SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA

Frequently Asked Questions about the New Santa Barbara Criminal Courthouse 1. What is the New Santa Barbara Criminal Courthouse?

The proposed courthouse includes the construction of a new criminal courthouse and parking for the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Barbara (Superior Court). The courthouse includes eight courtrooms, space to support courthouse operations, and improved security including a larger holding facility for in-custody defendants who are daily transported by the Sheriff from the main jail for their court appearances. In addition to the courthouse, off-site parking will be built to support the courthouse as well as county parking potentially displaced by the project. See Figures 1 and 2 at the end of this document for a Project Site Map and Conceptual Site Plan.
2. Why is a new courthouse needed?

The existing Superior Court has criminal courtrooms in both the Historic Anacapa Courthouse as well as in the Figueroa Division Courthouse. These courtrooms and supporting facilities no longer function well for criminal proceedings. Both facilities are severely lacking in security, for court staff, the public, jurors and witnesses. Prisoners cannot be moved from their holding cells in the basement into any of the trial courtrooms without crossing through public areas often including crossing a public street. In addition, the Figueroa Division Courthouse is overcrowded and has other physical deficiencies that impact the delivery of services. The new courthouse will be used to accommodate the existing caseload and new security requirements; there will be no new criminal courtrooms and no new employees added to the Superior Court as part of this project.
3. Will the new courthouse be in downtown Santa Barbara?

The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) recognizes the courts operational requirements as well as the strong community support for keeping the courthouse in downtown Santa Barbara. We are currently working with community leaders to explore site options. The AOC recognizes community collaboration is required to meet the goal of maintaining the courts historic presence in downtown Santa Barbara. Our goal is to keep the courthouse in downtown Santa Barbara, which will maximize the efficiency of court operations.

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Frequently Asked Questions: New Santa Barbara Criminal Courthouse project

4. Who owns the existing court facilities?

In 2002, the Trial Court Facilities Act made the state responsible for court facilities statewide. As part of a transfer agreement between the county and the AOC, the AOC assumed ownership of the Figueroa Division Courthouse and the Jury Assembly Building. The transfer agreement also specified that the County of Santa Barbara would continue to own the Historic Anacapa Courthouse. The Superior Court currently occupies and conducts business in all three buildings in south Santa Barbara County plus a small, remote juvenile facility.
5. Who is the AOC, and why are they managing this project?

The AOC is the staff agency to the Judicial Council of California. The Judicial Council is the policymaking body for the California judicial branch, which includes the trial courts, known as Superior Courts, based in each county. Among other responsibilities, the AOC is responsible for planning, acquisition, design, and construction of court facilities statewide. The AOC has regional offices in San Francisco, Sacramento and Burbank. The Superior Court is responsible for the management of all court operations within Santa Barbara County.
6. Why cant the existing courthouse be renovated?

The AOC studied the feasibility of renovating the existing Figueroa Division Courthouse and found that even with a new addition, the existing courthouse would not be large enough to accommodate all of the courts requirements to address critical security issues, nor the significant space shortfall that has occurred under the existing overcrowded facilities, nor would a new addition comply with the State Trial Court Facilities Standards. A renovation and addition of the existing courthouse would not provide adequate courtroom layouts or adequate security. Construction in the existing Figueroa Division Courthouse would also greatly disrupt court operations for an extended period of time, take longer to construct, and preliminary cost estimates determined that this option, which necessitates the temporary relocation of the court and at least six (6) fully operating courtrooms including a daytime holding facility for in-custody defendants, would cost as much or more than constructing a new courthouse.
7. How is the new courthouse being funded?

The proposed courthouse will be funded though a statewide increases in court fees, penalties, and assessments authorized by Senate Bill 1407 which passed in 2008. This bill approved the issuance of up to $5 billion in lease revenue bonds to fund this project and 40 others throughout the state. Since the funding from these projects comes from court user fees (court fees, penalties and assessments) collected by all 58 courts in California, the projects do not impact the state's General Fund.

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Frequently Asked Questions: New Santa Barbara Criminal Courthouse project

8. How many courtrooms will be in the new Santa Barbara courthouse?

The proposed new Santa Barbara Criminal Courthouse will have eight courtrooms replacing the six criminal courtrooms in the existing Figueroa Division and two criminal courtrooms that are in the Historic Anacapa Courthouse directly across the street. While these courtrooms are already in downtown Santa Barbara, they are deficient and are not secure. Beyond replacing these inadequate, existing courtrooms, there will be no new courtrooms or staff added to the new courthouse.
9. Who is the architect for the project?

