SPRINGFIELD – Faced with more interest and proposals for a new courthouse than expected, state officials have extended the selection date of a location and developer to mid-2026.
In the initial timeline, the state’s Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance had said it would identify the preferred project by the end of the first quarter of 2026, which would be in March. Officials have now pushed that back a few months, a spokesperson for the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance said Thursday.
The highly-anticipated Springfield Regional Justice Center project calls for a private developer to build a new 220,000 to 300,000 square-foot building in downtown Springfield to replace the existing and troubled Roderick Ireland Courthouse and the outdated Housing and Juvenile court building next door. The state will then lease the building under a 40-to-60-year agreement.
The building is expected to cost roughly $600 million to construct and the project is expected to be worth some $2 billion over its lifetime.
“DCAMM and the Trial Court are working diligently to review each proposal and to gather additional information necessary to make an informed selection,” division officials said a statement.
In October, the state revealed a total of 10 projects had been submitted by the deadline. They range from a mixed-use development along the Connecticut River and one on Liberty Street to two separate side-by-side proposals to be constructed near Union Station. Others are proposed for Tower Square and The Springfield Republican building on Main Street.
The Republican has no involvement with the project. In a separate transaction, the company also sold 9 acres of land to be used for the proposal on the riverfront.
State officials called it positive to receive so many proposals but said each has to be carefully vetted before a contract is awarded.
Examiners have already visited the different locations and are reviewing insights gleaned from each tour. In addition, they are evaluating information in each plan, asking any clarifying questions and reviewing any interactions the state has had with developers, a DCAMM spokesperson said.
City leaders have confirmed that state officials have been actively looking at the different sites in the downtown and doing their due diligence to choose the best location.
“From our standpoint DCAMM has been good to Springfield and their commitment to downtown has been great,” said Timothy Sheehan, chief economic development officer for the city. “It is a win from the city’s perspective just with the commitments they have already made.”
The city has no real input in selecting the location but the developers will have to work through the permitting processes and a series of negotiations like any other business. Similar to the MGM Springfield project, all the infrastructure around the site will have to be examined and likely be upgraded, Sheehan said.
Because the courthouse will be privately owned, the developers will have to pay real estate taxes, which is also a plus for the city since the state pays little on property it owns in any community.
Mayor Domenic J. Sarno has long supported the idea of a new courthouse and has spoken favorably about Peter Picknelly’s idea to include a courthouse with a mixed-use development along the riverfront.
“The forthcoming selection of the site for the new Regional Justice Center in downtown Springfield will bring significant positive change to downtown,” Sarno said in a recent column about the business outlook for the city.