(BELVIDERE, May 12, 2009) – Long-planned renovations are underway at the Warren County Courthouse, with the Board of Chosen Freeholders holding a ceremonial groundbreaking to mark the beginning of the project.

“This Courthouse is really the Number One historic and functioning building in Warren County, dating back to 1826,” noted Freeholder Director Richard D. Gardner, before he and fellow Freeholders Everett A. Chamberlain and Angelo Accetturo wielded shovels to kick off the first phase of renovations to the County’s oldest public building.

Construction of the Courthouse began in 1825, shortly after Warren County came into existence after separating from Sussex County. Courtroom 1, part of the original 40-by-60-foot, two-story building that was dedicated in August 1826, is still in use today. Over the decades the Courthouse was expanded, with the most extensive work taking place from 1959 to 1961 when a two-story addition was built, adding courtrooms and offices.

Noting it has been almost 50 years since those major renovations, Freeholder Chamberlain said of the Courthouse, “We’re going to give it a facelift.”

But while the peeling paint on the brick building’s wooden trim will be addressed, the real changes will be inside, as the freeholders noted the renovations will include two new courtrooms; a new Jury Management area; safety improvements for transporting prisoners including an elevator; new holding cells; infrastructure improvements that will set the stage for renovations elsewhere in the Courthouse; and attorney/client conference rooms sought by the attorneys who handle cases in the historic structure.

Chamberlain said the freeholder board is very conscious of the court system’s needs, and understands “the difficulties attorneys face counseling clients, and the need to have prisoners transported securely in the building, not using the same hallways as the public.”

By the time the project is finished, the front entrance to the Courthouse – framed by towering white columns but closed for years – will be reopened, Chamberlain said. He noted the goal is to complete the work in the next two years.

The board’s newest member, Freeholder Accetturo, said he appreciated all the work done by the other freeholders and the county’s Projects Committee to bring the project to this stage. Accetturo added, “I really embrace the pay-as-you-go philosophy of doing this project in steps so it’s not such a great burden on the taxpayers.”

Superior Court Assignment Judge Yolanda Ciccone called the groundbreaking ceremony “a special day,” adding, “Everyone in the State of New Jersey talks about the beautiful square here in Belvidere when they come to this Courthouse, and how they feel it’s a step back in time.”

Ciccone continued, “But let only the façade be the step back in time. With these changes, we will be entering the 21st Century with our Courthouse. It will be functional for all members – the litigants, the attorneys, the judges – and I know that it will be a place for everyone to be proud of.”

Also speaking to the crowd of more than 50 people attending the ceremony were state Sen. Marcia Karrow, Assemblyman John DiMaio, Warren County Bar Association President Gregory G. Gianforcaro, Trial Court Administrator Eugene Farkas, Projects Committee Chairman Joseph Houston, and project architect Raymond O’Brien of Ray O’Brien Architects, Inc., Blairstown.

• Courthouse construction began in 1825, and the building was dedicated August 22, 1826.
• Initial financing was $3,500 including $2,000 in borrowed funds and a $1,500 gift from General Garret D. Wall, who also donated the property.
• The original Courthouse was a 40’x 60’ brick building, two stories high, with a jail on the lower story, courtroom upstairs, and included the Clerk’s and Surrogate’s offices.
• Front wings were added later (time frame unknown). Courthouse repairs were undertaken in 1867.
• Extensive renovations were made 1959-1961, including construction of a two-story addition to the original structure, and complete reconstruction of the front portico, with 30-foot-high California Redwood pillars replacing the previous smaller columns.
• The addition include a new courtroom, judges’ chambers, a jury room, prosecutor’s office, law library, sheriff’s office, freeholder meeting room, and new office space for county departments and the clerk’s and surrogate’s offices. These renovations cost about $1.3 million, and the “new” Courthouse was dedicated on October 13, 1961.
• The Courthouse now has a ground floor “footprint” of 22,300 square feet, with usable space in the basement, first floor and second floor, and storage in the attic.
• Additional renovations undertaken 1989-1991 included turning former office space into Courtroom #3, while other offices became a new Jury Assembly area, and rest rooms were made fully accessible.

• The former Warden’s House and a portion of the old jail behind the Courthouse were renovated 2006-2008, creating 2,447 square feet of office space that became home to the Warren County Prosecutor’s Office Trial Unit. This move made space available on the first floor of the Courthouse, which is being renovated in the new phase of reconstruction.
• The current phase of renovations now being launched will include 1,895 square feet in the basement, 3,000 square feet on the first floor and 5,600 square feet on the second floor.
• This phase includes new holding cells in the basement; new courtrooms on the first and second floors, each with their own Jury Deliberation rooms; an elevator for the secure transportation of prisoners; modifications of Courtroom 2 to turn it into the Jury Assembly area; attorney/client conference rooms between both levels, totaling about 10; and extensive utility work to set the stage for future renovations in other areas of the Courthouse.
• Jury Assembly offices have been moved temporarily to rented space in the nearby Hotel Belvidere.
• Preliminary cost estimates for the work are $6 to 7 million.
• Project architect is Raymond O’Brien of Ray O’Brien Architects, Inc., Blairstown.
• The Board of Chosen Freeholders and their Projects Committee, a group of county employees and community volunteers, are guiding the project.