construction

Construction at Ballston Metro station could finish next month

By Jo DeVoe
1/5

An end date is in sight for construction work around the Ballston Metro station.

After two years of navigating the active work site and catching the bus from temporarily relocated stops, transit riders could have access to the updated transit facilities and adjacent public areas sometime next month.

“Right now we have our sights on completion in late October,” said Dept. of Environmental Services spokeswoman Claudia Pors.

Over the course of four phases, Arlington County aimed to improve the experience of waiting for a bus, getting dropped off by a car, and walking and cycling around the transit hub. The project added:

  • New bus shelters, sidewalks, landscaped planters and benches
  • More bike parking
  • An expanded public space along Fairfax Drive
  • A dedicated “kiss-and-ride” curb space
  • A dedicated shuttle bus curb space and bus shelter
  • Bus stop flag poles
  • Real-time bus information displays

Construction on the four-phase project started in June 2020 and was expected to end in November 2021. But a half dozen “unforeseen conditions” came up during construction, delaying completion by nearly a year, according to a county report.

Before it can sign off on the project, the county says the following three intersections need to be repaved “due to design changes and unforeseen utility work,” per the report.

  • Fairfax Drive and N. Stuart Street
  • Fairfax Drive and N. Stafford Street
  • 9th Street N. and N. Stuart Street

This will cost about $249,000, bringing the total cost of the project to around $5.7 million. The Arlington County Board is set to review a request to authorize this additional spending during its meeting on Saturday.

Contingency funding approved in the initial budget covered the cost of the other surprises. Staff said electric and telecom lines along Fairfax Drive had to be relocated and it took longer than expected to get Dominion Energy to remove existing street light poles.

The underground Metro platform and garages were also closer to the surface than staff initially estimated. To avoid hitting these structures, construction plans had to be updated and one planter had to be redesigned.

Other planters had to be remade because of how the site slopes, while additional pre-made planters had to be purchased because original estimates fell short.

A curb along N. Stafford Street needed to be realigned and a bus landing rebuilt to ensure getting on and off the bus was safe and accessible to people with disabilities.

Pors said county staff are looking forward to wrapping up.

“Obviously, we’re very excited for the completion of this project,” Pors said.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) has also finalized where buses will depart from. The listed changes are set to go into effect this Sunday, Sept. 18:

1A to Vienna: Bay F
1B to Dunn Loring: Bay F
2A to Dunn Loring: Bay C
10B to Hunting Point: Bay G
22A to Pentagon: Bay G
23A, 23B, 23T to Shirlington/Crystal City: Bay H
23A, 23T to Tysons: Bay A
25B to Southern Towers/Mark Center: Bay D
38B to Farragut Square: Bay B

Meanwhile, the county is currently working to design proposed west entrance to the Ballston Metro station, located at N. Fairfax Drive and N. Vermont Street, almost a quarter of a mile west of the existing entrance.

Arlington has sought alternative funding sources to cover the ballooning cost of the project, which it attributes to inflation and having more complete designs.

Some transit advocates have argued that funding for the section entrance should be redirected to cheaper upgrades with greater impact, such as sidewalks, protected bike lanes and dedicated bus lanes.

Old VHC building in Glencarlyn slated for possible demolition this fall

By Jo DeVoe
1/4

A vacant, county-owned building in Glencarlyn could start coming down this fall, pending approval from the Arlington County Board this weekend.

This Saturday, the Board is slated to consider awarding a contract to tear down the old Virginia Hospital Center urgent care facility at 601 S. Carlin Springs Road.

“If approved, the contractor will begin mobilizing in the fall,” according to the project’s page on the county website. “Expected completion of the demolition is summer 2023.”

Arlington County acquired the old VHC Urgent Care in a land swap with the hospital. VHC received county-owned land at N. Edison Street for its expansion project, interior work on which is ongoing until this December.

While a private medical office building continues to operate next door at 611 S. Carlin Springs Road, the VHC building has sat vacant since the acquisition. Come winter, thrill-seekers take to the hill on the grounds for a sledding spot.

In order to use the land, the county needs to tear the VHC building down, as it “is not fit for further use due to mold and other issues,” according to a county presentation to neighbors of the building last September.

To do so, while continuing operations at the medical office building, the county had to separate the shared water, power and gas utility lines.

“This work began in February 2022 and is close to completion,” county spokeswoman Jessica Baxter told ARLnow in an email. “Throughout this project, we have been working closely with the adjacent medical office building to allow ample time for them to accommodate their patient/client schedules with the start of the demolition.”

