PARIS — An overhaul of the Oxford County courthouse is a “high priority” for state planners, according to a spokesperson for the courts.
In a phone interview Wednesday afternoon, Mary Ann Lynch said the courthouse’s facilities are “among the oldest and worst” and high among candidates on a short list the Legislature will be asked to fund.
Authorization, however, is not expected for another two years.
“I don’t want to say nothing will happen this year, the only thing I can tell you is at this point is it’s high on our priority list,” Lynch said.
Built in 1895, the two-story brick courthouse is home to the Oxford County Superior Court, county administrative offices, Registry of Deeds Office for the Eastern Division and the assistant district attorney’s offices.
According to a 2002 article in the Oxford Review written by the Oxford Historical Society, the courthouse is the second in county history; the first one was a wooden structure torn down in 1889 after being condemned. That same year, a bid was awarded to build a courthouse for $68,000.
The final cost tallied $125,000.
In 2011, the courthouse closed for over a month to repair water damage to the ceiling. The costs were split with the state.
This year, the county approved additional spending to repair the concrete staircase at the front entrance of the building, though plans to rejoint the exterior brick wall were slashed from an initial proposal. The costs were also split with the state.
Funding repairs on the state level will require authorization from the Legislature, which Lynch said she does not expect to occur within the next year.
The Courthouse Advisory Committee, which updates lawmakers on the general condition of the state’s courts, was last given approval for a round of repairs and replacements in 2008. Those included $52 million for a new, consolidated Superior and District courthouse in Kennebec County, a $5 million renovation consolidating the courts in Piscataquis County completed in 2012 and an ongoing $13 million renovation or expansion in Machias.
Oxford County could be next, Lynch said.
“It’s hard to know when the committee will meet again. Some of these buildings are county-owned, and when the county is ready to go, it creates an impetus for the changes to go ahead,” she said.
Notice from the state has nudged county officials to look at forming a courthouse planning committee, according to administrator Scott Cole.
It could be comprised of an array of officials to provide input on how the building currently functions and how it could be designed to meet future needs.
“It’s not a problem, but if you’re going to change things, it’s a once-in-a-hundred-year process,” Cole said.
Cole did not anticipate the state’s plan to involve demolishing the building, but attaching an annex and consolidating the district and superior courts under one roof.
“I doubt very much there would be any movement there. Their objective, to the greatest extent, is to preserve,” he said.
ccrosby@sunjournal.com
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