Antelope Valley Courthouse Now Complete!
42011 4th Street West, Lancaster |
Construction of the Michael D. Antonovich Antelope Valley Courthouse is now complete! The new Superior Courthouse was dedicated on October 16, 2003. The ceremony was attended by local, County, and State representatives including Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich, District Attorney Steve Cooley, Presiding Judge Robert A. Dukes, Assemblywoman Sharon Runner, State Senator Pete Knight, Assistant Sheriff Doyle Campbell, Supervising Judge Steven Ogden, and Judges Frank Y. Jackson and Howard M. Stewart. Judge Howard M. Stewart served as Master of Ceremonies. Representing the Department of Public Works were Director James Noyes, Assistant Director Tom Remillard, Deputy Director Jacob Williams, Project Management Division II Section Head Jim Kearns, and Project Manager Luis Ramirez. The dedication ceremony included a musical presentation by the students of the Antelope Valley College Music Department, and a fly-by by a B-52 bomber and a Stealth bomber. It also included the dedication of a mural, entitled "Bestowal", which sits in the interior of the court's atrium. The mural was prepared by the Antelope Valley College Art department, and depicts various vignettes of the Antelope Valley landscape from dawn to sunset.
The newly constructed Antelope Valley Courthouse
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The new courthouse, which opened to the public on October 20, 2003, consists of 15 operational courtrooms, including a high security courtroom, an arraignment courtroom, and a high volume courtroom. It has the capability of expanding to 21 courtrooms to meet the public's needs. The 380,000 square foot facility has four stories above grade and one below grade. The lower level contains a state of the art lock up facility, capable of holding over 350 detainees. Its sits on a 17-acre site, and has sufficient parking for 1,105 vehicles. The courthouse houses various County agencies including the Superior Court, Sheriff's Department, Probation Department, District Attorney, Public Defender, and the Alternate Public Defender.
Construction of the courthouse began in November of 2000 and was declared substantially complete in August of 2003. The project was completed on time for its grand opening despite several schedule impacts, including a fire that affected several areas of the ground floor. The total project cost was slightly below the budgeted $109 million. Now that the courthouse is completed, Project Management Division II and Architectural Engineering Division are ready to initiate the design and construction of the courthouse cafeteria. Plans are also underway to remodel the existing Lancaster Superior Court, and turn it into a Juvenile Justice Center.
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