Later this month, the county will install install solar-powered lights in the parking lot as “a temporary solution” once power to the site is disconnected in the fall, she said yesterday (Tuesday).

Boarded up windows and signs forbidding entry are visible from the perimeter of the site. These are in place and county staff check the perimeter of the site daily “to deter intruders,” according to the county’s 2021 project update to the neighborhood.

An aerial view of 601 and 611 S. Carlin Springs Road, with Long Branch Creek indicated in blue (via Arlington County)

Arlington experienced a few delays getting to this point. Besides having to accommodate the medical offices next door, Baxter previously told ARLnow the project had to repeat its solicitation of bids, after a first round did not net any interested contractors.

A complete demolition is still a ways off, as are plans for how the county will use the site.

“Future uses of the site will be determined at a later time,” Baxter said this week. “After demolition, grass will be planted and maintained.”

Many Glencarlyn residents hope to see an expanded nature area, says neighbor Julie Lee.

“The site borders Glencarlyn Park and the Long Branch Nature Center,” she tells ARLnow. “It would provide additional outdoor recreational opportunities, as well as additional outdoor learning space for Campbell Elementary School which has a nature focus.”

Details emerge about new Alamo Drafthouse Cinema as it prepares for a fall opening

By Matt Blitz
1/7

The Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in Crystal City is currently hiring and wrapping up construction as it prepares for its premiere later this year.

In a recent update, the upscale theater chain posted construction photos and new details about its upcoming opening at 1660 Crystal Drive. The plan is to open “this fall,” the post said. ARLnow reported the hope was October.

There were also some specifics in regard to the look, feel, and aesthetic of the nine-screen, 50,000-square-foot complex.

“The cinema’s front facade will boast a beautiful marquee, reminiscent of the grand movie palaces of old, which will be accompanied by a vibrant vertical Alamo sign further up the building,” reads the post.

A collection of vintage posters will line the staircase and escalator on the way to the second floor, where there will be the box office and a 50-person bar “with a soon-to-be-announced theme and overlooking Crystal [Drive].” The bar will have signature cocktails, local beers, appetizers, and a happy hour. Adjacent to the bar, there’s set to be a rooftop patio as well.

The theaters will range from 50 to 237 seats, each with 4K laser projectors, power recliners, swivel tables, and server call buttons. The “Big Show” theater will feature a particularly large screen and lots of speakers.

“A peek behind the curtain in our Big Show auditorium, featuring a 66-foot wide PLF screen and over 70 (!!) speakers supporting an immersive Dolby Atmos surround sound experience,” says the update.

The theater is also looking to hire a number of positions, including projectionists, bartenders, servers, box office concierge, and a marketing manager.

The Texas-based theater chain first announced it was moving into Crystal City more than five years ago. Its location at 1660 Crystal Drive is next to a CVS, an Amazon Fresh and Tacombi Taqueria — and a few blocks from the future, 25,000-employee Amazon HQ2.

The theater was originally supposed to open this past spring, but that got pushed to the fall due to supply chain and construction delays.

Franchisee Cojeaux Cinemas will operate the Crystal City location, as is the case with the other four Alamo Drafthouses in D.C. and Virginia.

After a rough two years due to the pandemic, it appears that the moviegoing industry is rebounding somewhat after a good summer. That includes Alamo Drafthouse, which filed for bankruptcy early last year.

New CVS has a large blank wall facing Wilson Blvd, upsetting some locals

By Matt Blitz
1/4

Driving west on Wilson Blvd from Clarendon, there’s a new addition to the landscape near Mario’s Pizza: a large cement block wall.

The wall is the rear of a new CVS going up along the 3330 block of Wilson Blvd, the former site of the Highlander Motor Inn. The nearly 20-foot-tall, windowless monolith is oriented so that it faces the street. The entrance to the new CVS is set for N. Kenmore Street.

The large blank wall has already attracted the ire of some residents. ARLnow recently received emails from several locals calling the structure an “eyesore,” a “failure,” and “The Great Wall of Clarendon.”

This all comes after a multi-year legal battle that included an unsuccessful appeal by Arlington County to the Virginia Supreme Court. It ended with the county being handcuffed in terms of regulating what’s built at the site.

