McDowell County Courthouse Detail Report

 

Component

Current Status

Recommendations

Cost

General Exterior

The main courthouse was built in 1909 and is on the historic register. The courthouse is 3 stories with a basement.  The foundation is in good condition.

 

Exterior –     Front P41

-         Left P40

-         Rear P39

-         Right P47

 

Corridors –   3rd floor  P6 P7

-         2nd floor  P11

-         1st floor  P20 P21

 

Courtroom – P14

Historic Design Group, Inc., of Worthington Ohio, prepared an Exterior Preservation Analysis for the McDowell County Courthouse in 1995.

 

The following recommendations for the roof and exterior are from the report.

 

Total Exterior Renovation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Exterior Walls

The stone exterior is in very bad condition. Pieces of stone are falling from the floors above. P45

Restore all exterior stone masonry on the original building, stone additions, and retaining walls. This would include tuck pointing, repairing and patching the masonry. This would also include consolidant application (a binder) and water repellent treatment to the exterior.

 

 

 

 

$600,000

Roof

The roof is approximately 21 years old and consists of asphalt shingles and rubber membrane. The roof is in very poor condition and has numerous leaks causing major problems below.  The skylight also leaks. P4 P8 P10 The gutters and downspouts are in poor condition and have reached the end of their useful life. P3 P42

The courthouse needs a new roof.  This would include removing the existing roof and replacing with a new slate roof.

 

The gutter system also needs to be replaced with a new box gutter system with downspouts.

 

 

$480,000

 

 

$20,000

Windows and Doors

The existing windows are wooden with single glazing. P48 P18 The windows are in poor condition and some are covered in plastic P9. The doors are aluminum and glass the doors are in relatively good shape.

Replace all windows with historical sashes.

$100,000

Fire Safety

There are no fire alarms, sprinklers or emergency lights. There are exit signs. The stairwells are not enclosed. The doors have panic hardware and swing in the direction of the exit. There is only one way out of courtroom.

Install fire alarm system,

          sprinkler system

          emergency lights

          emergency exit in the courtroom.

Enclose the upper floor of the stairs with fire walls and fire doors.

$20,000

$25,000

$5,000

$25,000

 

$5,000

ADA Compliance

The building is accessible by an ADA ramp. P33 

Doors open easily but have no ADA lever hardware. There is a lack of ADA signage throughout the building. There is a single occupancy, ADA bathroom on the first floor. The courtroom is not ADA compliant.

 

Install ADA signs and ADA door hardware on the doors during the renovation process.

The building will become ADA compliant through the renovation process.  The estimated cost is included in “Remodel Interior” below.

Install witness/judge’s lift

Install elevator

 

 

 

 

 

$  18,000

$120,000

Structure

 

The interior walls, ceilings and floors of the courthouse are in poor condition from years of roof leaks. P15 P10 The basement is very wet and is open to the outside through broken windows. P27 P35 P25

See General Interior below.

$300,000

 

 

Security

There are several security cameras in the building. P30 There is a metal detector at the entrance of the courtroom, but it is not in use. The exits are marked. The building does not have a security system. The judge’s bench utilizes ballistic material and a duress button.

All access to the building needs to be restricted to one entrance. A magnetometer and X-ray machine needs to be installed at the entrance.

 

An alarm system needs to be installed on all windows and exterior doors except the main entrance.

 

 

Duress buttons need to be installed on the Secretary’s, Clerk’s and Prosecuting Attorney’s desks.

 

Install closed circuit TV system

 

Install access control package

 

Install security console

 

 

$  40,000

 

 

$    5,000

 

 

$    600

 

 

$  6,000

 

$  3,000

 

$40,000

Electrical

Some electrical boxes and wiring are old and unprotected. P22 Some of the electrical panels are new and not protected with a cover. P37

Replace all electrical equipment and wiring during the renovation of the interior.  Cost of electrical updating is included in “Remodel Interior”.

$187,440

Mechanical

The courtroom’s HVAC has been updated. P36 The rest of the building’s system is old. P34 P5

Replace with a new HVAC system during the renovation process.  Cost of mechanical upgrading is included in “Remodel Interior” below.

$312,400

Work Safety

Stone is falling on the exterior of the building and is causing a major safety issue. P45  The interior is also a dangerous work area due to the leaking roof and lack of

electrical equipment protection.

The work area will become much safer after the building exterior and interior have been renovated. The cost is included in “Remodel Interior” and “Total Exterior Renovation”.

See General Exterior above and General Interior Below

Space requirements

Space is very limited in this building. More space is needed for offices and document storage.

We recommend installing 20,000 square feet of additional space for the courthouse complex. The jail can soon be remodeled to accommodate the space required. This is recommended in the jail report, which includes the cost of remodeling the jail.

 

 

 

 

 

See Jail Report

General Interior

The general interior of the courthouse is in poor condition from years of roof leaks, and deferred maintenance leading to a seriously debilitated building condition. P15

We recommend that the interior of all three stories and the basement be completely remodeled. This would include all new flooring, drywall, trim, paint, interior doors with ADA hardware, ceilings, light fixtures and keyed switches, receptacles and bathrooms.

 

Remodel Interior of courthouse, 15,620 square feet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

$1,220,160

Subtotal

 

 

$3,532,600

Soft Costs

Professional fees, permits, surveys, and studies

20%

$706,520

Total

 

 

$4,239,120

 

 

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