Commissioners narrow courthouse sites
BY PAM BRANNON Gulf Breeze News news@gulfbreezenews.com

Where would be the best place in Santa Rosa County for a courthouse 50 to 75 years from now?

That's what county commissioners say they would like to figure out in the process of deciding on a site for a new courthouse. The county started that process with a judicial center workshop last week with presentations on five possible sites for a new county courthouse. They will rank those and take a closer look this week at what commissioners believe to be the "best" two or three.

County Commission Chairman John Broxson of Gulf Breeze told commissioners during the workshop last week, "In my opinion, and I have always made it clear, that the choice for a site for a new courthouse should be made on what is best for the most Santa Rosans today as well as for the future. Fifty years from now few will remember our role in this process, but it is important to think of the future 50 to 75 years down the road."

Commissioner Tom Stewart said, "About 65-70 years ago a group of people like us sat down someplace in this county and went through the same kind of process we are going through to try to figure out a good place for a courthouse. But over the years that little downtown spot has become congested with a twolane road, when it went from horse and buggies to Model T's and cars. We need to try to project ourselves into the future and plan for 50 to 70 years from now, also, to see where development and growth will be so we do not end up with a place too congested or difficult to reach for people now and then."

Commissioners listened to proposals from four private companies, and also considered the county owned property in the Industrial Park.

Two of the properties are in East Milton - the Industrial Park property off Highway 90 is just north of the current jail and already owned by the county, with the cost of infrastructure needed estimated to be $1.4 million; and a site off Highway 90, about one block west of Highway 87, being offered as a donation by Cotton Byrom of 15-20 acres, with the understanding that the county would put infrastructure in for the courthouse and Byrom's adjoining development.

Three other sites are more centrally located off Avalon Boulevard, with one being in Pace and one adjacent to the Pensacola Junior College campus in Milton, and the other off Avalon Boulevard. near the interstate.Townsquare Partners, LLC is offering the site next to PJC, with 17 acres for a courthouse being priced at $1.4 million, but also offering a surrounding 33 acres for $1.6 million, or the entire 50 acres being offered for $3 million. Representatives of Townsquare pointed out that this site would allow for supporting businesses around the courthouse, like restaurants and medical buildings, and that this site could be annexed into the City of Milton. The proposal said this site would allow "75-100 years of growth". And the proposal claims this site is the closest to meeting the 10 year Master Plan the county had laid down.

This site next to PJC also includes a proposal for a connector road between Hwy. 90 and Hamilton Bridge Road, making access from the north much easier. Building a connector road had been in the county's master plan for the future.

Mpirical Development offered a site of 19 acres for a courthouse across from Target in Pace, with the condition that the $1.7 million value of the land be used to make a connector road between Avalon and Highway 90 to make access to and from Pace easier, and that impact fees be waived for the additional lanes that Mpirical would need to expand the road for easy access to the courthouse property. It is part of a 68 acre parcel.

Mitchell Company offered 19 acres off Avalon Boulevard for $1.65 million. The proposal shows this site is almost square, and is very close to the interstate, making access from the south end very easy.

Commissioner Bob Cole pushed during the meeting several times for the East Milton sites to be considered. He even showed a graph of transportation costs of transporting prisoners to and from the jail to the courthouse, and how many stop lights were between the jail and each site.

"Not only do we need to look at transportation costs, with the sheriff's budget so constrained, but there is always more of a risk of escape for every stop light when transporting prisoners," Cole said. "For example, between the current jail and the

Townsquare property there are 11 stop lights and more than eight miles, and between the jail and the Mpirical property there are 15 stop lights."

However, the other commissioners said they are not looking as favorably on the East Milton sites. Commissioner Don Salter pointed to the bridges between downtown Milton and Pace and East Milton.

"As long as we have two bridges between half of the residents of the county and East Milton, I will not be in favor of a courthouse in East Milton. We keep hearing a lot about easy access to the south end, but what about people in my area of the county, around Pace. Have you ever tried to drive along Hwy. 90 near the Industrial Park when change of shift time comes about 3:30 to 4:30 each day? The traffic is backed up now," Salter said.

Commissioner Tom Stewart said, "I don't like East Milton as a site. It is too congested. And there will not be a four lane bridge planned across Blackwater for many years at least, and there are 50,000 to 60,000 people living in the Pace area that need easier access. I am favoring one of the three centrally located sites off Avalon."

Commissioners asked staff to rank all the sites and have the issue placed on the Committee of the Whole meeting agenda this week, as well as the regular county meeting agenda for more discussion.