Nearly five years after Hurricane Florence flooded downtown New Bern, work to repair the Craven County Courthouse is set to enter Phase 3 work, which comes with an estimated price tag of $6.7 million.
In September 2022, Craven County received $5.6 million through a State Capital and Infrastructure Fund (SCIF) grant for the Craven County Courthouse Rebuild Project, which funds necessary repairs and renovations to address damages caused by the storm.
The work focuses on the old sheriff’s office and jail located on Craven Street that is attached to the county courthouse. The property includes the county’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and provides access to the second and third floors of the courthouse.
During the storm the basement area was flooded with more than 9 feet of water and the public access elevator was damaged.
According to Assistant Country Manager Gene Hodges, Phase 3 of the project will include a new, more accessible entrance and an elevator that provides access to all parts of the building. It will also include floodproofing for the portion of the facility that is below street level.
Oakley Collier Architects and Barnhill Contracting were hired to perform the design and construction work on the project. Hodges said the county has negotiated a guaranteed maximum price of $6,777,988 for Phase 3 construction work.
During their April 3 meeting, the Craven County Board of Commissioners approved a budget amendment in the amount of $2,000,786 to supplement the $5.6 million in SCIF funds already on hand for the project. The amendment covers $1,777,988 for general construction and $222,798 in architect and engineering fees. Hodges said the additional funding would allow the county to move forward with contract change orders for both Barnhill and Oakley Collier.
According to Hodges, the money will come from the county’s general fund balance but will largely be reimbursed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency after the work has been completed.
According to information provided by Barnhill Contracting, Phase 3 work is scheduled to be substantially finished by late June of 2024.
Hodges said the county has also secured funding to add a secondary generator on site within the next several years to address power outages experienced by the county’s EOC during Hurricane Florence.
Commissioner Dennis Bucher explained that the county is required by law to maintain a functioning infrastructure for the county’s court system.
“Since this storm, going on five years now, that building has not been totally accessible, particularly for people who are handicapped,” he commented. “If we had a storm today, we could have a ton of water back in the lower level of that building. A big part of this renovation is to make sure that doesn’t happen in the future…It sounds like a lot of money, and it is a lot of money but it’s a requirement, we don’t have a choice.”
By Todd Wetherington, co-editor. Send an email with questions or comments.
Related article: Opening date for New Bern Holiday Inn Express & Suites pushed back six months