Local News

Officials get public input on site for courthouse

By Megan Nichols
Staff Writer

03-10-2009

Federal officials heard from residents Monday night on where Anniston's new federal courthouse should be built.

The General Services Administration, which is responsible for maintenance and construction of federal buildings, will choose the site from among three it is considering.

GSA officials came to Anniston for the public input portion of its selection process.

The sites under consideration are:

• The 1100 block of Gurnee Avenue, which houses Anniston City Hall and the Anniston Water Works and Sewer Board.

• The 1000 block of Gurnee Avenue, which includes Downing's General Store, Model City Glass and the Wingmen Club.

• An area bounded by West 15th Street and Circle Court, which includes the former Anniston First Baptist Church and three homes.

Anniston consultant and former city manager George Monk and water board General Manager Jim Miller urged the GSA to choose the City Hall site.

Monk said the city has been planning for its site being chosen since the 1990s. Original plans put the courthouse on that block, but officials discovered in 2006 that Anniston City Hall sits on a 100-year flood plain because Snow Creek runs through downtown.

That set in motion an alternative site selection process to see what other viable sites the city has, but did not rule out the City Hall location.

Miller said the water board needs the GSA to choose its block so that it can begin renovations on Watermark Tower on Noble Street. The water company plans to move into the old AmSouth building, but financial problems have put the project on hold.

Selling their building will solve those cash flow troubles, Miller said.

"I don't think there's quite as much riding on the other sites as there is on the City Hall site," Miller said.

Wallace Gunnels spoke for the First Baptist Church site. He told officials it's a great spot because it sits on a hill and is visible from several directions, among other reasons.

Jim Tyson, who owns Model City Glass on the 1000 block of Gurnee Ave asked the GSA officials to consider his block, which he said has a great downtown location and could be inexpensive to demolish.

Whichever site the GSA chooses, Anniston residents won't see a new federal courthouse for quite some time.

GSA Senior Project Manager Steven Sommer told the group that construction money has been pushed back to 2012.

Building the courthouse could take up to three years, he said.

GSA plans to choose a location by the summer, said Site Selection Director Kirsten Neff.

Because the government in 2004 allocated funds for design and selection of a new site, Neff said she hopes the agency can purchase the property shortly after the final choice is made.