NEW LONG BEACH COURTHOUSE READY TO OPEN
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
New Gov. George Deukmejian Courthouse Opens in Long Beach Sept. 9 2013
Long Beach – The new Gov. George Deukmejian Courthouse will open for business on Monday, Sept. 9, 2013. Located at 275 Magnolia Ave., between West Broadway and West Third St. in Long Beach, the new courthouse replaces the 55 year-old Long Beach Courthouse at 415 W. Ocean Blvd.
Part of the Los Angeles Superior Court system, the old Long Beach Courthouse is one of a group of courthouses in California identified as having the greatest need for replacement. When the old courthouse opened in 1958, the city of Long Beach had a population of 344,168. The population today is approximately 650,000 – almost double.
The Long Beach Courthouse is part of what is known within the Los Angeles Superior Court as the South District. Including the San Pedro and Catalina Courthouses, the South District filed 162,895 cases in Fiscal Year 2011-2012. When the San Pedro and San Pedro-Beacon Street Courthouses closed earlier this year, the Long Beach Courthouse absorbed much of the business that had been handled at those locations. The new courthouse will hear civil, criminal, family law, unlawful detainer, juvenile delinquency and traffic matters.
Roughly 110,000 people enter the courthouse monthly. On busy days, the line of people waiting to enter the old courthouse might wrap around the building. The new courthouse was designed with a spacious, open entry and an expanded weapons screening area which will be able to accommodate the public in much greater numbers, eliminating long lines outside.
The number of operating courtrooms remains at 24; however, there is room to expand. Los Angeles County’s District Attorney, Public Defender, and Probation Dept. will all have offices in the new courthouse. In addition to the County agencies, the courthouse includes space for five retail occupants which will include The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf and Subway. A nearby parking structure was renovated to allow for increased public parking.
Innovative public-private financing provided the means to build the Gov. George Deukmejian Courthouse in these tight economic times. Long Beach Judicial Partners was selected by the Administrative Office of the Courts to finance, design, build, operate and maintain the new courthouse. Clark Construction Group managed the project’s design and construction. The completion of the new courthouse came in on time and under budget.
The old Long Beach Courthouse will cease operations permanently at the close of business this Friday, Sept. 6, 2013.
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