Fredericksburg must rethink building plans

Time to reconsider Fredericksburg's courthouse plans.

Date published: 1/6/2009

PRIOR to my appointment to City Council, a decision was made to build a new court facility to address security and space requirements. This decision was made during far superior economic times. I question the comprehensive costs of this project in light of the current economic recession.

Moving forward with this proposal during an economic crisis would represent poor financial practice on behalf of the city. Numerous cost figures have been cited for the new courts complex, ranging from $45 million to $65 million, which translates into a real-estate tax increase of approximately 8 to 11.5 cents. Breaking these costs down into a dollar-per-square-foot measure (to gain some perspective) reveals a hefty price tag of $577 to $833 per square foot.

Although some argue that this calculation is unfair and that, for planning purposes, the construction cost is only $267 per square foot, I submit that this planning figure is still not only high, it also accounts only for construction costs of the facility and does not take into account the fact that comprehensive costs cannot be ignored or camouflaged, including acquiring the Wachovia Bank property and relocating the post office.

RSMeans, a leading supplier of construction-cost data for North America, estimates that average costs for courthouse construction range between $172 and $186 per square foot for an 80,000-square-foot building. The cost of the proposed Fredericksburg Courthouse Complex of 78,000 square feet is $267 per square foot--43.5 percent higher than the upper-end average for an 80,000 square-foot facility.

Judging from the architectural drawings presented to City Council, approximately 2.6 acres will need to be acquired. With a land acquisition of $7,100,000 and post office relocation allowance of $3,000,000, this equates to $3,884,615 an acre--pricey by any standard.

Furthermore, according to the feasibility study, the proposed 78,000-square-foot facility is not sufficient to meet future needs--even in the near term. Without the space necessary for the commonwealth's attorney's and sheriff's administrative offices (since they are not planned to be part of the new complex), the space requirements are 76,593 square feet in 2010 and 93,371 square feet by year 2030.

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Date published: 1/6/2009

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