BENTONVILLE -- Demolition work associated with the courthouse expansion is expected to begin in early December, Benton County Judge Barry Moehring said.
DT Specialized Services out of Tulsa will do the work for $72,772, Moehring said. The groundbreaking should start in January, he said.
A new courtroom is needed for Christine Horwart, who was elected in March and will be the county's seventh circuit court judge. She takes office Jan. 1. The Arkansas Legislature added the judgeship to assist with the increasing caseload.
The county plans to demolish the one-story section behind the courthouse that housed the coroner's office. A two-story addition is planned on the site with a lobby area on the first floor. Horwart's courtroom and office area will be on the second floor. The expansion will add 5,500 square feet to the downtown courthouse, which is 28,080 square feet.
The county will finance $3.1 million for the expansion. It secured the loan from Regions Bank for five years at 1.59% with no prepayment penalty, said Brenda Guenther, county comptroller. The Benton County Quorum Court approved the financing plan in July.
The large-scale development plan was unanimously approved by the Bentonville Planning Commission in October.
The parking lot between the County Administration Building and the courthouse will lose 18 spaces reserved for county vehicles during the demolition work, Moehring said. The county will use a parking lot across East Central Avenue, he said.
The development when finished will include 72 parking spaces and will provide a 12-foot sidewalk along East Central Avenue and an 8-foot sidewalk along Northeast Second Street, according to city planning documents.
"It's progress," Moehring said of the expansion. "It meets the immediate needs. We have a new judge that we have to have accommodations for. It'a good solution for Division 7."
Until the work is completed, Horwart's courtroom and chamber will be in a small area in the courthouse last used as a courtroom in 2012. The 888-square foot courtroom has been remodeled. The county budgeted $23,796 for the remodel.
Security cameras and doors, the computer system, phones, audio/visual equipment and moving some prosecuting attorney staff members out of the space will cost a little more than $88,600, said James Turner, county information technology director.
Included in the court expansion is $231,783 to repair the annex where Circuit Judge Brad Karren holds court, according to documents. The annex is across the street from the main courthouse.
Work that has been completed in the annex includes interior paint and carpet, new exterior doors, a new roof, new heating, ventilation and air-conditioning units, a sidewalk on the west side and new canopies on three sides, said Bryan Beeson, county facilities administrator. Work to be finished includes exterior painting, adding the rear canopies and exterior building lights, Beeson said.
The courthouse expansion should wrap up by the end of 2021, Moehring said.
Mike Jones may be reached by email at [email protected].