Commissioners approve selection committee and review courthouse addition plans from Davis Design

Davis Design (presenter Steve) gave commissioners an early progress update on the courthouse addition, showing west, north, east and south elevations, discussing historic context and accessibility changes, and explaining material choices (brick and stone-like banding) intended to complement the existing Beaux-Arts courthouse without visually overpowering it.

"We wanted to be mindful of the historic context there," the Davis Design presenter said, showing how the new entry, canopy and glass are intended to signal public access while preserving the old façade as an emergency exit. The firm described grading work to improve accessibility and a planned skywalk to be behind the historic frontage.

Commissioners discussed tradeoffs between cost and finish, with one commissioner noting comparisons to simpler nearby courthouses to temper finish expectations. The committee said an RFP for a construction-manager-at-risk (CMAR) is being prepared and suggested an early next-week meeting of the committee to refine the RFP.

The board later moved and approved Resolution No. 24-014 to create the CMAR selection committee; the vote as recorded in the transcript was 5 yes and 2 no. Commissioners asked staff to gather additional cost and square-footage detail and to circulate photos of comparable facilities before finalizing the RFP.