Justice

Architectural planning and design for criminal and civil court facilities require extensive knowledge of the judicial process. Justice buildings accommodate criminal and civil courtrooms and also provide offices for prosecutors, public defenders, probation, child support, clerks, and others.

Controlled public access areas must be secure and ADA-compliant. In-custody offenders scheduled for court appearances require secure holding areas or connection to secure detainee facilities, including vehicular sallyports for safe transfer—separate from public and employee access areas. Sufficient space is also needed for records storage and long-term archival of information.

Justice facilities design often involves the renovation of historically-significant buildings. Functionality, technology, and security require updating while overcoming space deficiencies in these existing structures. At the same time, the integrity of historic architectural elements such as ceilings, flooring, and wood décor must be restored or replicated throughout. Even new construction may be required to complement existing architectural styles within a historic district or downtown square.

The challenge of keeping an existing justice facility fully operational throughout renovation adds a degree of complexity to all phases of design, planning and construction.

As the lead architect for more than 40 courtrooms throughout the Midwest and Florida with award-winning justice facilities design, Securitecture can provide the guidance needed for your project. See a project list here.