Courts Space Issue
Per the State Code of Iowa, counties are responsible for providing space for the
operation of the state run courts system.
The Polk County Courthouse was built in 1906 with four courtrooms. Currently, Courthouse
is very overcrowded with 28 courtrooms squeezed into the building with Polk County
providing an additional 9,000 square feet in leased space at Riverpoint West as
well as 14,705 square feet of leased storage space for the Clerk of Court. Carefully
thought out projections show the court growing to 54 judgeships by 2030. Additionally,
because of the age of the facility and the retrofitting of space not originally
designed or intended for court use, the current facility has inadequate provisions
for security and life-safety needs.
In April of 2008, a referendum to construct additional court space failed. The referendum
considered an Option 5a courthouse plan to address the current and future space
needs of the courts. The plan included the full use and renovation of the historic
courthouse and construction of a new court facility on County owned land immediately
south of the present courthouse site at a 2009 construction cost not to exceed $127
million dollars.
The Board of Supervisors continues to wrestle with the needs of the courts. The
National Center for State Courts was engaged by the Board in May of this year to
perform a review of court function and space issues. As part of their study, the
National Center for State Courts conducted interviews with the courts, elected officials
and stakeholders, and reviewed existing County buildings as well as other available
area buildings for possible court use. Several issue papers were produced as a result
of their findings.
On January 6, 2010, the Board of Supervisors received the Court Utilization Study
Final Report from the National Center for State Courts. The study reviewed planning
assumptions and court operational issues to develop their recommendation. Included
in the first phase of their recommendations was the purchase of the property located
at 222 – 5th Avenue currently known as the Wellmark Building (Previously JC Penneys),
renovation of the old jail facility located at 110 – 6th Avenue into criminal courts,
renovation of the historic courthouse into civil courts and the relocation of juvenile
court functions to the Juvenile Detention Facility on Hull Avenue. This report lays
the groundwork and provides the strategies to move forward in developing a phased
approach to addressing the courts issues.
The Board of Supervisors has directed the County Administrator to develop a phased
approach plan and financial scenario to alleviate the courts space issue based upon
the recommendations of the National Center for State Courts. The development of
a phased plan for easing the courts space and safety issues will provide for some
immediate relief for the courts while assuring a cost effective manner to address
courts space into the future without placing a considerable burden upon the taxpayers.
The County Administrator will initially be looking at four $25 million dollar five
year increments to fund the recommended phases.
For additional information contact:
Sue Elliott
Project Manager
Polk County Board of Supervisors
111 Court Avenue, Room 300
Des Moines, IA 50309
515-286-3128
Sue.Elliott@polkcountyiowa.gov