“The design for this project shows a solid wall fronting on Wilson Blvd. The store frontage will be on N. Kenmore St,” a Department of Community, Planning and Housing Development spokesperson told ARLnow. “This project is occurring through by-right development; therefore there are no Zoning requirements for the orientation of buildings or structures. In addition, the County is limited in its overall regulation of by-right development projects.”

For more than five decades, the 3330 block of Wilson Blvd was the home of the Highlander motel, owned by the family of local businessman Billy Bayne.

In 2015, Bayne made the decision to lease the land to CVS, which planned to build a new store and pharmacy. However, there were complications to the deal, with the county balking at allowing the existing parking lot on N. Kenmore Street to be used again for parking.

Decisions were appealed several times before a circuit judge ruled that Bayne, as owner, was allowed to do what he wished with the property. The case was denied consideration by the state’s top court after a series of appeals.

Bayne, who also owns the Crystal City Gentlemen’s Club and Restaurant, claimed he lost nearly $2 million while the project stalled.

“It’s not okay to do this to somebody,” Bayne said in 2018. “There will be ramifications for this.”

He ended up suing the county for civil rights violations in 2019, but the suit was ultimately dismissed.

The project moved forward, with the motel closing early last year before being torn down. Before it shuttered, though, Arlington’s Dept. of Human Services rented out the hotel as a Covid quarantine location. While it probably didn’t resolve all animosity, the county thanked Bayne as someone who “really stepped up and helped” during a time of crisis.

But now it is neighbors in the Ashton Heights and Virginia Square area who are upset with what’s being done to the property.

“After the long court battle with the owner of the Highlander, CVS is throwing its ‘f you very much’ by placing a blank wall along Wilson Boulevard,” one resident told ARLnow. “Can’t wait for the future graffiti — I mean, community arts project!”

“There is no other commercial enterprise on Wilson Blvd in the area that presents so brazenly (or more likely thoughtlessly) a facade that is so grossly inconsistent with the urban ‘smart growth’ model,” another resident wrote, calling it “unfit… for this area.”

ARLnow reached out to CVS about the wall and received the following response.

“A new CVS Pharmacy store is currently under construction on Wilson Boulevard in Arlington and is expected to be completed by the end of 2022. The wall that is currently facing Wilson Boulevard will be part of the permanent structure and is included in the overall construction and design plan approved by Arlington development officials,” a CVS spokesperson said.

So, the “Great Wall of Clarendon” is apparently here to stay and there isn’t much the county or residents can do at this point.

“It could be a major eyesore on the street for the next 30 to 40 years,” said a local resident.

Ballston Beaver Pond might become Ballston Wetland Park since there are no more beavers

By Matt Blitz
Ballston Beaver Pond during a pause in renovations (staff photo by Mavis Chan)

The Ballston Beaver Pond might become Ballston Wetland Park, a more befitting name since the beavers have moved on.

The human-made pond, originally built to collect stormwater runoff and trash from I-66, is undergoing a $4 million renovation. With that makeover and the fact that the beavers have taken their dam-building skills elsewhere, the pond and park are set to get a new name.

Earlier this year, residents were given the opportunity to recommend a new name for the park.

In July, four finalists were revealed:

  • Ballston Wetlands, as a way to highlight the wetland feature.
  • Crossroads Wetland Park, to recognize nearby Ball’s Crossroads, which was one of the more populated areas in the county in the mid-19th century and the inspiration for Ballston’s name
  • Thaddeus Lowe Park, to honor the Union Army’s Chief Aeronaut who performed aerial reconnaissance from his hot air balloon near this location.
  • Wetlands Vista Park, because of the natural feature and the new vista platform that’s being built at the park.

Last week, Arlington’s Historical Affairs and Landmark Review Board (HALRB) voted to move forward on a slight variation of the top vote-getter — “Ballston Wetland Park.”

“As the County was renovating the pond to be more of a destination for nature lovers and to better support its important wetland function, it seemed appropriate to update its name,” Department of Parks and Recreation spokesperson Susan Kalish told ARLnow. “While the area does not have beavers, which generally migrate from pond to pond, it is a wetland and it is in Ballston.”

The Neighborhood Conservation Advisory Committee is planning to vote on the proposed name either next month or October. Then, it will go to the Parks and Recreation Commission later in the fall. If the recommended new name passes both bodies, it will then head to the County Board for a vote likely in October or November.

The reason for the change is that the beavers have gone bye-bye.

