Transparency throughout

CEDAR RAPIDS - The new U.S. District Courthouse merges the formal with contemporary by integrating horizontally cut limestone and blast-resistant glass.

The materials make up 40 percent of the building and make the eight-story structure transparent.

The five state-of-the-art courtrooms are unique because of the number of windows that filter natural light, illuminating the stone walls, which serve as a backdrop for the judge's bench.

There is a special proceedings courtroom, which is larger than the other four. All are similarly designed, however, with wavelike ceilings for texture and limestone walls contrasting with cherry woodwork and furnishings.

The Gazette took a tour of the 286,000-square-foot courthouse Jan. 18 with General Services Administration and Ryan Companies as carpet was being laid in some offices and a terrazzo floor treatment - a mixture of aggregate and epoxy - was being spread on four floors in the public areas.

James Snedegar, General Services project manager, said terrazzo is used as flooring in most airports. The workers will grind the terrazzo and polish it by hand for a smooth finish.

Brad Thomason, team leader with Ryan Companies, said the scaffolding spanning several stories will come down by the end of the month, and the marble and stone staircase will soon be installed at the front of the building. The $182 million project is running on time and will be completed in July, with court officials moving in the last week of October, he said.

The courthouse is a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, structure. LEED is an internationally recognized environmental program, which certifies the building is energy-efficient in every way, Snedegar said. There are different levels of certification that a developer can attain - certified, silver, gold and platinum.

“This courthouse is silver now, but it's close to gold,” Snedegar said. “There are only three courthouses in the country that are gold. Five are silver, and four are basic or certified.”

Linda Reade, chief judge for the Northern District of Iowa, said the building will be an attention-grabber from the moment one enters.

“There will be a winding marble staircase with a glass railing in the front for a spectacular ...very dramatic entrance,” Reade said. “It's such a great space for the Clerk's Office and probation (offices), and all the courtrooms are fully handicapped-accessible, and ramps blend in with the design.”

Reade said she and the other judges participated in the design of the building. They spent a lot of time designing the sightlines in the courtrooms, so the jurors will have perfect views.

The day of the tour, some of the 150 to 200 construction workers who are in the building every day started to wire the courtrooms with cameras for video conferencing. Flat-panel monitors, which allow jurors to view exhibits and evidence up close without any interference, also were being added in the jury boxes.

Reade said the best part about the new building is that it's large enough to bring all the federal agencies together.

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court of the Northern District of Iowa, U.S. Attorney's Office, U.S. Marshal's Office, probation offices, General Services Administration and the Federal Public Defender will be tenants.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, Sen. Tom Harkin and 8th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Michael Melloy, all instrumental in getting the project off the ground after the 2008 flood, also will have office space in the building.

Snedegar said there also will be room for additional tenants in the future and room to expand the courts.

Melloy said the courthouse will be a huge asset to the downtown area.

“The transparency of the building was one of our goals, so anybody from the outside could see through the building to the other side (of the river view),” Melloy said. “It was a balance to have the transparency with security (required).”

Melloy said it's unfortunate it took a flood to get a new courthouse built in Cedar Rapids. The majority of newer federal courthouses have been built in border states because of immigration issues and the need for larger facilities. One exception was the last one built in Cape Girardeau, Mo.

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