Fiscal Court talks possible ‘master plan’ for renovation for historic courthouse, surrounding area

It was a full slate for Christian Fiscal Court magistrates at Tuesday morning’s meeting, as they got a first glimpse into what future renovations to the historic Christian County Courthouse and the surrounding area might look like.

Fiscal Court accepted a bid from JRA Architects out of Louisville and Lexington to assess the current courthouse and the surrounding area, and come up with a proposal for what updates and renovations the courthouse would need, along with a design for a surrounding ‘county government district’ plaza area.

Tim Graviss with JRA Architects says one of the main issues they would like to address is accessibility problems with the older building, and that includes the parking surrounding it. They’re proposing building a two-story parking garage on an existing lot behind the courthouse and the Alhambra that would be at a walkable level for both buildings.

They would also look to limit access for traffic on Weber Street, making way for a service area for the Alhambra Theatre and chances for green spaces.

The design plan also included an outdoor event venue and garden connected to the Chapel of Love, that folks could rent out for their weddings. The plan would also include additional ‘pocket parks’ in that area of downtown.

Inside of the courthouse, you’d be looking at a refresh and renovation of the first floor, making it more accessible and user friendly for people doing business there, and Graviss says they’d be looking to do a complete restoration of the second floor, while keeping the historic architecture.

There’s currently no timeline or hard-set price tag on this large project, with Magistrate Phillip Peterson that this ‘master plan’ allows them to be better equipped when requesting funding from state or federal entities.

No action was taken on the design or project plan at Tuesday’s meeting.

In other action, magistrates approved a memorandum of understanding between the Christian County Jail and Ashley Boze of Empowered Minds to continue offering mental health services to county inmates. They also approved a new accounting program for the Christian County Treasurer’s Office.