January 17, 1996

Court design to be selected

by Allison Freehling

Will it be a grand, two-story building with a clock tower, or a more modern, rectangular brick and glass building with skylights? A sprawling 58,610 square-foot brick building with south and west wings, or a more compact, three-story brick building with cupolas along the roof?

As a national design competition for a new James City County courthouse nears its final week, the answer will come soon from a panel of judges, who in December culled the four finalists from a field of 96 entries.

The courthouse will be built on a 600-acre field near the intersection of Ironbound Road and Monticello Avenue, and will serve as the anchor for a new town center for James City County.

The field’s owner, the Casey family of Williamsburg, co-sponsored the design competition with the county. The goal was to find models for a courthouse, as well as for a town plan, the complement but do not duplicate the architecture of Colonial Williamsburg.

The eight finalists – four courthouse and four town plans – have been on display in the County Government Center for more than a month. A winner in each category will be announced January 31, following several days of judging.