The pond was originally built back in 1980 to collect stormwater runoff from I-66. However, in the 1990s, and to the surprise of county officials, beavers started moving in — along with other wildlife like muskrats, geese, heron, egrets, redwing blackbirds, fish, and turtles.

The beavers proceeded to do what they do best, which is building dams and messing up drainage systems. The dams compromised water quality, prevented certain vegetation from growing, and essentially defeated the park’s purpose of being for stormwater runoff.

However, the beavers have since moved on.

The county began planning renovations back in 2011, but it took eight years to acquire all the easements. Then, right when construction and draining were about to start, the pandemic delayed the project again. Finally, in December 2021, work began on renovating the pond and park.

As part of that work, the county is installing beaver baffles as a means of keeping the busy mammals out.

The county is also adding updated trash control devices, turtle basking stations, interpretive signs, and a new boardwalk on the eastern side of the pond.

With work ongoing, the bike trail on the east side is currently closed. A temporary detour is in place along the south side of the pond, that connects Washington Blvd to the Custis Trail.

The work is expected to wrap up next summer.

Lane closures coming to section of Columbia Pike

By ARLnow.com
Crossing Columbia Pike at S. George Mason Drive (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

A section of Columbia Pike will be reduced to one lane in each direction starting next week.

The lane closure, which is set to start Monday and stretch into January 2023, will run about a third of a mile from S. Wakefield Street to S. George Mason Drive. It will help make way for latest phase of the Columbia Pike Multimodal Street Improvements project.

“Drivers — especially those commuting along Columbia Pike — are encouraged to use alternate routes and expect delays,” Arlington County said today in a press release, noting that prep work is starting this week. “Bus stops will also be temporarily relocated to accommodate work.”

The years-long project to improve Columbia Pike’s streetscape, enhance transit infrastructure, replace aging water and sewer mains and bury utility lines has previously closed lanes on other stretches of the Pike and even resulted on the occasional rogue utility pole.

In addition to the lane closures and bus stop relocations, road crews will also be implementing turn restrictions and a reduction in the speed limit from 30 mph to 25 mph.

Columbia Pike between S. Wakefield Street and S. George Mason Drive (via Google Maps)

More on the lane closures, the plans and the project from the county press release, below.

(more…)

When the Ballston Silver Diner opens this fall, the long-time Clarendon location will close

By Matt Blitz
1/4

When the new Ballston Silver Diner opens, the Clarendon location will close.

Silver Diner is now planning to start serving at 750 N. Glebe Road in October 2022, a company spokesperson tells ARLnow. This is bit of push from its initial “summer 2022” debut that’s still being advertised on its storefront throughout construction.

When it does open, though, the long-time Silver Diner at 3200 Wilson Blvd in Clarendon will shutter after 26 years.

“The current Clarendon location will close the day after the new location opens,” a spokesperson said, confirming what has long been expected given redevelopment plans for the Clarendon site. “Their lease is ending so they’re moving as close as possible to their current location.”

The new Silver Diner is about a mile from the current location. What’s somewhat surprising, perhaps, is that it will shutter as soon as the new diner opens. The closure will make way for a new development that’s set to include a hotel, gym, and a 286-unit residential building.

The Ballston Silver Diner was first announced five years ago as part of the new Waycroft apartment building, which also includes a Target store that opened on the ground floor in the summer of 2020.

The new 6,700-square-foot restaurant is set to have a 68-seat outdoor cafe, which was just given a thumbs-up by the Arlington Planning Commission this month.

While last year’s application noted that “the applicant anticipates operating the restaurant 24 hours a day,” the spokesperson said this won’t be the case. The Ballston restaurant will keep the same hours as the Clarendon location, which operates 21 hours a day — from 7 a.m. to 4 a.m. — on Fridays and Saturdays, while closing 2-3 hours earlier on other days of the week.

“Many restaurants apply for permitting for longer hours, just in case anything changes in future but none of the Silver Diner restaurants operate 24 hours,” the spokesperson wrote.

The outdoor seating, meanwhile, will be open “seasonally.”

Construction is ongoing at the future diner, with fences protruding into the sidewalk and wires dotting the side of the building.

Work continues on the former site of the Febrey-Lothrop House in Dominion Hills

By Matt Blitz
1/3

(Updated at 10:15 a.m.) Work is continuing on the former site of the Febrey-Lothrop House, also known as the Rouse estate, in the Dominion Hills neighborhood.

ARLnow saw and captured photos last week of what appears to be excavation activity at the site at 6407 Wilson Blvd, including the removal of trees.

