Current Fayette County

Courthouse & Jail Complex

The current Fayette County Courthouse Complex began as a residential home, completed in 1839, which was purchased by the County in 1932. Although there have been some building improvements, this facility can no longer adequately serve Fayette County’s needs.

General Courthouse Deficiencies

The current Courthouse is 44,400 square feet and includes most County functions.
The building shows signs of mold throughout, but especially where plumbing leaks have regularly occurred over the years. The mold has been regularly addressed and repaired but continues to persist, as shown here, in numerous areas throughout the Courthouse.
Due to the plaster walls, plumbing leaks are difficult and costly to repair.
As shown below, the ADA-compliant path through the building is not ideal, utilizing the same elevator that transports detainees for the County Jail. This path also takes visitors through a Courtroom, sometimes in the middle of court proceedings, to access the State’s Attorney’s office.
The Courthouse basement floods during heavy rain despite previous repairs, which limits how much of the space can be used.

Courtrooms

The current Courthouse has two courtrooms, both of which are used regularly.
In the large Courtroom, the judge’s bench, jury’s deliberation room, and jury box are not ADA-compliant, and the deliberation room is not soundproofed. In the small Courtroom, the judge’s bench is not ADA-compliant.
The large Courtroom is regularly used for committee meetings due to lack of other space, but is not equipped for hybrid meetings or convenient sharing of information.
The Sheriff’s Office moves detainees from jail to court through the same hallways used by the public and staff.

Sheriff’s Office & Jail

The current Sheriff’s Office & Jail was added to the Courthouse in 1968 with 34 beds.

Jail housing was expanded over time to 70 beds, but support and office spaces were never changed.
The linear layout makes it difficult for staff to have direct supervision of detainees and there are not adequate cameras to compensate.
There is limited ability to classify detainees, who according to jail standards must be separated into sentenced, non-sentenced, sex offenders, and federal inmates.
Jail housing is built out of steel bars that pose significant safety and security risks for staff and detainees.
There is no space for detainee medical evaluation and treatment so detainees must be taken to the local hospital for all medical care.
The current jail has only two beds for special needs housing for high-risk detainees who are experiencing a crisis, such as substance withdrawal or suicidal thoughts.
The jail’s kitchen has a residential layout and appliances despite cooking up to 200 meals per day.
The intake and booking area is an open desk, offering staff no security when processing and evaluating a new arrival at the jail.
The jail is spread across multiple floors, so staff and detainees must utilize an elevator that is shared with the public.
Detainees must regularly be moved through kitchen when it is in use.

More information to consider:

The County Coroner’s Office is limited to a single small room with no space for grieving visitors to sit. The County currently utilizes space at the hospital morgue to house the County-owned mortuary storage cooler due to lack of space.
The County Probation Office has changed significantly in recent decades due to court-mandated programs and needs more office space to accommodate the additional staff, along with separate waiting areas for juveniles and adults.
Pre-trial Services, a key component of the judicial system, operates out of a former closet with no other space in the Courthouse for them to occupy.
Storage space is extremely limited, with several basement hallways used as storage.
There is a shortage of restrooms in the Courthouse.
The current Courthouse has extremely limited space for public parking, with minimal street parking available nearby.

Renovation of the Existing Courthouse & Jail Complex

The Fayette County Public Building Commission explored the renovation of the current Courthouse, evaluating the cost versus the deficiencies shown by the building.
The County Jail cannot be renovated, as the current layout would not meet minimum square footage requirements for detainees and there is no room for expansion.
If a new Detention Center was built on the same site as the existing Courthouse, and the remaining spaces were renovated, the total project cost would be more expensive than the proposed new Government Center. In addition to this, there would be no space for additional parking, which is badly needed.
The County would still rely on the local hospital for morgue space.
The County would be left with a floor plan that has the same inefficiencies as the current Courthouse because there is no room for expansion on the site.

Current Courthouse Renovation - First Level