COURTHOUSE RESTORATION UPDATES

Pictures
Before			During	After

Photo Courtesy of Susan Kitchens

Trinity County Judge 

County moves out of Courthouse

County prepares to move out of courthouse

$5,000,000.00 grant for complete renovation of courthouse

  Architect

Invitation to Bid

$4.7 million contract approved for Courthouse Renovation - County moves out of Courthouse
Groveton News - April 2009

  GROVETON – The $4.7 million contract to renovate the Trinity County Courthouse was signed Monday after being formally approved by the Trinity County Commissioners Court. The county had accepted the bid from J.C. Stoddard Construction Co. of San Antonio on March 30 and the details for the contract were then worked out between the company and project architect Michael Gaertner of Galveston.
   

   During Monday’s meeting of the commissioners, Gaertner said the kickoff meeting between the contractor, the county’s building committee and the Texas Historical Commission (THC) would be held Friday, April 29, and work on the courthouse would begin soon after. “I expect them (Stoddard) will be on site before that, however. They should start moving their equipment in and putting up the construction fence around the courthouse fairly soon,” the architect told commissioners. Gaertner told commissioners that if there is anything they want to salvage from the courthouse in the way of fixtures and equipment, now is the time to remove it. All of the county’s offices have already been relocated across Highway 287 into four building located immediately south of the Trinity County Jail. As of Monday, the only things left to move is a number of files stored on the third floor of the courthouse and the commis-sioners court meeting room.

   Evans said Monday he was not sure if the benches and court table now used in the courthouse could be moved and indicated they may have to be built in the new meeting room across the street. The recording system now in place in the old commissioners’ courtroom also will have to be moved and County Clerk Diane McCrory said she hopes to have it removed and reinstalled in the new room during the same day. The contract calls for construction to last for 14 months. Included in the work will be a complete restoration of the exterior of the courthouse to return it to its appearance when it was completed in 1914. Interior hallways and the second floor district courtroom also will returned to their 1914 look and offices – though modernized for 21st century look – also will appear close to the way they did originally.
   Also included in the project is the installation of the courthouse’s first elevator; new electrical and plumbing systems; and central air and heating. Funding for the project is coming from a $5 million Courthouse Preservation Grant from the Texas Historical Commission and $1.6 million in certificates of obligation issued by the county. The certificates are to be repaid over the next 15 years. During the meeting, commis-sioners also discussed the county’s temporary quarters located across the street from the courthouse.They were told that one potential problem appears to be the lack of soundproofing. County Attorney Joe Bell said it is possible for him to clearly hear others talking in adjoining offices. “That could be a real problems because there are times confidential conversations must take place in my office, the county judge’s office and others,” he said.
   While acknowledging the sound problem, Evans said for the most part the transition into the temporary offices has been fairly smooth.
He noted the week after they moved, a jury trial was held in the temporary district court-room. Another potential problem noted by Evans was the proximity of Highway 287 to the front entrances to the new county offices. He noted the speed limit on the highway currently stands at 30 miles per hour and he is discussing lowering it to 20 with the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). Also being discussed is installing a cross walk from the courthouse square over to the front of the new offices and installing either a stop or caution light near the front of the new office buildings.

 County prepares to move out of courthouse

Groveton News - March 2009 

    GROVETON – Although an actual moving date has not yet been set, Trinity County offices will soon be leaving the courthouse in Groveton in preparation of a long awaited building renovation program. Trinity County Judge Mark Evans told county commis-sioners Monday the new offices located immediately south of the courthouse square on Highway 287 have been completed. The county has leased four buildings on the south side of Highway 287 to temporarily house the courthouse offices. A fifth building was also leased but it will be used as a permanent office area by the Trinity County Sheriff’s Department. Those offices are not connected to the courthouse renovation, but were obtained because the sheriff had run out of space in the Trinity County Jail. Evans noted the sheriff’s offices were still under construction but should be completed within the month.
“Essentially, we’re waiting for the phone company to switch our system over to the new offices,” Evans said during Monday’s commissioner court meeting.
   “Once they are ready to make the change, we’ll be able to move out of the courthouse,” he added. The commissioners were told at least one computer system located in Tax Assessor-Collector Lindy Warren’s office would probably be moved across the street early this week. It was noted the computer is tied into a statewide network and can only be moved during a very narrow window of time each month. If it is not relocated this week, they would have to wait until next month to make the change. The move out of the courthouse is in preparation of a $6.5 million renovation planned for the three-story brick court-house, which was completed in 1914. Bids for the project were scheduled to be opened Tuesday, March 10, and were to be reviewed by the project architects and the county’s building committee. As part of the review process, architect Michael Gaertner of Galveston would be checking the bidders’ references and “establish the credibility of the bidders,” Evans told commis-sioners.
    The architect will present the bids to the building committee at their meeting on March 23 and the committee will make a recommendation to commissioners in April. The county expects con-struction to last at least 14 months and will include the installation of an elevator, new plumbing and electrical systems and central air and heating systems. The exterior of the courthouse also will be restored to its original appearance and the interior hallways and second floor district courtroom will be returned to as close to the 1914 look as possible. While offices will be set up for Internet and telephone service, the false ceilings that many now have will be removed and they also will be restored to the 1914 appearance.
    Handicapped accessible rest-rooms also will be installed on the first floor and with the installation of an elevator, for the first time in the courthouse’s history offices will be located on the third floor. Originally the third floor was designed as dormitory space to house jurors during the days when most people traveled to and from Groveton on horseback or in wagons. Most recently, the third floor has been used as storage space for county records.
    Funding for the restoration work is coming from a $5 million courthouse preservation grant from the Texas Historical Commission and $1.6 million in certificates of obligation issued by the county. The certificates are a means for the county to make a long-term loan and will be repaid over the next 15 years. 

  Trinity County awarded $5,000,000.00 grant for complete renovation of courthouse
Groveton News - February 2008

GROVETON – After more than eight years of effort, Trinity County was awarded a $5 million grant last week to fund a complete renovation of the Trinity County Courthouse in Groveton. The Texas Historical Com-mission announced Friday that Trinity County was one of 14 counties across the state to win a 2008 construction grant. The county had previously received a 2004 planning grant totaling $343,000 that allowed local officials to draw up plans and specifications for the local courthouse’s renovation and restoration.

Although a timetable has not yet been set for the construction work, County Judge Mark Evans said Friday that county commissioners will begin “the next stage” of the project at their Feb. 11 meeting. Because the construction plans are already ready, bids on the project can be sought in a fairly short time. One major aspect of the project that the commissioners will be tackling almost immediately is to arrange for the local share of the project’s cost.

The THC grant will require the county to pay 15 percent of the project’s cost, or about $750,000. The “local match” is expected to be generated either through the sale of certificates of obligation or a bond election. Another major task now facing commissioners will be to find office space in and around Groveton to temporarily house county departments while the renovation work is underway. “Obviously, I am very pleased that Trinity County has been selected to receive a Texas Historical Courthouse Preservation Program Grant Award,” Evans said following Friday’s THC announcement.

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