The site is now owned by New York-based Kennedy Lewis Investment Management, according to county property records, after it was sold late last year. Some 40 single-family houses are expected to be built on the site, dubbed The Grove at Dominion Hills, by home builder Toll Brothers.

More on the homebuilding plan, below, from an update posted last month by the Dominion Hills Civic Association.

Toll Brothers indicated most homes would be about 45 feet wide on lots around 60 feet wide; however, lots will vary in size, most around 8000 square ft. Homes would be customized to the buyer with a variety of colors available for exteriors as well as options for interiors.

The audience was also eager to know the timeline for construction. At the time of the meeting, the Toll Brothers representatives indicated that grading work on the Madison Street home sites could begin as soon as six weeks from early May, which would be in about mid-June, 2022. However, all is dependent on the Arlington County approval processes. If the timeline continued as plans, construction on homes is projected for late July and as the representative put it, “you could have new neighbors by February.”

The home prices are anticipated to start around $2 million.

ARLnow reached out to the investment company about the work currently being done and if they are partnering with any archeologists or historians during this phase. Previously, local preservationists asserted that the site — which was once home to as many as 15 enslaved people and also potentially used by an Indigenous hunting ground — is historic and potentially contains artifacts, though a County Board report called artifact claims “speculative.”

“We have no comment on the matter,” a spokesperson for the company wrote back in an email.

In March 2021, the historic Febrey-Lothrop House that sat on the nine-plus acres of land at the corner of Wilson Blvd and N. McKinley Road was demolished. That came after a long battle by local preservationists, including the Arlington Historical Society, to save the aging house and estate from demolition and development.

However, attempts to get the county to purchase the site or to give it a local historic designation failed.

Portions of the house may have dated back to at least the Civil War, including an ​​ornate wooden compass floor inlay built into what had been a library, preservationists argued.

In the late 19th century, the house was sold to department store ​​magnate Alvin Lothrop. He knocked down most of the previous structure to build his own colonial revival style home, inspired by George Washington’s Mount Vernon.

The house stayed in the family after Lothrop died but reportedly was leased to Howard Hughes, the famed aviator, inventor, and businessman. He hosted lavish parties there, inviting guests like movie star Jane Russell and Washington football team owner George Preston Marshall.

The house and estate — which at the time was even more expansive — were sold to Middleburg, Virginia-based developer and amateur steeplechase jockey Randy Rouse in 1951. He broke up most of the estate to form the surrounding neighborhood but kept the house and close-by property.

Giving the house another brush with Hollywood history, Rouse married Audrey Meadows, who had just been cast on the TV show “The Honeymooners.” But commuting from Arlington to New York for filming supposedly stressed the marriage and they divorced soon after.

Rouse owned the house up to his death in 2017 at 100 years old. A trust in his name owned the property, but it opposed the historic designation and moved to sell the property for redevelopment. Ultimately, the house was torn down early last year.

New transit stations coming to Columbia Pike starting this summer

By Mavis Chan
Rendering of one of the new transit stations to be constructed on Columbia Pike this summer (via Arlington County)

New shelters are expected this summer at eight bus stops on Columbia Pike.

The project was delayed last year because of structural problems with the original shelter design, but the delay presented an opportunity to increase the original contract and complete more stations at one time.

At its meeting on Saturday (July 16), the Arlington County Board approved giving Sagres Construction Corporation another $1 million to up the number of shelters it is installing from 4 to 8.

The contractor will also modify the signage and electrical systems at the stations.

The new transit stations will be equipped with glass roofs and side windscreens, real-time bus arrival displays, lighting and seats. Each station platform is also set to be between 90 and 120 feet long to accommodate two buses, according to the project’s website.

The transit stations will be located between the intersection at Columbia Pike and S. Greenbrier Street, and S. Dinwiddie Street, according to a report to the Board.

Anticipating the installation of these new transit stations, multiple bus stops in both directions of Columbia Pike are set to be relocated starting Sunday (July 24). The westbound stops are at S. Dinwiddie Street, S. Greenbrier Street, S. Buchanan Street, S. Oakland Street and S. Glebe Street; the eastbound ones are at S. Greenbrier Street and S. Columbus Street, according to the county website.

The construction of these new stations is part of the Columbia Pike Transit Stations project. The eight stations are expected to be built this summer. Another 15 are set to be constructed between 2023 and 2025, according to the project’s website.

