Bucks County shows off new justice center

Pity Justice is blind to all that limestone and wood finish interior, Moravian tile work and Terrazzo flooring.

With its landscaped promenade, historic stone fireplace cafeteria and multimedia screen technology, the future Bucks County Justice Center might make one yearn for one of those long jury trials or lust for a lawsuit.

On Friday, county officials led members of the media on a sneak peek tour inside the $85 million, 285,000-square-foot complex now dominating Doylestown's skyline.

Some 520 county workers are scheduled to move into the center in mid-January, said Jerry Anderson, the countys general services director.

Construction is running more than a year behind schedule and 4 percent over original contract estimates. The building is to house the district attorney and sheriff's offices as well as family, civil and criminal courts.

Officials broke ground in July 2011, predicting then that it would open by August 2013. As evidenced during the tour, many in government are quite eager to open, if only to show it off.

On Friday, crews were busy laying the foundations for a covered exterior pathway, leading from the countys Union Street parking garage to the sole, public entrance planned on Main Street.

Curved, tinted-glass windows rise eight stories above the front door. Above, sixth-floor balconies provide stunning views of the borough's downtown district.

Each of the 52 municipalities in Bucks County is to be represented in special tiles crafted by the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works.

Information about each days scheduled court hearings could be posted on computer screens located off each of the four public elevators.

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Bucks County shows off new justice center