Justice Center Complex facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Justice Complex Center |
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Courts Tower (rear) and Jail II (left foreground)
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| General information | |
| Type | Government office building |
| Architectural style | Brutalist |
| Location | 1200 Ontario Street, Cleveland, Ohio, U.S. |
| Address | 1200 Ontario Street (Courts Tower); 1300 Ontario Street (Police); 1215 West 3rd Street (Corrections Center) |
| Coordinates | 41°30′06″N 81°41′49″W / 41.501664°N 81.696828°W |
| Construction started | 1972 |
| Completed | 1976 (Courts Tower, Corrections Center, Police Headquarters); 1995 (Jail II) |
| Height | |
| Roof | 128.1 m (420 ft) (Court Towers) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 25 (Courts Tower); 11 (Jail II); 10 (Corrections Center); 9 (Police Headquarters) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Prindle, Patrick and Associates (Court Towers and Correction Center [Jail I]); Richard L. Bowen and Associates (Cleveland Police Headquarters); Robert P. Madison International (Jail II) |
The Justice Center Complex is a group of important buildings in Cleveland, Ohio. It's located in the city's downtown area, known as the Civic Center District. This complex includes the Cleveland Police Headquarters, the Cuyahoga County and Cleveland Municipal Courts Tower, and two jails (Jail I and Jail II). These buildings take up a whole city block, bordered by Lakeside Avenue, Ontario Street, West 3rd Street, and St. Clair Avenue. The entrance on Lakeside Avenue faces the historic Cuyahoga County Courthouse.
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Building the Justice Center Complex
The idea for the Justice Center started in 1969. At first, the mayor of Cleveland, Carl B. Stokes, didn't want the city's police department to be part of this new project. The police headquarters was in an older building far away.
Getting Started with Construction
In 1971, a new mayor, Ralph Perk, was elected. He agreed that the police should move to the proposed Justice Center. The project was first expected to cost $60 million. However, disagreements between county and city officials made the cost go up to $128 million. Construction officially began on October 20, 1972, and the main buildings were finished in 1976.
The Courts Tower and Jail I
The tallest part of the complex is the Courts Tower, which has 26 floors. It was designed by Prindle, Patrick and Associates. Jail I was also built in 1976. It had 956 beds for people, arranged in groups of 23. These groups were designed to let in a lot of natural light. Some critics, like Steven Litt from The Plain Dealer newspaper, described the Courts Tower as looking "menacing" and "cold."
Adding Jail II
In 1995, a second jail, called Jail II, was built. It cost $68 million and was designed by Robert P. Madison International. Officials thought about building it outside the city. But they found it was cheaper to tear down two old buildings next to the Justice Center instead. Jail II added 480 more beds. To save money, Jail II was built without the stone covering that the other buildings have. This made it look different from the rest of the complex. Steven Litt also criticized Jail II, saying it looked "straight out of 1984" and didn't fit with the older buildings nearby.
Inside the Complex
In the middle of the complex, there's a four-story open area called an atrium. This atrium is the main public entrance and connects the Courts Tower, Police Headquarters, and Jail I. Its walls on the north, south, and east sides are made of glass. There are also enclosed walkways that connect Jail I and Jail II, and another one linking the Police Headquarters to Jail II. The entire complex has a huge amount of space inside, about 2.3 million square feet.
Unique Design Features
The Police Headquarters and Jail I have bases that are set back from the street. They have many columns and bays. Dark-colored glass makes interesting shadows on the buildings. The Police Headquarters and the atrium are also set further back from Ontario Street than the Courts Tower. This creates an open paved area in front.
The Portal Sculpture
At the northwestern end of this open area is a famous sculpture called Portal. It was created by Isamu Noguchi and given to the city in 1977. This sculpture cost $100,000 and stands 36 feet tall. It's one of Noguchi's most well-known works and a symbol of the Justice Center. While one art critic joked it looked like "justice going down the drain," other artists like John Clague and Clement Meadmore have praised it highly.
Building Updates and Repairs
Over the years, parts of the Justice Center have been updated.
- In 1995, the stone covering on the Courts Tower, Police Headquarters, and Jail I was repaired. This cost $3.2 million.
- In 1999, both Jail I and Jail II had a $13 million renovation. These updates increased the number of beds in Jail I to 1,749.
The Future of the Justice Complex
In 2013, officials from Cuyahoga County asked Osborne Engineering to study the condition of the Justice Center Complex.
Findings of the Study
The report, released in 2014, found that the complex was in bad shape. It pointed out many problems with how the original three buildings were designed and built, which affected how long they would last. The county's Public Works Director, Michael Dever, said that the electrical system, plumbing, elevators, and heating and cooling systems all needed to be replaced.
The buildings also weren't built for modern technology. They have trouble with things like Wi-Fi and mobile phones, and many parts of the complex can't use them. The report estimated that fixing everything would cost at least $300 million. Building new structures in their place, which would involve tearing down the Police Headquarters and Courts Tower, was estimated to cost $429 million.
Considering New Buildings
County officials have started to think that the Justice Complex should be torn down. They are considering building a new "justice center" somewhere else in downtown Cleveland. Michael Gallagher, a county council member, told The Plain Dealer that new ways of designing jails make the current Jail I very old-fashioned. He also said that simply renovating the buildings wouldn't fix their original design flaws. However, officials have stressed that no new location has been chosen yet, and no plans or budgets have been made.
