Richard E. Arnason Justice Center • Pittsburg, California

CITATION richard e. arnason Justice Center • pittsburg, California

The Richard E. Arnason Justice Center is a highly advanced, fullservice regional courthouse serving as a catalyst for renewal of a modest suburban city. Located in the County’s Civic Center, it is situated at the gateway to the central business district serving those arriving from the nearby rapid transit center or the adjacent highway. The building faces a newly improved tree lined boulevard bordering the east end of the courthouse.

The design incorporates all principles of advanced courthouse planning. The three-level, 71,600 square foot facility is the pilot project for implementation of California’s new Trial Court Facilities Standards. The courthouse provides Traffic, Family, Criminal, Trial, and Arraignment courtrooms. Currently programmed with seven courtrooms, it is designed for future expansion to 10. All courtrooms employ advanced technologies and receive abundant natural light from windows and/or light monitors.

The jury assembly and entry lobby portion of the project is uniquely designed to remain secure from the other portions of the building by a series of roll down grilles. This allows flexibility of use after hours by various community organizations. A public Self-Help Center is also provided and the facility is designed for Universal Accessibility that exceeds the typical requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Secure judges’ parking is separated from both public parking and secure staff parking.

The facility’s goal provides a contemporary, yet enduring civic edifice that is easily recognizable as a courthouse. The courthouse square connecting the entry with public areas is landscaped with native plants and trees, decomposed granite, and gradual steps and ramps up to the elevated building entry. The primary building materials are limestone, precast concrete, and glass. The project is anticipated to receive LEED Silver certification.

Jury CommenT

The seven-courtroom, 71,000 square foot regional courthouse for the Superior Court of California was one of the first full-service court buildings planned in the large capital outlay program of the State Judicial Branch currently underway and continuing in the years ahead. The Richard E. Arnason Justice Center was planned as a multi-purpose, incustody, and jury capable courthouse. The two-story building is sited on former public land in the civic core of the local jurisdiction and replaces a deficient, four-courtroom structure on the same site which will be demolished when the new building is complete in late 2010. The overall functional and aesthetic layout reflects a clear linear organization of stacked courtrooms utilizing the most current standards for courthouse design described in the California Trial Court Design Standards. A separate, one-story jury assembly place adjacent and connected to the lobby is organized and planned to be used as an independent space when the courthouse is closed.

The building site and mass is next to a major highway and train line, consistent with the visibility and accessibility to the public that is desirable for a court. The economical and long-lasting exterior with precast curtain wall and stone, projects the image of an enduring and serious public place. Organized and planned for maintainability and optimal cost of ownership over the long term, the building will be certified LEED Silver.

oWner

Judicial Council of California Administrative Office of the Courts Sacramento, California

architect of record

HOK San Francisco, California

landscape architect

HOK San Francisco, California

Civil engineer

BKF Engineers Redwood City, California

structural engineer

Middlebrook + Louie, Structural Engineers San Francisco, California

mechanical engineer

HOK San Francisco, California

Telecom / security / aV / acoustical

Smith, Fause McDonald, Inc. San Francisco, California

lighting design

Horton Lees Brogden San Francisco, California

General Contractor

Sundt Construction, Inc. Sacramento, California

photographer

HOK San Francisco, California Completion date: 2010 Construction Cost: $ 35.7 million

number of Courtrooms: 7 (future expansion to 10) Type of Court: Criminal, Civil, Domestic, Juvenile, Traffic Building area: 71,500 BGSF; 54,000 NAA Finance method: Court Fees, State Funded delivery method: CM at Risk Type of Construction: New leed Certificate: Silver