Robbinsville – Graham County is edging closer to finalizing plans on its new courthouse.
At the Sept. 23 continued meeting of the board of commissioners, SLAM Collaborative Inc. – a construction engineering company based out of Atlanta – gave a lengthy presentation on the layout of three different designs for the new facility, which will be on West Fort Hill Road.
“Option A” and “Option C” both feature a “batwing” design, which would see a centered entrance as well as two split wings angling off to the left and right. “Option B” is a more traditional design, with no bends in the structure. The board decided to go with “Option C.”
All three boast roughly the same square footage – around 58,000 – an expansive parking lot and have offices such as the clerk of court, as well as courtrooms and jury-deliberation rooms on the top floor. The sheriff’s office and Graham County Jail would be on the bottom floor, serviced by a lower parking lot. In total, there would be 225 parking spots.
Following the presentation, Commission Chairman Dale Wiggins expressed his concern with the facade that will face West Fort Hill Road, as the front entrance will actually be tucked behind the main road.
“I don’t like that. I don’t like that the front of the building is basically looking at a big retaining wall, and above there you have the Duke Energy substation,” Wiggins pointed out. “To me, the street-side of that building should be the side that says, ‘Hey, this is the Graham County Courthouse.’ ”
County project manager Jason Marino said he would work with SLAM to develop a more aesthetically pleasing look to the back of the building, a plan the commissioners agreed with.
There was discussion about the building simply being turned around – so the entrance faces West Fort Hill Road – but the cost of digging and grading on the property’s steep hill would be too costly.
“We talked about that, and the problem is the fill you would have to do, and then you can’t really lift it up, so everything is on the bottom floor,” Marino said. “Then everybody would have to enter on the bottom and travel up to the top floor.
“There’s a lot of dirt moving in digging out that hill.”
The commissioners later concurred that flip-flopping the layout – which would place the sheriff’s office and county jail on the top floor – could be problematic.
The old Cherokee County jail in Murphy was once flooded by displeased inmates.
With its jail on a higher floor then, the flood created havoc on the floors below.
An estimated cost of construction and a timeline has not been finalized.