The first phase of the long awaited approximate $12 million Sandusky Justice Center project is scheduled to be completed by the end of this year.
Plans for the Justice Center project has been in the works for years and the design plans were completed last year, according to Thomas Horsman, communications manager for the Sandusky city manager’s office.
The building at 222 Meigs St. formerly was used to house the “old City Hall from the 1950s that used to house City Hall, the courts and the police,” Horsman said.
Now, the building houses only the police and the courts.
City officials decided to renovate the building to expand the space as well as modernize the building.
Since the early 1990s, because the building was inefficient, it couldn’t accommodate the police, court and administration.
“The structure itself was inefficient — poor windows, broken wall heaters, leaky roofs, inadequate security and many other problems. The layout was operationally inefficient and it was not sized to accommodate the current staffing levels,” said Director of Public Works Aaron Klein.
“Operations have changed since the mid-1900s, such as dispatch being centralized with the county, meaning that some of the older rooms were not functional for current uses,” Klein said. “Communications and IT were in dramatic need of an upgrade.
“The whole building will be brought to 21st century standards and codes.”
The current project originally was approved by the Sandusky City Commission in 2017 through a site selection process that included a look into all three entities, Klein said.
“This resulted in the administration relocating downtown and the former City Hall having the capacity to house the police and court,” he said. “COVID caused a slight delay in final design but we are off and running.”
“We are very excited to finally have a state-of-the-art Justice Center to house our Municipal Court and Police Department,” said John Orzech, interim city manager and former Sandusky police chief. “This project has been a long time coming, and a lot of people have worked hard to move this project forward and we look forward to opening the newly renovated building,”
Phase One is expected to be completed in September 2023; Phase Two is expected to be completed in June 2024; and Phase Three, the project’s completion, is expected to be completed in September 2024, Klein said.
Construction is estimated at $10,623,800; the design and inspection costs are estimated at $1,434,087 and furniture for the complex is estimated at $375,000 for a total cost of $12,432,887, Klein said.
The project is being funded through three sources, Klein said.
Funding includes 40-percent of funds coming from the Sandusky Municipal Court Capital Account and 60 percent of the remaining funds from the City Capital Projects Fund, with a small portion being funded by American Rescue Plan Act funding, Klein said.
The project was designed by Bowen Architects and the contractor is Mosser Construction, he said.
