Plans to build a new $70 million federal courthouse in Eugene have hit a roadblock because the General Services Administration, a central management agency for the federal government, raised concerns about the city’s commitment to the project.
GSA spokesman Peter Gray said the agency had problems with funding for construction of the building, transportation to the site and the development of the area around the courthouse. The GSA was planning to buy land for the courthouse from the City of Eugene, and construction on the courthouse at the former location of the Agripac canning facility was scheduled to begin in a few months.
City officials received an e-mail from the GSA last week with questions concerning street construction, parking and future development in the courthouse district. The agency and city leaders have also discussed issues regarding the site in phone conversations.
Gray said the agency wanted to know how the city would manage transportation to the courthouse and how it would develop businesses and residences within the courthouse district.
“We don’t have a clear idea right now about the location,” Gray said. “We want to know more about access to the site and if the funding to build the courthouse is available.”
City officials said they were working hard to make progress on the courthouse project.
“We’ve been trying to find specific concerns the GSA has with the courthouse,” city spokeswoman Jan Bohman said.
Bohman said city planning staff were compiling information to develop a response to the GSA’s concerns. She said the city staff are also working on issues such as transportation and parking, seeking federal funds for construction and trying to please the community. She noted that one of the major community issues is accessibility to the courthouse for people with disabilities.
According to the courthouse design plans, the entrance is located at the top of a staircase, 14 feet above street level. The courthouse includes an elevator for disabled access on one side of the stairs. Advocates for disabled access have adamantly pressed for the inclusion of a disabled access ramp, which the GSA has not yet included in the courthouse’s design.
James Dean, chair of the Human Rights Commission, said the new courthouse needed a ramp to improve accessibility for everyone in Eugene. He said Eugene is seen as a national leader in disability access and should show that with its new courthouse.
“If you have this grandiose federal building and the main access is just the stairs, then you are showing people that you are denying many disabled people access to the courthouse,” Dean said. He said he felt that there was no local input on the design of the courthouse.
“Part of the problem is that the federal government is not listening to the people,” Dean said.
Dean emphasized that though many community members had concerns about disability access to the courthouse, people still supported the construction of the building.
“None of these people are saying that we don’t want a courthouse,” Dean said. “We just want the courthouse to appear accessible for all.”
Gray said the GSA was aware of the disabled access issue and is currently in the middle of a 45-day review to explore the idea of adding a ramp. He said the agency would determine the possibility of a ramp by October 15.
“It seemed more practical to use an elevator at the time,” Gray said. “But the community wants a ramp so we are looking into it.”
City officials say they still believe the courthouse will be constructed once the city comes to a resolution with the GSA.