The AOC received numerous proposals for architectural services for the proposed new Santa Barbara Criminal Courthouse. The AOC and the Santa Barbara Superior Court interviewed a short list of qualified architects. The award winning firm of Moore Ruble Yudell Architects and Planners of Santa Monica was selected. A local architect will also be selected to participate on the design team in an effort to ensure local design sensitivities. Local architects are currently being interviewed and a selection is expected by the end of April.
10. How will the local community have input regarding the courthouse project?

The AOC recognizes the importance of the local identity and historic presence of the court. It also recognizes the importance of community input on this project. The states funding process does not release design funds until acquisition of potential sites is complete; therefore, the AOC has not yet begun detailed design for this project. When the project is approved and design work begins, there are several avenues through which the local community will have input in the new courthouse project, including: The Project Advisory Group Currently, the Superior Court and a number of community leaders are involved in the project as members of the Project Advisory Group (PAG). The AOC involved a PAG with every capital project. The PAG advises on site selection, selection of the architectural team, programming, and other issues related to a new courthouse. The Design Advisory Group (DAG) A DAG will be formed and will be unique to the Santa Barbara courthouse. The DAG will be made up of members of the local community and will provide appropriate input into the design of the courthouse at identified project milestones. The DAG is being formed in recognition of the unique and historic nature of downtown Santa Barbara and the effort to ensure community input. Community Meetings The AOC will hold public meetings at key milestones in the design process to ensure the community is informed about the project and will solicit input regarding the project design. These meetings will include the participation of the citys Historic Landmarks Commission and Planning Commission. Page 3 of 4

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Frequently Asked Questions: New Santa Barbara Criminal Courthouse project

These three vehicles are being established so that the project architect is able to develop a building that meets the court's operational needs, as well as reflects community input. The architect is committed to producing a highly functional, high-quality courthouse design that will complement and enhance the architectural context of historic, downtown Santa Barbara.
11. Where are we in the process of building the new courthouse?

The project is currently in the site selection and acquisition phase involving due diligence to acquire the best site for the project. This project phase involves collaborative efforts between the AOC, the Superior Court, the County, and the City as well as environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Site selection must be approved by the Administrative Director of the Courts and the State Public Works Board (SPWB). Site acquisition agreements must also be approved by the SPWB before they can be executed. After site acquisition concludes, the project will continue with the design and construction phases. Site acquisition is scheduled for completion by early 2012.
12. Will the project hire local contractors and use local suppliers?

The AOC will contract with a Construction Manager to manage construction of the project, including local outreach to ensure qualified local subcontractors and suppliers have the opportunity to bid on construction work.
13. Will the new courthouse be energy-efficient and sustainably designed?

All courthouse projects funded by SB 1407 are being designed to achieve a LEED* Silver certification by the U.S. Green Building Council. This is a third-party certification program, and the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings. More information on LEED can be found here: http://www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CategoryID=19.
*LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), adapted from GBCs FAQ doc.

14. How will the community stay informed about the project? The AOC posts updates to the project on the project website, which can be found here: http://www.courts.ca.gov/2818.htm. For further information about this project please contact: Teresa Ruano Office of Communications Administrative Office of the Courts (415) 865-7447 Teresa.Ruano@jud.ca.gov 4/12/11 Betty Weiss, City Planner Community Development Department City of Santa Barbara (805) 564-5509 BWeiss@SantaBarbaraCA.gov Page 4 of 4

Existing Historic Courthouse

140 Feet

Existing Jury Services Building

E FIGUEROA ST

Existing Figueroa Division

A N A C A PA S T

029-211-006 Mobile Trailer Unit 029-211-007 029-211-008 029-211-009 029-211-025 County Probation Building (Not a part)

SA N TA BA R B A R A S T

029-211-002

029-212-023

GARDEN ST

029-212-019

029-212-011

E CARRILLO ST Legend Project Parcels Hayward Properties Existing Facilities

SOURCE: Santa Barbara County GIS; ESA, 2011.

Santa Barbara Courthouse Site . 208091.05

Figure 1 Project Site Map