Nine more renderings of the planned $150 million Mendocino County Courthouse in Ukiah have been publicly posted by the state Judicial Council of California, which is overseeing the controversial project.
A rendering of the front exterior released in mid-August was greeted with derision by county residents. The latest renderings may not ease community concerns, based on the reactions then.
The additional renderings on the Judicial Council’s website amplify a three-story “barcode” exterior cited by critics, and depict a crisp, stark interior.
The new renderings show interior spaces and how courtrooms in the 82,000 square foot building will look. It will be constructed on a state-owned site south of Perkins Street, and immediately adjacent to the historic Ukiah Railroad Depot, a Colonial Revival-style building erected a century ago in the heyday of North Coast railroad service. Railroad tracks from that era will mark the new courthouse’s rear property boundary.
State officials boast that the new courthouse will feature the most advanced environmental-related technologies used in construction today. They, however, will be largely hidden from public view.
Instead, renderings show the new courthouse’s glass-enclosed entrance facing east and away from downtown on its four-acre site, flanked by parking lots, the train station, and a large mobile home park to the south.
The new courthouse’s broad rear will be what downtown Ukiah denizens see from where a courthouse has been located since 1860. The historic site is a square block bounded by State, Perkins, School and Standley streets in the heart of downtown.
The state’s expanded is not likely to ease local critics, who lashed out at the first look.
Mendocino County resident David King wrote in mid-August that the planned façade looked like a ‘barcode,’ a comment that was readily picked up by others.
A reader named Todd described the design as “hideous prison aesthetic.” Another called the courthouse design “Soviet Brutalist architectural style meets Apple store banality.”
Fentress Architects, a global architectural firm with California offices in Sacramento and Los Angeles, did not respond to requests for comment on the selected design.
The Fentress firm is working with Hensel Phelps Construction Co, a Washington state company, on the Ukiah project. Construction is scheduled to begin early next year, with completion scheduled for 2027.
As it is, the Fentress/Hensel Phelps team is the state’s designated design-builder contractors for the single largest civic construction project in Mendocino County history.
The new courthouse will remove court functions from an ill-designed 1950s era building located in the heart of downtown to a new courthouse located three long blocks away on Perkins Street.
The current courthouse is in a deteriorated state. It is seismically unsound, does not provide adequate access to courtrooms for disabled people, and needs costly retrofit of basic infrastructure including heating and air conditioning systems, according to state officials.
What happens to the aging structure is unclear. It will revert to county ownership, which is struggling with budget deficits and does not have an estimated $10 million plus for needed repairs so county offices can be moved in. In addition, the new courthouse does not provide space for two critical departments integral to the local justice system: the county District Attorney and the Public Defender offices.
County and city representatives are meeting every other month to discuss the situation, but no clear idea has yet to emerge.
The new courthouse has been envisioned for more than a decade, but state budget woes and other issues delayed action until now.
Construction of the new Ukiah courthouse is currently ranked the second highest on a lengthy list of state court projects.
A smaller courthouse project in neighboring Lake County is at the top of the list.
How the new courthouse will look, and what happens to the old, continues to be a hot topic among residents.
“We already have the Palace Hotel and the former Post Office anchoring downtown decay,” wrote a reader after getting a first look at plans in mid -August. “A chain-link fence around the next corpse is all that is needed.”
It still doesn’t fit right in Ukiah. Nothing beautiful or Old Town or small town about it,
That was the old world depot station never seen a ground report of the pollution on the property. I know for a fact that they get a lot of diesel runoff during the winter time in the creek Creek hooks into the area nearby Side and Mccarty on wall and every year we get diesel down in there and they trace it from coming from the old world station that has not been cleaned up yet.
My goodness. Everyone always finding something to bitch and moan about. We need a new revolving door for the influx of bums and tweakers that we so willingly hand free phones, meth pipes, lodging, food, EBT. Ukiah is not safe anymore.
Has anyone thought about how dang hot that entrance will be with the morning sun filling it? How much energy it will use for air conditioning. The entrance should face north towards Perkins for many reasons. It is a dam bar code. Do these ya ya designers ever leave their cubicles to see what they are putting into a small rural community? If we are getting a new court house, they should design it to fit the vibe of the city vs forcing this big city ugliness on us. what a crock.
My goodness. Everyone always finding something to bitch and moan about. We need a new revolving door for the influx of bums and tweakers that we so willingly hand free phones, meth pipes, lodging, food, EBT. Ukiah is not safe anymore.
Isn’t it wonderful that Clay and Peach St will be connected.
I agree that heart of town is so large, it will be nice to have newness is that area, streets, sidewalks, plants and trees. No one likes sky net but we need new infrastructure from the inside out
…and where will the DA and public defenders offices be located?
The building is inadequate for basic functions before it is even built…beyond stupid.
I agree that the east-facing glass enclosure will draw morning heat into the building. How is that energy efficient?
Actually, I disagree. I think the east facing front is best, It will take the chill off the morning and light up the atrium. About the general design…I don’t know if it will fit into small town Ukiah. It looks to belong in Fremont or Concord.
Whoever defined this design as Stalinesque brutality meets Apple store blandness, couldn’t have said it better. Instead of having a design that could be anywhere, why not design a building that reflects the beauty of our Mendocino County? Natural stone! Wood paneling! Water reflecting the light! Plants! Trees!
A design that is environmentally friendly and a pleasure to work in. Views!
Com’on kids, we can do better than this boring building.
Gross. Why don’t you idiots build something beautiful like with brick or River Rock and logs? With lots and lots of trees and grassy areas for people to enjoy. Since it will be a public building since you’re all public servants.
Omg you guys! What does your own front porch look like? The awning over the entry looks like it will give some shade, I think the windows will be good new glass not single pane recycled glass from some historical building. Maybe they could use the bricks from the Palace? (Sarcasm)
How does everyone feel about the ‘new’ savings bank, member when that went up? It’s hideous! We’re all used to in now.
It’s gonna be ok and oh yeah, we don’t have a choice.
Exactly. No more dirty, and obsolete court house.
Honestly thought it was a new mortuary.
Hahaha! Well said!
It is suggested you wrap that design back up and re-gift it to another town, like Milpitas. There is little curb appeal in the design and it really looks like a monument to some city slicker. Take a look at our current Courthouse entrance and see if you can use the exterior attributes in your new exterior design, and include current up to date amenities in the interior. Also, I’m not sure why we have to use an East Coast design team and a Northwest Contractor to build this new structure. We have very qualified local designers and Contractors in our town, County and State to give the new courthouse a little local charm.