current HQ and would likely consider a new headquarters for their newly merged UP/NS corporation. If this happens, could the city buy the current UP headquarters on the cheap and repurpose into a new city hall? That might be a win-win for the city and UP.

The only consideration is that it is not very close to the courthouse. Not sure if proximity to the courthouse is a determining factor in a potential new city hall. On the other hand, this building is close to the city's flagship park and that might be more important to city leaders than courthouse proximity.

In this concept I think the city buying the Woodmen building and them becoming an anchor in a new build is a fun brainstorm. Probably closer to the SF the city/courts actually need rather than UP (probably too much) and could do tunnels or skywalks to the current city campus pretty easy.

[jomaha9]

This is a really random thought on a new city hall and probably won't happen, but I'll share anyways.

I believe UP bought the lot to the north of their current HQ and would likely consider a new headquarters for their newly merged UP/NS corporation. If this happens, could the city buy the current UP headquarters on the cheap and repurpose into a new city hall? That might be a win-win for the city and UP.

The only consideration is that it is not very close to the courthouse. Not sure if proximity to the courthouse is a determining factor in a potential new city hall. On the other hand, this building is close to the city's flagship park and that might be more important to city leaders than courthouse proximity.

In this concept I think the city buying the Woodmen building and them becoming an anchor in a new build is a fun brainstorm. Probably closer to the SF the city/courts actually need rather than UP (probably too much) and could do tunnels or skywalks to the current city campus pretty easy.

That would definitely be a better idea than the one I originally shared. It doesn't seem likely that Woodmen would build a new HQ.

A practical stopgap solution is the city just leasing a few floors of the Woodmen Tower (maybe as an interim solution if they build a new city hall where the current one is).

[CBJason]

Also, I think there is some really good precedent in this having happened locally and recently in Des Moines.

https://www.dsm.city/news_detail_T21_R412.php

I think if they can do it, so can we! Their existing structure situation is slightly different than ours (their old City Hall/Courthouse is stunning), but they still did a full construction of a modern glass office building. I think a future City Hall for Omaha might incorporate other materials than just glass and steel, but even if it didn't a building about the size of HDR's office in Aksarben would definitely cover everything needed.

Just to be clear based on your writing, they bought a previous Nationwide building and updated it, not a ground up new build.

[CBJason]

This is a really random thought on a new city hall and probably won't happen, but I'll share anyways.

I believe UP bought the lot to the north of their current HQ and would likely consider a new headquarters for their newly merged UP/NS corporation. If this happens, could the city buy the current UP headquarters on the cheap and repurpose into a new city hall? That might be a win-win for the city and UP.

The only consideration is that it is not very close to the courthouse. Not sure if proximity to the courthouse is a determining factor in a potential new city hall. On the other hand, this building is close to the city's flagship park and that might be more important to city leaders than courthouse proximity.

I’ve thought this exact same scenario. In Tulsa, Williams Corporation had a brand new glass building, much like the UP building, about 20 stories. At some point after I moved away in 2004, they sold it to the city and they moved all their government offices in there.

[meliketrains]

Also, I think there is some really good precedent in this having happened locally and recently in Des Moines.

https://www.dsm.city/news_detail_T21_R412.php

I think if they can do it, so can we! Their existing structure situation is slightly different than ours (their old City Hall/Courthouse is stunning), but they still did a full construction of a modern glass office building. I think a future City Hall for Omaha might incorporate other materials than just glass and steel, but even if it didn't a building about the size of HDR's office in Aksarben would definitely cover everything needed.

Just to be clear based on your writing, they bought a previous Nationwide building and updated it, not a ground up new build.

That's true, but cost wise with the updates the building needed, it probably was still a considerable amount for the size of Des Moines. They reportedly bought it for 30M and then spent another 19M on renovations. Granted, that's probably a third of what Omaha would spend on a new build, optimistically.