News

Woodland Avenue courthouse in full swing

By Colin DeVries

CATSKILL — The Greene County Courthouse has officially been relocated to St. Patrick’s Academy, 80 Woodland Ave., Catskill and enters into its first full week of operation today.

The former elementary school will host court operations until the Main Street courthouse is finished with an overdue renovation. The reinvigoration of the building is slated for completion by February 2010.

Open in 1910, the courthouse was issued a directive in 1989 by the Office of Court Administration to upgrade to court operation standards, and now, 19 years later, intends to fulfill the requirements of that directive: improving accessibility, adding an additional courtroom and jury deliberation room, roof repairs, restoration of the exterior, and electrical, mechanical, plumbing and HVAC upgrades. The total cost of the renovation is estimated at $9.7 million, to be paid with a $14 million bond.

Due to the exorbitant expense needed to upgrade the courthouse, there was heated debate among Greene County legislators on whether it was worth it. All other options — from building an entirely new courthouse to renovating another structure for relocation — were exhausted and now after months of deliberation the project is underway, and the temporary home at St. Patrick’s is becoming quite cozy.

Workers have been moving courthouse equipment and records since mid-August and operations began after the Labor Day weekend. The court begins its first full, 40-hour week today, and so far the community has welcomed it.

Catskill Police Chief David Darling said there have been no complaints from neighbors regarding traffic or disturbances, adding that officers will continue to monitor the activity incase a parking problem arises.

In May, neighbors aired some concerns regarding the negative impacts of having courthouse activities in their quiet neighborhood on Woodland Ave. One neighbor, Kathy Keslick, was concerned with the traffic flow during afternoon hours as well as the presence of uncouth defendants traveling through the quiet residential streets. So far, though, Keslick is content with the activity.

“It’s no big deal,” she said about the courthouse’s presence. “It’s been pretty quiet so far ... the traffic hasn’t been too bad.”

She did note that there hadn’t been a jury selection yet, which can draw close to 100 prospective jurors at one time.

The response from the legislature and the police has been very accommodating to her concerns, Keslick said. “I thought (the Greene County legislators) were very nice,” she said, “and (Darling) is really easy to talk to.”

Officials have welcomed her concerns and acted on addressing them. It is also expected that future concerns be brought forward to be remedied.

“The big thing is what ends up being there (St. Patrick’s) in the future,” Keslick said.

There has been some speculation on what is in store for the temporary courthouse after close to half a million dollars has been spent to bring St. Patrick’s up to par for court activities.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany is currently leasing the Academy to Greene County for $100,000 per year, and Interim County Administrator Dan Frank has affirmed that no plans are in store to purchase the facility.

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