County councils wise to continue the discussion

It isn’t news to anyone that the courtrooms in Florence and Darlington counties are crowded, and something has to be done to address the situation.
But with the state of the economy right now, dealing with it seems to have become a more distant goal.

James Schofield said he and his fellow Florence County councilmen are waiting on a revised set of options for building new judicial facilities at a cost the county can afford. The county’s courtrooms are on the top floors of the 11th floor Florence City-County Complex.

In August, council received a report including three options for building new court facilities. While option 3, putting criminal court at the Florence County Detention Center in Effingham, is the cheapest in terms of construction costs, it seems it would be costly in the long run for several county officials, lawyers and judges who have built their routines and established their offices in the county seat, the city of Florence.

The other two options are a free-standing facility at a new site, projected to cost $41 million, or building a court annex, tagged at $37.3 million.

Within the coming month, Schofield said, they could receive a set of new options being developed by Florence County Administrator Richard Starks and Southern Management Group’s Tom Baldwin, who worked on the initial report.

S.C. Court of Appeals Judge Ralph King Anderson, who advocates the freestanding judicial facility option, has expressed concerns about the current county courtrooms because judges, witnesses and county residents handling day-to-day business ride the same elevators as criminal defendants at the city-county complex.

The same is true in Darlington County, where the courtrooms are on the third floor of Darlington County Courthouse, which also houses most other county offices. Among the three options that have been considered there is establishing a new courthouse in the center of the county, near the jail on Harry Byrd Highway, that’s more convenient and equitable to all of the county’s residents. Building completely a new complex at North Main and Blue streets in Darlington or building a new annex across the street at Public Square and North Main Street are the other two options, with the latter being recommended by Carter, Goble and Lee.

Moving the courthouses from the county seats would be a challenge, though. It requires a petition signed by a third of the county’s registered voters and filed with the governor. The county also would have to hold a vote on moving the courthouse, which requires approval of two-thirds of participating voters.

Regardless, in early 2009, Darlington County Council plans to hold public work sessions on its options and funding for new judicial facilities. The county already has funded a $75,000 court-needs and feasibility study, and recognizes that new judicial facilities are necessary because of security issues.

Council chairman Billy Baldwin said council is likely to consider a court annex rather than a new courthouse. He also said a county bond issue for the construction of court facilities could range from $23 million to $33 million.

Both county councils are wise to continue the discussion of this issue even in these shaky financial times.

But they are also wise to realize that the need for a solution is urgent.

All such efforts to keep our community safe are sound investments.