Q: The new Broward courthouse opened six years ago. Yet the moldy, decaying eyesore of the old courthouse has not been torn down for the planned plaza. What gives? — WM Payne, Fort Lauderdale
A: You’re right, demolition of the old Fort Lauderdale courthouse, which was built in 1962 and prompted lawsuits relating to asbestos and toxic mold, is definitely taking longer than predicted.
A new 20-story replacement opened in 2017 as part of a $345.6 million judicial complex overhaul at the site. A South Florida Sun Sentinel story that year quoted an assistant county administrator saying the razing of the old building at 201 SE Sixth St. would be completed in 2018. Five years later, has there been any progress?
I asked Ariadna Musarra, the county’s director of construction management, to explain the delay.
“Generally, demolition projects require a lot of coordination and that takes time,” she said in an email. “The courthouse demolition project is no different and the County has been working on it for some time. Many projects have to be completed before actual building demolition takes place. Specifically, the relocation of a copy center and warehousing of records, relocating Clerk of Courts staff; relocation of the mailroom and ancillary areas; and other interior work needs to be completed before demolition can begin.”
She said many of these transfers have been accomplished or will be finished in the coming months. When all the moving is done, interior demolition work in the west and central wings would begin before year’s end. Then, “structural work must be completed in the existing adjacent building to then safely take down the ‘old courthouse,’ ” she said.
She’s looking at next spring for the exterior leveling. A 500-space secured parking garage and a new entrance plaza for the entire complex will take its place.
Projected completion date: 2025. But, like the demolition, the date could be delayed, depending on “construction market conditions, labor availability or weather-related events,” Musarra said.
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