BENTONVILLE -- Benton County officials said Thursday disagreements over the growth of the county's circuit courts shouldn't hamper the pursuit of a new courts building.
Justices of the Peace Joel Jones and Barry Moehring question some projections of the newest courts study. Jones is focused on the likely timetable for the county gaining approval for new circuit judges.
Courts study
Benton County has been considering a building to house the county’s circuit courts and related offices for several years. A study in January 2014 identified three sites for a building — two downtown and one on Southwest 14th Street near the jail. The county hired consultants to examine the sites and develop conceptual plans and cost estimates for all three locations with a concept report due by Nov. 30.
Source: Staff report
Jones works with statistics, projecting trends and modeling growth, and he's questioned the projections going back to a previous study. The caseload growth data, in his view, doesn't support projections. He pointed to changes in caseload from some types of civil cases during the recession years from 2007 to 2009 as an aberration he doesn't think was properly accounted for.
He also argues the data on caseloads doesn't support the upward trend in some projections, raising questions about the estimate the county will need 11 new judges by 2030.
"Based on the way I look at the trends, we wouldn't need that many judges by 2030," Jones said. "If we don't need those judges in the immediate future, that then becomes an expansion discussion."
Jones said a suggestion from Moehring the county consider all available space in downtown Bentonville as a courts "campus" could change the way the court building project proceeds.
"That's important. We want to be able to expand very easily," Jones said. "If we're going to consider the space where the old jail is for future expansion, with a sky walk across Second Street connecting the buildings as was shown in one of the past concepts, then we should be looking at where the sky walk is going to go so the building on Second Street can be designed for that."
Circuit Judge Doug Schrantz said the county and court caseload is growing.
"I said it before and I'll say it again, in my business and in my world, you've got to have a basis for an opinion," Schrantz said. "They're just saying they disagree. You can argue when we're going to get judges all day long. But the basic premise is that we're going to get the judges."
One of the most important parts of the county's plans is any new building provide room for easy expansion, Schrantz said. The initial number of courtrooms, as long as it's within reason, is less of a factor, he said.
"As long as you're able to expand the courthouse reasonably well, who cares?" Schrantz said of the debate over the number of courtrooms in the plan. "As long as we have a place to put the new judges when we need them. Otherwise, we're just putting a Band-Aid on our present situation."
Moehring questions the projection of needing 11 new judges and courtrooms by 2030. He argues the county has to explore ways to reduce the physical space needed by using technology and different management techniques, such as shared courtrooms.
"These are all things that are being done in other places," he said.
Schrantz said the judges are open to technology and use it now. But there are limits to what technology can do, he said, including some provisions in the state Constitution and the U.S. Constitution restricting the development of "virtual courtrooms" or the use of video or teleconferencing technologies.
He also said the shared courtroom option doesn't work in a small courts system such as Benton County's where there are six circuit judges.
"It didn't work in Pulaski County where they have 17 circuit judges and a dedicated courts manager," Schrantz said. "It might work in Los Angeles where they have hundreds of judges and hundreds of courtrooms."
Moehring said he thinks the county may need to slow the study process, particularly in light of an offer by Walton family interests to build a parking deck near the downtown locations being considered for a courts building. That offer substantially addresses the parking concerns of a downtown site, Moehring said, and makes the idea of a downtown courts campus appealing.
"I think we have to look at downtown as one site now," Moehring said. "With the parking deck, we have ample room for parking. We have room for immediate expansion and long-term expansion. I think that development merits a re-thinking."
County Judge Bob Clinard said the schedule for the courts study being done by his work group will provide the Quorum Court with building options and cost estimates on the three sites identified when the project began. He said that's what the county's consultants were hired to do, and he expects they will complete the work on time.
"There's nothing else I need to tell them," Clinard said.
Another study in January 2014 identified three sites for a courts building -- two downtown and one on Southwest 14th Street near the jail.
Clinard said the Quorum Court favors a downtown site, but he won't limit the study, arguing the county needs to know the differences between building downtown and building on the county land available on Southwest 14th Street.
"They're all on board for downtown, or most of them are," Clinard said of the justices of the peace, "and they want me to tell them not to look at (Southwest 14th Street). But that's not their job. We'll have three options presented to them. They can decide to fund one of those if they want to."
NW News on 09/02/2016