County eyes annex decision

Jeremy Nash news-herald.net

Loudon County Commission plans to vote next month where to place the new courthouse annex.

Commissioners during Monday’s workshop took a hard look at using the old bacon creamery site in downtown Loudon. Knoxville firm Michael Brady Inc., even showed slides of the proposed exterior.

“I think to give that vision, give that picture in mind’s eye,” Rollen “Buddy” Bradshaw, county mayor, said. “Even though that’s very rough draft, nothing official, it may look similar, it may look nothing like that, but to be able to visualize it right there and see what it could be for our county I think is very important.”

The design showcased the building with two stories of 11,000 square feet each, Jay Henderlight, MBI representative, said.

Bradshaw wanted MBI’s help to give commissioners a starting point for discussion.

The county’s decision to consider the bacon creamery site is a reversal from October when Bradshaw thought the site was not an option.

Bradshaw credited the misunderstanding to a “lack of communication.” He has since spoken with city officials to gauge their willingness.

“They came in and had a solid conversation and officially asked, we talked about it, and I think that was a thing maybe we really hadn’t approached it as firm as we should have,” he said. “... I think everybody sees it as an opportunity as well to create some economic development right there. It fits very good into their overall plan as well as from a county standpoint keeping it here in the county seat provides a great site.”

Commissioner David Meers expressed interest in moving forward with the bacon creamery site, even to the point of suggesting a resolution be drawn up for the January meeting showing a commitment.

“That’s going to be most important thing, the court location, and hopefully that will be done in the January meeting,” Meers said.

Commissioner Kelly Littleton-Brewster believes there is enough support to move forward with the site.

“I feel sure that we’ll have county support, too, constituents to have it on the creamery site. This is our best option,” she said. “... Right now you’ve got courts spread across the county and we need to get everybody in-house where they need to be.”

Commissioner Van Shaver maintained that the best option is the justice center property. He pointed to officer safety as a priority.

“Not having to transport, the cost to transport for the next 100 years, 50 years, 75 years, it costs money to transport prisoners,” Shaver said. “You have have to have extra security and extra officers. You put the officers at risk when they have to load up violent inmates, put them in buses or cars or vans or however they choose that day to haul them down. There’s risks involved, as the corrections officer was killed in Roane County a few years ago.

“You can eliminate that if you’re adjacent to the justice center,” he added. “They take them out of their jail cell and walk them to court. Nobody is outside of the secure facility.”

During the workshop, Shaver emphasized the county has $7 million to spend. Commissioners in June authorized issuance of debt for up to a $7 million bond.

Henderlight said the justice center site could be costly for site preparation alone.

David Matlock, MBI representative, said the recently demolished creamery site could likely be the best option financially.

Loudon and Loudon Utilities Board representatives were present to show support, including Mayor Jeff Harris, Loudon/LUB Manager Ty Ross and LUB chairman Don P. Campbell.

“Like Kelly said, we are in support of what’s trying to happen here in the county and that’s what we want to do,” Campbell said during the workshop. “We’ve got property, no doubt about it, we’ve got property. In our opinion, that’s the perfect place to put it, the way the land lays right there.

“... We would have to vote on this, but we have from our discussions and our groups we’ve had very good support, and I would be highly surprised if it went any other way if you guys wanted to put it there. I’d be highly surprised if it went any other way than, ‘Yeah, we’ll give you the property’,” he added.

LUB meets again at 4:30 p.m. Jan. 27 at the Loudon Municipal Building. Commission will meet at 6 p.m. Jan. 6 at the Loudon County Courthouse Annex.

Plans for annex

Although discussion was brief regarding the interior of the annex, several county officials in attendance Monday share what they believed could work after Commissioner Matthew Tinker asked for their opinion.

“I don’t think you would need three courtrooms,” Criminal Court Judge Jeff Wicks said. “My opinion is one good-sized courtroom that I can fit a jury in and impanel jurors, because when you jurors you’re calling in 120-130 people. One large courtroom and one small courtroom is sufficient. It would obviously need a jury room, holding cells, judge’s courts off to the side somewhere. We need some way that we could get the inmates in and out of the courtroom in the courthouse without running through the general public.”

Loudon County Sheriff Tim Guider recommended he, Loudon County Circuit Court Clerk Steve Harrelson, judges and court staff have input on what would be included inside the building.

Local attorney Joe Ford said the county needs at least two courtrooms with the capability of having a jury.

“We need a place to be able to have a jury trial and if another court’s coming to town we have a time to do a jury trial there,” Ford said. “We’ve had situations where we’ve wanted to have special settings and there was just not the room. We’ve got one courtroom and we have nothing for the future. Our district has kind of been trapped for years by this one courtroom. It keeps the judges only being able to be in the county one at a time, ever.”

Russell Johnson, 9th judicial district attorney general, and Guider stressed keeping the county’s growth in mind.

“If you’re only going to have $7 million and you don’t build what you need, you’re wasting $7 million,” Chief Deputy Jimmy Davis said.