Saturday, Oct. 17, 2009

Georgetown judicial center hailed

GEORGETOWN -- S.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Jean Toal lauded Georgetown County for its new $20 million Judicial Center, during a dedication ceremony Friday.

Georgetown County Council and officials had a vision, Toal said to the more than 100 people who turned out for the ceremony despite rain and chilly temperatures.

"It is not easy to step up to the criticism they knew they would bear from the public on such an expenditure during tough economic times. ... Now, the accused and the accuser, the claimant and the defendant will have a place of integrity and respect within the justice system. Georgetown County has made a commitment to the generations ahead," Toal said.

The approximately 80,000-square-foot center, at 401 Cleland St. in Georgetown, opened in July. The building has six courtrooms to serve family court, common pleas court, general sessions court, probate court master-in-equity hearings. It also has two metal detectors and imaging scanners , waiting areas, offices, a grand jury meeting room, new parking spaces and drive-through for payments.

The building, designed by Tych & Walker Architects, also holds the clerk of court, solicitor's office, public defender's office and the management information system office. It opened for its first session in July.

Clerk of Court Alma White said she took then-County Administrator Tommy Edwards on several "field trips" into the old courthouse on Screven Street a few years ago to show him the need for a new judicial center. The push for a new judicial building began in 2004, to help accommodate the county's increased population and safety concerns.

"When you have 150 people up on bond hearing, we had people everywhere," White said. "When you have inmates, juveniles, officers, it's too many people in a small area. I want to say thank you to everyone who made this facility possible. I know the council had two needs going on at the same time and they choose to move forward with the judicial center. This was a long journey that began with just some chatter. Thank you, thank you, thank you."

County Administrator Sel Hemingway likened the construction process to trying to keep a marriage together during a home renovation. He also addressed the future of the former courthouse on Screven Street, which was built in 1824. The building was designed by Robert Mills., the same architect who drew the plans for the Washington Monument.

"We hope to renovate and put in offices that the public comes in contact with most often with the intention of making it more like a one-stop shop," Hemingway said.

The old courthouse would house the building, planning and zoning, storm water, zoning and expanded County Council chambers.