Project Description:
The Courthouse Square Project is the largest building project undertaken by the Genesee County Board of Commissioners involving the court system. The Board of Commissioners committed $26 million to improve the facility and restore some courtrooms to their original splendor. The historical restoration was completed through private contributions. The expansion included a 57,000 square foot addition to the historic Genesee County Courthouse to allow for all divisions of the Circuit and Probate Courts to be united in one facility. To make room for the new addition, the former jail was imploded in 1998. The Courthouse Project also included the renovation of the Gossett building and the demolition of the McAvinchey building. As part of the historical restoration project many of the courtrooms were restored back to their original condition. Chandeliers were cleaned and restored, and in some cases replicated, and significant effort was undertaken to return many of the courtrooms to the interior colors that were used when the courthouse was built. Restoration of the murals were also included in the project.
Background Information:
The land currently occupied by the Genesee County Courthouse has been the site of the center of justice for the county since 1838. The existing Courthouse was built in 1926 and is one of only a small number of neo-classical revival county courthouse buildings in Michigan. A jail was constructed a few years later on the Courthouse Square and closely matched it in design. The original Courthouse project was completed in sixteen months at a cost of $710,000. It was constructed of quality building materials including Indiana limestone, granite, marble and black walnut. The murals in the courtrooms were the showpieces of the Courthouse when it opened in 1926. Originally commissioned by Edgar Spier Cameron, the murals represented the industries that provided economic growth at that time including lumbering, agriculture and manufacturing, and also represented legal origins. Air conditioning and suspended ceilings were introduced to the Genesee County Courthouse in the early 1970s. It was during this period that sections of the mural below the ceiling line were removed.
For Additional information Contact:
Genesee County
1101 Beech Street
Flint, MI 48502
(810) 257-3020
