As the Jefferson City Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department eyes a new multipurpose building on the campus of Lincoln University, some city officials are looking at the current parks offices on Monroe Street as the perfect new home for municipal court.
Parks officials have been working with Lincoln officials for several months to pursue a joint facility on Lafayette Street that would operate as both a multipurpose facility and a student recreational facility. Also, if the parks offices, which currently operate out of the city annex on the corner of Monroe and East Miller streets, relocate to the new facility, City Attorney Drew Hilpert would like to move municipal court, which currently operates one day a week out of City Hall, into the annex.
"I always looked at the parks building as a possibility," Hilpert said.
Justifying a move
It's not a new idea for Hilpert.
At a budget meeting Sept. 25, during a presentation on the municipal court budget, Hilpert said a big challenge for them was space and he believed the parks offices would be a perfect solution, whether parks moves to a new facility or "we just kick (them) out."
However, it is a new idea for the Parks and Recreation Commission, even if it isn't for the parks staff.
At a commission meeting Jan. 13, Commissioner Michael Couty questioned the justification for moving parks offices out of its current space, adding he didn't believe it had ever been discussed by the commission. However, Parks Director Bill Lockwood said having parks staff move into the new multipurpose building has been "a part of our plans from the very get-go."
The commission was then told, regardless of a new facility, nothing guarantees they can keep their current space, as it is owned by the city. When municipal court was mentioned as possibly moving in, many commissioners indicated that was news to them.
At the next commission meeting Jan. 27, Lockwood distributed copies of a letter from Mayor Eric Struemph dated Jan. 23, detailing the reasons behind the potential move.
"Council and staff have been looking for a new location for municipal court for a while. Municipal court is very disruptive to the other business conducted at City Hall and is about to outgrow a one-day-a-week court," Struemph wrote. "For more than a few years, Drew (Hilpert) has been eyeing your office as a location that would fit the needs of the court."
Struemph's letter went on to detail any new location for municipal court would need to be close to the police station to aid in security needs, limiting location options. He also noted some financial considerations behind the potential move, as well as the $1.5 million line of credit that was approved by the City Council in December for the multipurpose project.
"I don't think it's any secret the cost of rent doesn't cover the utilities the city pays on the building. That location just makes sense for all these reasons," Struemph wrote. "One of the advantages to the loan for the multipurpose building that I and other councilmen considered was the value in getting that space back for use as a court (or other options that may arise)."
Finance Director Bill Betts said the parks department pays $6,500 to the general fund to rent the city annex, noting parks does not use the whole building, as Fire Administration is located in a portion of the lower floor. However, in 2014, the city spent more than $11,000 on utilities in the annex, meaning the rent paid on the building does not cover the actual cost of using the building.
At the Jan. 27 meeting, Commission President Denise Chapel said the announcement was "out of left field" and "a little odd."
However, that was largely because she and other commissioners felt the city was telling them to vacate their offices, something that has since been cleared up. Chapel said she has spoken to Struemph to get clarity on the matter and now understands the department is not being kicked out of its current space.
"There is no urgency," Chapel said. "Nothing has been decided as of yet."
Chapel said now that everyone is on the same page, both the city and parks can work together for the same goal.
"We can plan with them, instead of them planning around us," Chapel said. "We just didn't know."
Cramped space
Hilpert said there are two main reasons the court needs to find a new space. One is that having municipal court at City Hall during normal business hours can be disruptive to other city functions.
When municipal court is on Wednesdays, the city locks all lower doors, leaving only one entrance open. That entrance has a metal detector and two security guards checking people as they walk in, meaning there can be a line simply to enter City Hall.
"On Wednesday, it's very unfriendly to the public," Hilpert said. "You have a large amount of people kind of meandering the halls. ... And the noise makes getting work done difficult sometimes."
Betts added it can be disruptive for the customers of the Finance Department who are coming in to pay sewer bills or get a business license.
The other reason for a new location is space.
Hilpert said the space designated for the court clerks, as well as the judge and prosecutor, is cramped and not very functional, especially considering the amount of records they need to store. Municipal court has two full-time clerks, two part-time employees, and the judge and prosecutor all sharing one small space on Wednesdays, he said.
Hilpert said the council chambers, used as the court space on Wednesdays, does provide sufficient space, but is not designed to be a courtroom. Also, he said, the court may soon need to expand to two days per week to handle the case load.
"It seems to me, we're on the cusp of a second day of court," Hilpert said.
Municipal Judge Cotton Walker said the cramped clerk's space is the main reason a new location would be necessary, as the council chambers provide adequate space, even if the configuration is not ideal.
"The facility's not perfect for that, obviously," Walker said. "The clerk's office is the thing that needs the space."
Walker said the courtroom itself does not need a bigger space, but a more functional space would work better for their purposes and having their own facility would help that.
Hilpert said the parks offices would work well for that purpose, even sketching out an idea of how it could work. He said all cubicles could be removed from the main floor to create a court space, with the judge at the front and the clerks behind bullet-proof glass. The side offices could be used for the judge and prosecutor, as well as for attorney conferences, he said.
Because the facility is a former bank, Hilpert said they could make the drive-thru windows functional again and provide a place where people can drive up and pay parking tickets, while keeping a safer environment for the court clerks.
"It should be pretty easy to make it secure," Hilpert said of the annex. "It wouldn't take a major reconstruction of the building to make it a really nice municipal court."
By having its own facility, Hilpert said municipal court could have smaller dockets spread over time, if the judge and prosecutor are in favor of it.
Former plans
Several years ago, the possibility of moving municipal court into the old church building on Monroe Street, between the police department and the parks offices, was discussed. However, that idea is no longer viable, Hilpert said, as it would cost too much to make the facility compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act and would need space added on for the clerks.
"You'd have to do a pretty major reconstruction and remodel on that," Hilpert said. "You'd basically have to build a whole area for the clerks and then remodel the thing to make it ADA compliant."
Hilpert said there have been no discussions he knows of at the city for what to do with the old church now, but it is used in the summers by the parks department for camps.