The new transit stations aim to provide better accommodation for bus riders and transform Columbia Pike to a “more transit-oriented, pedestrian-friendly ‘Main Street,'” according to the report.

County Board to consider turf field with underground garage at The Heights despite concerns

By Mavis Chan
A rendering the proposed garage with a turf field above next to The Heights building (via Arlington County)

The County Board is set to consider construction of an underground garage topped with a turf field at The Heights building in Rosslyn.

The Heights, at 1601 Wilson Blvd, is the home of two public schools: the H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program and the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Program.

After issues with the original project design for the garage, revisions to the plan ultimately have eased concerns, and county staff recommends the revised use permit be approved at the Arlington County Board meeting this Saturday (July 16), according to a Board report.

But the county’s Planning Commission still isn’t on board with the new plan.

The Arlington Public Schools proposal calls for 61 parking spaces in the underground garage, with a lighted, rectangular, synthetic turf field above. The field is part of an agreement between APS and the county to construct outdoor athletic facilities at the school, according to the Board report.

The previous proposal, submitted to the Board in May, had several issues, mostly concerning the adjacent 18th Street N., which runs parallel to Wilson Blvd. Under the previous design, the street would have been narrowed by eight feet, removing its southern on-street parking lane which could “cause significant operational issues for APS buses,” according to the report.

APS also originally proposed garage access to private vehicles for pickups and drop-offs during school opening and closing each day. The report stated that would pose “a significant operational and safety challenge.”

Additionally, the original proposal would build the turf field to provide access to the first floor of The Heights on the same level. However, that would diminish public and student access and visibility along other sides of the field.

To address those problems, APS would maintain the width of 18th Street N. and keep the parking lane next to H-B Woodlawn, constructing a 5-foot wide, 18-inch tall planter with a seat wall along the length of the garage facade, as well as adding trees on the curbs near the garage and relocating streetlights.

Despite the changes, the Planning Commission still urged the County Board to deny the permit. The commission unanimously agreed that the new proposal failed to conform to the West Rosslyn Area Plan, the Rosslyn Sector Plan and the Arlington County Comprehensive Plan, according to its report.

Specifically, the proposed elevation of the turf field is in conflict with the area plan’s goal of avoiding above-ground or ground level parking, while blocking some pedestrians from viewing The Heights building, which the commission called “a public-facing jewel for both Arlington, the greater D.C. area, and the Commonwealth.”

Although the Transportation Commission voted to recommend approval for the new proposal, it still had doubts about the increased height of the field’s impact on pedestrians on 18th Street N., as well as the plan to build 30 new employee parking spaces when school staff can park at an existing, nearby parking garage instead, according to the commission’s report.

View of The Heights building in Rosslyn, past what could soon be the site of a new parking garage and turf field (via Google Maps)

Photo (below) via Google Maps

County Board to consider renovation contract for ‘courtroom of the future’

By Mavis Chan
The exterior of the Arlington County Justice Center, where the General District Court is located (via Google Maps)

A contract that’s part of a $1.9 million project to renovate “the courtroom of the future” is set to go before the Arlington County Board.

The Board plans to vote on Saturday (July 16) on an $890,000 construction contract to upgrade Arlington General District Court Courtroom 10B with technology updates and layout improvements. If approved, the contract will go to Michigan-based construction company Sorensen Gross.

Arlington courtrooms haven’t had a major renovation since 1994, according to a report to the County Board.

“Significant technology development has introduced new forms of evidence, including recordings from police body-worn cameras and smartphone cameras,” the report says. “Additional courtroom technology is needed to show this evidence to only the required participants. This technology prototype will address these issues and provide a more flexible setting for future expansion/modification to the system.”

The construction project is set to include renovations such as raising the floor to make routing cables easier, new video monitors and sound systems that coordinate microphones and integrate translation capabilities. By adding a new “technology backbone,” the county aims to give “more direct control of multimedia presentations,” according to the report.

The spectator area, jury box and witness stand are also set for changes, according to a Q&A document with prospective vendors. The changes will comply with Americans with Disabilities Act requirements and improve the layout for judges, witnesses and clerks, according to the report.

The total budget for the project is around $1.9 million, which was included in the county’s adopted fiscal year 2022-2024 Capital Improvement Plan. In addition to the construction contract, the total cost reflects around $370,000 in design and administrative costs and $250,000 in contingency costs.

Construction is currently expected to start in early August and should be mostly complete by July of next year, according to the Q&A document.

Photo via Google Maps

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