Monday, April 21, 2008 - 1:45 PM PDT
PDC cuts check to Multnomah County for new courthouse
Portland Business Journal
The Portland Development Commission has contributed nearly $9 million to relocate the Hawthorne Bridge off-ramp to make way for a much-needed new courthouse for Multnomah County.
The PDC voted in November to provide most of the estimated $10.7 million it will cost to move the ramp to free up the block for construction of a courthouse.
The county announced today it has received the money from the city's development agency.
"I am encouraged by the commitment the Portland Development Commission is making to help Multnomah County prepare the site for a new courthouse," said County Commissioner Lisa Naito in a statement.
Constructed in 1914, the current courthouse is the busiest in the state but is ill-suited to the needs of a modern justice system. County officials have studied the structure for more than 40 years and concluded it would be unsafe in an earthquake.
A new courthouse would cost an estimated $250 million to construct, but no source for the money has been found.
In the interim, the city and county are creating space for a new courthouse at the intersection of Southwest First and Main street, adjacent the World Trade Center.
Westbound drivers on Hawthorne currently enter the city via a soft curve. That alignment would be replaced with a hard right, leading to the same destination.
The PDC is funding its share of the project from the final bonds sale for its Downtown Waterfront Urban Renewal Area.
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