Courthouse Front Door Re-opens
After nearly a year the front door of the Jasper County Courthouse is open—during business hours, that is—and offices displaced by a major renovation project are settling down in their permanent locations.
The Clerk of Courts and Probate Judge offices are back in the space they have long occupied on the main floor, but those offices have been expanded into space previously used for other functions. The doors off the portico that previously opened into those offices are permanently locked.
Entrances to Clerk of Courts and Probate Judge offices are off the main floor corridor and are clearly marked. The corridor is connected with the second level—first floor—of the Courthouse addition that was put in service late last year.
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The Tax Commissioner and one-time County Commission offices that were on the main floor remain in permanent quarters they have occupied since the addition was opened—the County Commission on the ground floor and the tax office on the main floor.
The Tax Assessors office that used to be on the ground floor of the original building is also on the main floor of the new building.
Basically, the offices that generally have the most traffic—tax assessors, tax commissioner, clerk of courts and Probate Court are on the main level. Visitors may enter the front door of the Courthouse and walk straight through from one building to the next to reach the offices they need. The buildings mesh together as if they were always one.
Currently, the ground floor of the old structure houses only the Board of Registrars office and the refurbished polling place. The side door that served the ground floor, or basement, offices is permanently closed and the facilities there now are accessed through the side door of the addition or by steps or elevator from the main floor.
Renovation of the main courtroom on the upper level of the original building is still under way. When it is completed it will be used for major trials while the smaller courtroom in the addition will continue to be used for hearings and smaller functions, said Dan Jordan, clerk of courts.
The Magistrate Court will remain on the third floor, along with the district attorney’s office, jury rooms and ancillary space. A lift near the front entrance provides access for the handicapped from the main floor to the courtroom area. Offices on all three levels also may be reached by an elevator in the addition.
The zoning and building inspection functions remain in the annex across North Warren Street from the Courthouse. In addition, that is where curbside garbage bills are currently paid, although it will change in January (see County Commission story).
Tentative plans are underway for an open house early next year at which time tours would be given. In the meantime, it is a public building, and anyone is welcome to visit during office hours.
