Minutes 07/22/2008 - Laserfiche WebLink

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July 22. 2008 3. Martha Ann Creecy, 317 Dinwiddie Street, spoke in support of this item. Motion by Mr. Moody, and seconded by Ms. Randall, to adopt the following resolution, and was adopted by the following vote: "REVISED RESOLUTION CONCERNING THE LOCATION OF A NEW CIRCUIT COURT COURTHOUSE FOR THE CITY OF PORTSMOUTH. WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Portsmouth, Virginia (the "City Council") did on February 27, 2007 adopt Resolution No. R-07-09 concerning the need for a new Circuit Court Courthouse; and WHEREAS, said Resolution, in addition to discussing the reasons why a new Circuit Court Courthouse is needed, did also designate the preferred location as being certain property located generally across Crawford Street from Portsmouth City Hall (herein, the "Initial New Courthouse Proposal,"); and WHEREAS, the City Council is strongly committed to providing all of the City courts with safe and secure facilities that pose no danger to the health, welfare, and safety of the judges, court employees or the public and to maintaining them in good repair; and WHEREAS, since that time the City has moved forward in good faith with the design of a new Circuit Court Courthouse pursuant to the Initial New Courthouse Proposal, and its efforts have included retaining a respected architectural firm specializing in courthouse design, developing a design and plan, and arranging for participation of all stakeholders in the design process; and WHEREAS, the preliminary construction cost estimates for the Initial New Courthouse Proposal indicate that construction cost is projected to be in the approximate amount of $45,000,000, more or less; and WHEREAS, this sum would place significant and undue strain on the municipal budget. Unless taxes are raised, the Initial New Courthouse Proposal would jeopardize the City's ability to meet other pressing capital and operating needs in areas that include public safety, education, and community quality; and WHEREAS, taxes in Portsmouth are already at unacceptably high levels and should not be raised any further; and WHEREAS, the state of the national economy has changed significantly from the time of adoption of Resolution No. R-07 -09 in 2007, and the current state of the national economy makes it prudent for all levels of government to carefully consider all responsible means for cutting government expenditures; and WHEREAS, an alternate and less expensive plan for a new Circuit Court Courthouse has now been developed and presented to City Council (the "Alternate Courthouse Plan"). It involves acquisition of an existing building and associated real property in the nearby PortCentre Commerce Park (the "PortCentre One Building") and converting it to courthouse use; and WHEREAS, the City Council believes that the Alternate Courthouse Plan provides safe and secure facilities that pose no danger to the health, welfare, and safety of those who will work in or use the courthouse facilities; and WHEREAS, preliminary calculations are that the Alternate Courthouse Plan is projected to cost approximately $27,000,000, a savings of approximately $18,000,000 compared to the Initial Courthouse Plan; and