New Howard County Courthouse Breaks Ground In Columbia

COLUMBIA, MD — Ground has broken at the site for the new Howard County Circuit Courthouse. Leaders say construction of the new building will resolve issues posed by the more than 175-year-old Ellicott City courthouse and will improve both public safety and access to justice.

Demolition began at the Dorsey Building in Columbia Monday on Bendix Road, where the new Howard County Circuit Courthouse will be located.

"When our current courthouse opened its doors in 1843, our concept of justice was quite different than what it is today," County Executive Calvin Ball said at the June 24 groundbreaking.

When the original courthouse was built, Howard County wasn't even its own county — it was a district within Anne Arundel County. Howard County officially became its own county in 1851.

"As we break ground on the largest capital project in the history of our county, we are ushering in a new era of safety, innovation and justice in Howard County," Ball said in a statement.

Howard County government entered into a public-private partnership with Maryland-based Edgemoor-Star America Judicial Partners to fund and manage the more than $75 million venture.

Discussions about the need for a new circuit courthouse began more than 20 years ago, according to the Honorable Lenore Gelfman, who recently retired as a Howard County Circuit Court judge and has continued to work on the new courthouse project.

"Many things have changed," Gelfman said, over the years. "Caseload has increased dramatically because our county has continued to grow. Our county is a popular place."

More than 323,000 people lived in Howard County in 2018, according to the U.S. Census. In 2010, the population was more than 287,000, meaning it grew about 12 percent in eight years.

"It increases the work of the circuit court," Gelfman said.

The Howard County Circuit Courthouse in old Ellicott City became overcrowded and lacked adequate security. Its design also put opposing parties in common areas with one another.

"It's a beautiful structure. It's a landmark in this county," Gelfman said. "But when it was built, James Polk was president of the United States."

To allow room for the judicial branch to do its work, Gelfman said the county's land records, state's attorney and sheriff's office all had to move out of the courthouse.

Many in the public do not know this, Howard County State's Attorney Richard Gibson said at the groundbreaking, but the state's attorney's office has been working in two separate locations, which "can sometimes impact justice."

Annexations and renovations took place, but they were not enough to modernize the courthouse and meet the needs of the growing county.

Technology And Security Issues Built In

The Ellicott City courthouse posed "significant restrictions and limitations," Gelfman said. "Technology and security issues have become increasingly sophisticated and challenging."

Wireless internet access was hard to come by due to the granite walls, and parking and physical access to the building were difficult.

"We have all done the very best that we can do, but those who need to use the courthouse — litigants, jurors, staff — we need to have a building that's technology appropriate, helpful and most of all, secure and safe," said Gelfman. "There are some areas of the building that are not easily accessible, putting additional burden on security and safety in case of emergency."

Howard County Sheriff Marcus Harris gave insight into how working in the more than 175-year-old courthouse affected him.

"I can't tell you how many times I pray before I go to bed because it's truly difficult to secure the old courthouse," Harris said. "I pray every night that nothing happens on my watch."

In designing the new courthouse, the sheriff's office was able to give input on everything from where cameras would go to how parking should be laid out, he said.

"The new courthouse is going to be beautiful but, at the end of the day, my main focus is on the security of that new courthouse," Harris said, adding: "You are going to have one of the safest circuit court buildings in the country."

New Courthouse Comes Into Focus

The previous county executive and county council, which included Ball, budgeted for the new courthouse.

"They had the vision and the foresight and the courage to realize that Howard County needed a new circuit courthouse building, one that is in keeping with the excellence for which other Howard County necessities like our schools and our libraries are known," Gelfman said.

Various sites were considered, and evaluations were conducted. "This was the obvious site because it's 29 acres the county already owns," Gelfman said.

The new 238,000-square-foot courthouse will be built on the site of the Thomas B. Dorsey Building at 9250 Bendix Road in Columbia.

It will be funded through a public-private partnership with Edgemoor-Star America Judicial Partners.

Tens of thousands of hours were put into the project.

"Thoughtful deliberation and planning went into every part of this courthouse," Gelfman said.

Planners considered the stressful state that many people are in when they come to the courthouse, and they tried to minimize that stress through the design, "balancing dignity and the gravitas of the matters that we attend to in the court," Gelfman said.

"The new courthouse will allow the staff, judges, departments and litigants to do the absolute best for the public," she said, "to promote the judiciary mission of access to justice."

Groundbreaking Brings Partners Together

The June 24 groundbreaking in Columbia was about 4.5 miles away from the old courthouse and included many stakeholders.

"It's a collaborative effort," said Gelfman. "This project is a huge deal."

Builders, county officials, engineers, planners and others attended the groundbreaking ceremony.

Mike Hartman, division president at Bethesda-headquartered Clark Construction Group, said that Howard County strongly encouraged local businesses to be included in the project. Among those participating is Harkins Builders of Howard County.

Chief Operating Officer of Harkins Builders Larry Kraemer said he and many of his company's employees live in the county and will be end users of the courthouse.

"Our headquarters is miles down the road," Kraemer said. Harkins Builders is at 10490 Little Patuxent Parkway, about 4 miles away.

Kraemer thanked the organizers for allowing Harkins to be part of what he described as a "once-in-a-lifetime" project.

Timeline For New Courthouse

Demolition of the Dorsey Building begins in June, and construction of the 691-space parking garage and courthouse will begin this summer on the site at 9250 Bendix Road in Columbia.

The financial closing occurred in October 2018, and the design process for the new courthouse is expected to run from November 2018 to October 2019.

The new courthouse is slated to be complete by July 2021.

For more information, see the Howard County Circuit Courthouse project page.