Durham County Courthouse Durham, North Carolina The Justice Center for Durham, North Carolina, serves as the new keystone for a complex of government buildings that straddle the rail line, bordering downtown Durham's southern edge. With its terraced public plaza, the new courthouse, placed in front of the existing jail building, provides a formal setting and space for a procession on the downtown's primary approach. The courthouse, in 145
this location, creates a civic complex that includes the Durham Performing Arts Center, the Durham Bulls Athletic Park, and the renovated and repurposed American Tobacco Campus.
G E N E R A L & M U LT I - J U R I S D I C T I O N & A P P E L L AT E C O U R T H O U S E S
Design inspiration for the courthouse, in part, came from the County's assemblage of public buildings, including the 1922 Historic Courthouse. The new courthouse is transitional in its planar architecture of brick, glass, and granite, yet expressive of today. The building planning organizes the public spaces on the lower floors and the secured courtrooms on the building's upper floors. The court floor is organized as pairs of courtrooms served by a secured inmate holding area. This linear plan provides four courtrooms per floor. The classic bar of courtrooms is a challenge for introducing natural light. The building takes advantage of the southern exposure and introduces natural light into the public galleries serving the courtrooms. The tall windows and integrated light shelf bounce light deep into the internal courtrooms through a clerestory window system that runs the public corridor's length, providing diffused natural light above the datum and sound-lock, serving all courtrooms. Also, the three largest courtrooms are located on the western end of the building, allowing a large expanse of glazing and views of the city. The southern facade reveals the civic purpose of the courthouse with articulated brick and large windows marking the court floors public lobbies. This prominent elevation is marked by a strong formal entry pavilion and stair tower expressed in granite. Notable Project Features • All courtrooms are fully accessible. • The building takes advantage of the southern exposure and provides natural light into the public galleries and courtrooms. • The traffic court is designed as a series of public spaces instead of a large courtroom.
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The courthouse site is organized around constraints, including grade change, solar to the existing jail, and vehicular and patterns. From west to east, there is a courthouse tower takes advantage of leaving the lowest grade for the park pedestrian bridge reconciles the grade b and courthouse entry plaza. Holding of the site, this plaza allows the courts the street and to take advantage of nat hardscape, and softscape elements give entry while humanizing and breaking do pavilion. Public vehicular traffic is pushe south and Roxboro Street, a primary inbo the parking deck. Restricted access occu and covered judges’ parking tucked behin corridor connects the existing jail to a ce ground floor of the courthouse. Sites fo for on-site growth of the building and the